You move into a new rental apartment, walk up to the living room window, and pull back the curtains — except there are no curtains.
Instead, you are greeted by clackety, yellowed plastic vertical blinds or bent metal mini-blinds.
They let in harsh glare, rattle every time the AC turns on, and make your entire apartment look like a dated office cubicle.
You want to take them down and hang soft, floor-length linen drapes. But when you look at the top mounting rail, you realize taking it down means unscrewing heavy brackets from the drywall, leaving gaping holes that will cost you part of your security deposit.
On subreddits like r/interiordecorating and r/ApartmentHacks, renters ask about this constantly: “How do I hang curtains over blinds in a rental without taking the blinds down or drilling into the wall?”
The good news? You don’t have to live with naked blinds, and you don’t need to drill a single hole.
Here are 4 damage-free bracket methods to hang curtains over existing rental blinds, plus 3 styling tricks to completely hide those plastic slats.
Table of Contents
Why You Shouldn’t Remove Rental Blinds Completely
Before looking at hanging methods, here is why trying to take rental blinds down completely is usually a bad idea:
Storage Damage: Vertical blinds are 6 to 8 feet long. Storing them under a bed or in a closet for years often leads to bent slats, snapped plastic clips, or lost mounting screws.
Strict Lease Clauses: Many property management companies consider window blinds part of the building’s exterior uniform. If your building requires all windows to look white from the outside, removing blinds violates your lease.
Drywall Repair Costs: Blinds are mounted into drywall anchors. Removing them leaves large 1/2-inch holes that require spackling, sanding, and touch-up paint before move-out inspection.
The Solution: Leave the blinds attached to the wall, open the slats completely, and mount your curtain rod over or around the existing hardware.
Method 1: Use “Nono Brackets” (Attaches Directly to Blind Rails)
If your rental has vertical blinds with a bulky metal box headrail at the top, Nono Brackets are the ultimate renter hack.
These specially engineered metal brackets slide directly over the top of existing vertical blind headrails—zero wall contact, zero adhesive, and zero drilling.
How to install Nono Brackets:
Slide the bracket over the top edge of the existing vertical blind headrail.
Tighten the built-in thumbscrew on the bracket by hand until it grips the rail firmly.
Place a standard 1-inch curtain rod into the bracket holder.
Hang your curtain panels on either side.
Best for: Vertical blinds in living rooms, patio sliding doors, and bedroom windows.
If your rental windows feature wooden trim molding around the frame, tap-in brackets (such as Kwik-Hang) allow you to hang heavy blackout or velvet drapes.
Instead of drilling into drywall, these steel brackets feature tiny downward-facing steel pins that rest on top of the wooden window casing.
How to install tap-in brackets:
Position the bracket on the top left corner of the wooden window trim.
Tap the top of the bracket gently with a hammer or mallet.
The tiny steel pins sink into the top edge of the trim where no one can see them.
Repeat for the right corner.
Set your curtain rod into place.
Why landlords don’t notice: The tiny pinholes are on the top horizontal edge of the trim — an area invisible to anyone standing in the room and never checked during move-out inspections.
Weight Capacity: Holds up to 20 lbs. Great for heavy thermal drapes.
Method 3: Command Curtain Rod Brackets (For Smooth Drywall)
If your window has no wooden trim and no vertical blind rail (just plain drywall around mini-blinds), use heavy-duty Command Curtain Rod Brackets.
These use stretch-release adhesive strips to hold curtain brackets flat against smooth drywall.
How to ensure Command brackets don’t fall:
Clean with Rubbing Alcohol: Wipe the drywall area next to the window with rubbing alcohol to remove dust and wall oil. Let dry for 10 minutes.
Press Firmly: Press the adhesive strip to the wall for 30 seconds.
Wait 1 Hour: Allow the adhesive bond to cure for 60 minutes before resting any weight on it.
Use Lightweight Curtains: Pair Command brackets with lightweight sheer, linen-blend, or thin cotton curtain panels and a light 5/8-inch metal or wooden rod.
⚠️ Weight Warning: Do not use adhesive brackets for heavy velvet or thermal blackout drapes. Excess weight will pull the paint off the wall. Stick to lightweight panels under 5 lbs total.
Method 4: Heavy-Duty Spring Tension Rods (Inside Mount)
If you prefer a clean, tailored look inside the window recess, use an inside-mount heavy-duty spring tension rod.
Tension rods use internal spring pressure wedged between the left and right inner window frames — touching zero drywall surfaces outside the frame.
Pro Tip for Maximum Hold:
Twist the tension rod so it is 1 inch wider than the actual window opening. Compress the spring by pushing one end inward, wedge it into place inside the window frame, and release. The extra spring compression keeps the rod from slipping down over time.
3 Styling Hacks to Completely Hide Ugly Rental Blinds
Installing curtain rods is only half the job. Here is how to style your curtains so no one notices the plastic blinds behind them:
1. The Side-Stacking Trick
Twist your vertical blinds completely open (so the slats are parallel to each other), then slide all the slats to the outer edges of the window track. Pull your curtain panels over those stacked edges. The fabric covers the gathered plastic slats entirely while letting natural light pour through the open center glass.
2. Hang High and Wide
Mount your curtain brackets 4 to 6 inches higher than the window frame and 6 inches wider on each side. This tricks the eye into thinking your rental window is much larger than it is and hides ugly blind headrails near the ceiling line.
3. Choose Textured Woven Fabrics
Avoid thin, flat synthetic polyester curtains that cling static-like to plastic blinds. Choose linen-blend, waffle-weave, or slub cotton fabrics. The natural texture breaks up harsh linear blind shapes.
Move-Out Day Window Restoration Checklist
When your lease is up, restoring your windows takes less than 10 minutes:
For Nono Brackets: Loosen the thumbscrew by hand and lift the bracket off the blind rail.
For Tap-In Brackets: Tap the underside of the bracket upward with a rubber mallet to lift the pins out of the top trim.
For Command Brackets: Hold the plastic bracket steady and pull the adhesive tab straight down slowly along the wall until it releases. Never pull the tab outward.
For Tension Rods: Twist the rod to loosen spring pressure and lift out.
Inspect window trim and drywall for dust, wiping clean with a damp microfiber cloth.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Can you hang curtains over vertical blinds without taking the blinds down? A: Yes! Outside-mount Nono Brackets clamp directly onto the existing top metal headrail of vertical blinds, allowing you to hang a curtain rod and drapes directly over the blinds without unscrewing anything from the wall.
Q: Will Kwik-Hang tap-in brackets damage wooden window trim? A: Tap-in brackets leave two tiny pinholes on the top horizontal edge of the wooden frame. Because these pinholes are on top of the trim, they are completely invisible from standing height and do not cause split wood or noticeable damage.
Q: How much weight can Command curtain rod brackets hold? A: Standard Command curtain brackets hold up to 5 lbs per pair when applied to clean, smooth drywall. They are best suited for lightweight sheer, cotton, or linen-blend curtain panels.
Q: How do I hide vertical blinds on a sliding glass door in a rental? A: Attach Nono Brackets to the vertical blind headrail above the sliding door, extend the curtain rod 8 inches past the door frame on both sides, and hang floor-length curtains. Keep the vertical blinds rotated open and pulled to the sides behind the curtain fabric.
Final Thoughts
You do not have to spend your entire lease staring at sterile, noisy, yellowed rental blinds.
Whether you use Nono Brackets on vertical rails, tap-in brackets on wooden trim, Command brackets on drywall, or a simple tension rod, hanging real curtains is one of the single most impactful upgrades you can make to a rental apartment.
Pick up a set of no-drill brackets this weekend, hang a pair of warm linen drapes, and watch your living room transform into a soft, high-end space.
No drilling. No drywall holes. Full deposit returned.
Living Room Makeover: Want to fix the rest of your living space? Read our landlord-safe renter friendly living room ideas guide.
Living Room Lighting: Pair your new curtains with warm lamps using our renter friendly living room lighting guide.
Wall Decor Hacks: Hanging art near your windows? See our landlord-proof wall decor guide for damage-free hanging tips.
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One thought on “No Drill, No Damage: How to Hang Curtains Over Ugly Rental Blinds”