Visiting Amsterdam some years ago, I was surprised by the absence of curtains in the front windows of houses on busy streets. Rather than deterring voyeurs, the windows were adorned with dangling glass ornaments to attract the attention of passers-by. Behind them residents moved around in tidy rooms. 'If you put up curtains, people would think you had something to hide,' explained my Dutch friend. We must have a lot to hide in the UK, lurking ashamedly behind a bewildering variety of curtains and blinds with exotic names. Street-facing windows, we feel, should both let light in (the purpose for which they were designed) and keep prying eyes out. These conflicting requirements led to the creation of the eminently twitchable net curtain. Nowadays, the chic minimalist answer to the problem is costly replacement window panes with frosted glass. But there are also a wide variety of frosted-effect adhesive window films available that are equally effective - and they are even removable if you change your mind and decide to go Dutch.

FrostBrite film from the Window Film Company is available on 122cm-wide rolls (from £25 for 1m). The Window Film Company will also cut film to the exact size of your panes. Designer Emma Jeffs has come up with the prettiest designs for window film, which will allow you to indulge in your secret nostalgia for the net curtain whilst remaining thoroughly of-the-moment. Her lace designs cost £47 for a 1m x 1.2m roll, but if you fancy taking the audacious step of having a coloured lace design, blue, pink and grey rolls are currently reduced to £25. To apply this kind of film, you spray the glass with water first, making it easy to slide into place, and use a squeegee to smooth out any bubbles. Jeff's designs range from traditional lace to pixels and geometric designs. But privacy isn't the only issue to consider when choosing how to dress a window. Heat conservation and draught exclusion are equally important, especially in Victorian houses. And here we encounter the tricky issue of hanging curtains in bay windows.

A safe bet would be John Lewis's flexible bay bends in brass (£49) and steel (£39) to fit their range of poles. Showing an impressive array of valances, pelmets and swags, the Denmay Interiors website is a great one to scan for inspiration. If you live in London, Denmay curtain-maker and designer extraordinaire Malek Menad will visit your home for a free consultation. To my mind, the simplest and most effective way of hanging curtains on a pole is with eyelets set into the fabric, backed at the top with sturdy tape, and acting as rings with the pole passing through them. Malek will make curtains with eyelets for around £100 per pair. If you want to do it yourself, Curtain Corner sells eyelet tape (£2.26 per metre) and snap-on eyelets in a variety of finishes (£3.75 for five). For very special fabric you can't beat Watts of Westminster, which has been producing sumptuous woven fabrics in silk and wool to draughty churches and stately homes since 1874. Their new renditions of these designs cost from £130 per metre.

Not cheap, but gorgeous. Where draughts aren't an issue, blinds can add character to a room and can be made to fit awkward shaped windows. ssf curtains sdn bhdElla Doran's made-to-measure roller blinds (from £200) are works of art, digitally printed with one of her quirky photographic images. dotty blue blackout curtainsVertical blinds from master blind-makers Faber start at £79. curtains tumutHabitat has an interesting sliding blind, also useful as a room divider, in a material made largely of paper (£75).curtains ireland harry corry During the long hot summers in the Med, window coverings are required to let air in whilst keeping light out.

Slatted shutters are the age-old solution, with a variety of ingenious hinges and fastening devices. Perhaps with an eye on global warming, Shaftesburys is making them for British windows: Shaftesburys shutters start at £180 per sq m and can be made to fit almost any window.Stitches - Made to Order Curtains & Soft FurnishingsA great view from this window so just some simple blackout lined romans to frame a he window. Natural linen fabric from Ada & Ina on Evans Textiles chain cassette tracksSimpler window dressings are the order of the day. Elaborate curtain treatments have given way to plainer styles while fancy swags and tails, frills and furbelows are consigned to the past! Try these easy-to-follow curtain ideas to suit your windows.Choose a plain wooden, metal or painted curtain pole and an unfussy heading such as simple gathered heading or pencil pleat heading which has a relaxed effect. In the blue bedroom above, with a little desk concealed in the bureau, a modern version of a blue and white toile (beasties linen by Celia Birtwell) a white pole and pencil-pleat heading look suitably informal.

All the colours in this room are harmonious, including the curtain fabric -  in a warm shade of blue.Alternatively curtains can be designed as a simple sleeve to go over the pole or as tab-topped design - with tabs made in the same fabric. A simple sleeve-design or tab-top work best with lightweight fabrics, such as a fine linen - where you don't need to open and close the curtains too often - as neither system is as easy to draw as rings.In a bedroom a simple pelmet which softens the top of the window and hides the heading too can work well.  For a less-fussy look make it in the same fabric as the curtains, as in the bedroom above (with floral linen by Bennison). Opt for a plain design or a soft-scalloped edge and position well above the edge of the window to avoid cutting out too much light.Lined curtains work well in a bedroom where you need to cut out bright light. Black-out lining can be used as an interliner, or as a lining, and comes in black, white, or off-white. It can also act as an insulator - especially if you use both together.

Try John Lewis or Villa Nova who do a range of patterned fabrics with a black out backing. Elsewhere, lighter, unlined curtains can have a fresh appeal and can look more contemporary. For lighter curtaining, tensioned wires and clips (try Ikea), or half-cafe curtains work well, especially for sheer fabrics.As a change to traditional, plain lining fabrics you could contrast two fabrics together, with one as a lining, though this will be more expensive. Utilitarian ticking patterns look good used as linings.Curtaining awkwardly shaped windows is tricky. For deep dormer windows portiere rods which swing to the side (and sit inside the embrasure) are a great solution where there is no room for traditional curtains, or where they would cut too much light. Try Jim Lawrence for iron rods.Bay windows are another difficult window to curtain. A pole system that runs around the whole bay so that two curtains can cover the area and be drawn back outside the window are best. John Lewis have a system where the rings can be run past the brackets to allow this to work.