We don't talk enough about Big Curtain.
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We don't talk enough about Big Curtain. Nobody has ever moved from one home to another and been able to just hang up the same curtains. Nobody they know can use the curtains they now can't use because the curtains don't fit anyone else's windows either. No curtain has ever fit any other window. Not once, not ever, never in the history of the human world.
Just to go off on a bit of a tangent - but I promise, it's relevant(ish):
Decades ago, some friends were buying a house from an elderly couple. As our friends were just starting out, they negotiated a price for the carpets and curtains that were already hanging in the house, to save them having to fork out for new ones.
All went smoothly, until the day they moved in, to find carpets and curtains in every room - but not the ones that had been there at the house viewing. All of the 'new' curtains were six inches too short for the windows, and none of the carpets actually reached the walls.
When they enquired about this, the vendors smugly said that whilst they *had* bought some carpets and curtains, technically they were never promised the *original* ones. Apparently, the couple's daughter had swapped the nice ones in the house for her own grotty ones.
Lawyers were briefly involved. Our friends got compensation (and some pretty grubby threatening phone calls off the daughter).
People do bad things when under the thrall of Big Curtain.
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We don't talk enough about Big Curtain. Nobody has ever moved from one home to another and been able to just hang up the same curtains. Nobody they know can use the curtains they now can't use because the curtains don't fit anyone else's windows either. No curtain has ever fit any other window. Not once, not ever, never in the history of the human world.
@CiaraNi I will never understand why people don't leave their curtains behind when they move out. And am very grateful for the ones who did (I moved a lot).
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@CiaraNi @ApAlun We had some tenants move out. And we discovered that some of the curtain fittings were missing or broken. And we discovered that you can't buy them any more.
Fortunately I also discovered that back in the day I'd bought an additional rail and set of fittings for a window half way up the stairs that I eventually chickened out of fitting - working at height isn't really my thing - so I had just enough spares to cannibalise.
@TimWardCam @CiaraNi I now have a cellar full of surplus curtain rail fittings which I am hanging onto as "they might be useful one day". No doubt I will get rid of them in a decluttering purge only to need them the week after.
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@CiaraNi @ApAlun We had some tenants move out. And we discovered that some of the curtain fittings were missing or broken. And we discovered that you can't buy them any more.
Fortunately I also discovered that back in the day I'd bought an additional rail and set of fittings for a window half way up the stairs that I eventually chickened out of fitting - working at height isn't really my thing - so I had just enough spares to cannibalise.
@TimWardCam @ApAlun I was going to say that was lucky, but it wasn't luck, it was foresight!
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@TimWardCam @CiaraNi I now have a cellar full of surplus curtain rail fittings which I am hanging onto as "they might be useful one day". No doubt I will get rid of them in a decluttering purge only to need them the week after.
@ApAlun @TimWardCam I have a similar stash of fittings from different homes and moves - mounting brackets, the odd door handle, curtain rings, etc. And motley screws and bolts. The chance of them fitting something I need in the future is slim, but someone else might need exactly this one particular kind of out-of-date curtain ring I still have. I'd love a community system of 'rummage boxes' for stuff like this. Something like a 'Free Little Library' in neighbourhoods, but for this kind of stuff.
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@CiaraNi I will never understand why people don't leave their curtains behind when they move out. And am very grateful for the ones who did (I moved a lot).
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@CiaraNi I will never understand why people don't leave their curtains behind when they move out. And am very grateful for the ones who did (I moved a lot).
@snowgaze People do sometimes offer the curtains to the new owner or tenant for a reasonable price, much cheaper than new. Necessity can prevent this, though. Curtains are such a major expense and tailored ones take ages. And moving is miserably expensive in itself. So I think people often take curtains with them, knowing they won't fit properly in the new place. But they'll hang them in a make-shift way as a 'make-do' for a while, just to have privacy until they can get proper ones.
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Just to go off on a bit of a tangent - but I promise, it's relevant(ish):
Decades ago, some friends were buying a house from an elderly couple. As our friends were just starting out, they negotiated a price for the carpets and curtains that were already hanging in the house, to save them having to fork out for new ones.
All went smoothly, until the day they moved in, to find carpets and curtains in every room - but not the ones that had been there at the house viewing. All of the 'new' curtains were six inches too short for the windows, and none of the carpets actually reached the walls.
When they enquired about this, the vendors smugly said that whilst they *had* bought some carpets and curtains, technically they were never promised the *original* ones. Apparently, the couple's daughter had swapped the nice ones in the house for her own grotty ones.
Lawyers were briefly involved. Our friends got compensation (and some pretty grubby threatening phone calls off the daughter).
People do bad things when under the thrall of Big Curtain.
@Badgardener That's amazing. People are amazing. If only people like that put their creative thinking to good use instead of bad!
"People do bad things when under the thrall of Big Curtain."
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J jwcph@helvede.net shared this topic
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We don't talk enough about Big Curtain. Nobody has ever moved from one home to another and been able to just hang up the same curtains. Nobody they know can use the curtains they now can't use because the curtains don't fit anyone else's windows either. No curtain has ever fit any other window. Not once, not ever, never in the history of the human world.
@CiaraNi I’ve always left curtains behind for precisely that reason. What’s the point of taking them away when you aren’t going to be able to use them anywhere? To me, carpets and curtains are as much part of the house as the paint or wallpaper on the walls.
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@CiaraNi I’ve always left curtains behind for precisely that reason. What’s the point of taking them away when you aren’t going to be able to use them anywhere? To me, carpets and curtains are as much part of the house as the paint or wallpaper on the walls.
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@CiaraNi I’ve always left curtains behind for precisely that reason. What’s the point of taking them away when you aren’t going to be able to use them anywhere? To me, carpets and curtains are as much part of the house as the paint or wallpaper on the walls.
@nusher It's a great idea to leave them to the new people if they want them and if you can. Perhaps for a nominal price.
I think people sometimes take curtains with them in a flash of optimism, especially if they were chosen to match their decor and furniture. They hope to tailor them to fit. And they may hang them in some make-shift way, not fitting properly, at first, just for privacy in a new place until they can either tailor the old ones or get new ones.
