A straight valance can make small bathrooms feel more spacious

Bathrooms often require that you choose curtains and other design features that aren't too large or showy. These rooms tend to be compact, and overwhelming them with flowing window treatments or elaborate lighting fixtures may make guests or family members feel claustrophobic.

However, just because you shouldn't overwhelm your bathroom with ornate decor, that doesn't mean you can't display a fierce amount of style into your lavatory.

Valances are perfect in these spaces because they hang high from the top of your window, and the right design can give a clean look to the space. The perfect kind of valance is one that hangs flat, without creases, displaying an intricate pattern without weighing down the room.

A straight valance accomplishes this effectively because, more than working to provide shade, the pattern or color displayed works to bring a dynamic element to the room without suffocating the space.

In especially cramped bathrooms, you can use a valance to actually enhance the height of the walls and make the space appear larger.Installing the valance high above the window, close to the ceiling, and still concealing the molding along the windows top, will make the window appear bigger, and the room itself taller.

Straight valances work best in rooms with modern touches, like clean lines on all of the surfaces and minimal ornamentation on the handles and fixtures throughout. This kind of design direction works best in the bathroom because smaller spaces like these tend to be prone to clutter, and a straight valance can make them feel less cramped.