For many rooms, curtains can actually ‘make a room’ when done correctly. But sometimes it can be difficult to understanding and visualise what will work and what will not. For example, what kind of fabric, colour, length and should you invest a custom-made curtains or will it be good enough to go for off-the-shelf curtains?
Here are a couple of tips as to how you can pick the right curtains for your home.
From Kate Forman
1. Fabric
Choosing the right fabric for the curtains is key to finding the perfect curtains for a room. It will dictate how well the curtains function and hold over time. It’s important to understand the weight of a fabric and how this will work with the design of the room. If the fabric is heavy it will not fold well when drawn and if the fabric is too light, it may not fall well.
To get the right curtain fabric weight, try to hold the fabric up to the window. Try to replicate how it will hang in the room and check how it looks whilst draped at the bottom. If it’s starts to flare, then it will not fall nicely when it’s hung up. It is wise to work with a large fabric sample so you are actually able to see the true drape.
From HomeBezt
Good material to use on curtains are: linen, silk, faux silk and velvet. These tend to drape the best. If you are exposed to a lot of sun it will be wise to go with faux silk, since it does not deteriorate as quickly as real silk. If you have the need to use the curtains to protect from the cold, suede, velvet, tapestry and tweed will work well. You also have the option of insulating curtains with felt. A lining can also give more body and feeling of fullness to the curtains.
2. Colours
When it comes to colours. Be sure that it blends well with the rest of the design in the room. It can be a natural colour or a bright colour. If you normally change the style of the room, try to go for natural colours. Be aware that if the curtains are going to be hung in a window which gets a lot of sunlight (facing south), try to avoid bright colours on the curtains. Sunlight will fade bright colours quicker.
From The Identite
3. Length and lining
Start out with finding out how high you want to hang the curtains above the windows. A smart trick to give a sense of height to the room is to hang the curtains higher than the windows. Normally, you can hang the curtains 15-20 cm above the window. But if you want a room to feel more dramatic, you can hang it even higher and go all the way to the top of the wall above the windows.
After deciding where to hang the curtains, continue to measure the length you will need. Measure from where you want it to be hung, down to the floor. If you want a traditional look for your room, go for curtains that are slightly long so they rest at the bottom on the floor – in this case you will need to add 5-10 cm to the length. If you want more of a modern look to the curtains, have the bottom of the curtains barely flush the floor.
When measuring the width of the curtains, be sure to add 10-20 cm on each side of the window. If you want a curtain to feel thicker or fuller, add double length on each side. If you are planning to use the curtains to block sunlight out, it can also be smart to add some extra length on each side to prevent any creeping light. It’s important that you do not go too far with the width so it does not block too much of the window when the curtains are drawn.
From Katie Considers
4. Off-the-shelf or customer made curtains
The custom made curtains will be the best option to customise dimensions to achieve a specific look, but it will also be very costly. If custom made curtains are too expensive, try to go for high quality retail curtains of decent quality fabric. This will make the room look more polished than cheaper fabric alternatives.
Have you invested in quality curtains?
