Hanging curtain rods, blinds and shelves in thick walls
Quick answer
Find out what the wall is made of with a small hidden test hole, then use wood screws, plaster toggles or masonry anchors to match. Deep reveals suit inside-mount shades.
One of the first things people notice in San Gabriel's older Mission Revival and Spanish-style homes is the depth of the windows. Thick plaster walls, sometimes over masonry, create deep window reveals and wide sills. Arched openings, recessed niches and rounded corners add to the look.
It is beautiful, and it makes simple jobs like hanging curtain rods, blinds or shelves more interesting.
This guide covers what you might be drilling into, how to plan window treatments for deep openings, and what our mounting visit involves.
What is behind the surface
Older San Gabriel homes vary a lot. You might find:
- Wood framing with plaster over wood or metal lath, the most common case in revival-era homes
- Brick, hollow clay tile or concrete masonry covered with plaster, more common around fireplaces and in some heavier-walled houses
- True adobe in a small number of very old buildings
- Drywall in rooms that were remodeled
The material decides the fastener. Wood framing takes wood screws or lag screws into studs. Plaster over lath between studs takes toggle-style anchors.
Masonry needs a masonry bit, and often a hammer drill, plus sleeve anchors, concrete screws or plastic plugs sized for the hole. Adobe requires special care and long, gentle anchors, and often the better choice is to mount to wood elements, like a window frame, rather than the earthen wall.
Inside-mount or outside-mount window treatments
Deep window reveals give you a choice most newer homes do not.
Inside mount means blinds or shades are installed inside the window opening, attached to the top of the reveal. It shows off the depth of the wall and the shape of the opening. You need enough depth for the headrail, which is rarely a problem in thick walls, and the top of the reveal must give fasteners something to grip.
Outside mount means rods or shades go on the wall above and outside the opening. It lets curtains cover the whole window and stack off to the sides when open, which lets in more light. With arched windows, outside mounting above the arch is often the simplest option.
Arched tops are a common puzzle. Options include a straight rod mounted above the arch, a flexible curved rod that follows the shape, or shades mounted inside below where the arch begins.
What you can do yourself
Light curtain rods on a framed wall with plaster over wood lath are a reasonable do-it-yourself job. Mark your positions, put painter's tape over each spot, and drill pilot holes at slow speed to avoid cracking plaster. Use screws into wood where possible, and plaster-rated anchors where not.
When to call us
- Heavy drapes, double rods or long spans across wide openings
- Shelves on thick walls, especially floating shelves
- Anything on masonry, a fireplace wall, or an uncertain wall
- Inside-mount blinds in reveals where the top surface is plaster over masonry
- Arched or rounded openings that need a custom fit
What our mounting visit involves
We start by confirming the wall material with a small test hole hidden by a bracket. Then we plan the layout, measuring from the opening and the ceiling rather than the floor, since floors and ceilings in older homes are not always level with each other.
We mark everything level and check it against the lines of the room so it looks right, not just measures right.
Fasteners match the wall: lag screws into framing, toggles in plaster over lath, and masonry anchors in brick, block or concrete. Every hole is pre-drilled with tape over the surface to keep plaster edges clean. For inside-mount shades in a masonry reveal, we use masonry anchors sized to the bracket.
For shelves, we find framing or solid masonry and use brackets or hidden hardware rated for the load. Deep windowsills can also become display shelves, and we can tell you whether a sill can safely carry plants or books. Our mounting and assembly page has the details.
Protecting the plaster
Old plaster is less forgiving than drywall. Tape every hole location, drill slowly, avoid overtightening anchors, and do not hammer. If a chip happens, we patch it with a material that matches your wall before we leave; see our wall patching page.
If you are taking down old hardware, fill the holes properly before putting new hardware nearby, so the new anchors have solid material around them.
Planning tips for older homes
Iron grilles and exterior details
Many revival-style homes in San Gabriel have decorative wrought iron grilles over front windows, iron balconettes, or carved wood headers. When mounting anything near them, like a shade bracket on the outside or a security camera beside a window, we keep fasteners clear of the ironwork's own anchors and avoid drilling into decorative wood.
If a grille itself is loose in the stucco, mention it; reattaching it with the right masonry anchors is often a quick fix while we are on site.
Send photos of the windows, with a tape measure across the opening and a note about the treatments you want, to (626) 684-3505, and we will tell you how we would mount them.
Mounting work on the west side of town usually means lunch at Newport Seafood on Las Tunas; we just plan around their Tuesday closure.
Want us to handle it?
Call or text (626) 684-3505, Mon–Sat 8:30 AM–7 PM. Send a photo and we will give you an upfront quote.
Call or text (626) 684-3505