5 Most Important Things to Consider When Choosing Curtains For Your Home

The history of the curtains goes back to ancient Egypt. That was the time when animal hides were used as curtains to give protection from light and cold winds. 

Over the next centuries, curtain styles and fabrics evolved. From functionality curtains gradually gained an aesthetic significance.  And in modern times, curtains have become the most important part of home interior designs.  

Curtains are not only an impressive home décor element but also provide profound design impact cost-effectively. Therefore, by Choosing the Curtains style and design smartly, you can enrich the beauty of the home interior.  

In this article, you will get a complete insight into various important things you need to consider while choosing curtains for your home. So that while buying curtains you can identify what’s best for you. 

1. Colors

The curtain color should have a thematic uniformity with the home interiors. So, before choosing the best colors for your curtains, you need to consider the design of walls, carpets, and other interior styles. 

Now, how will you ensure there is the right balance? 

For this, you can follow a simple rule. That is if you have decided to highlight the walls and carpets with more vibrant colors then you can keep the curtain colors simple. Here, simple curtain color means keeping the colors neutral but pleasing. 

In the above image, you can notice that the wall designs and the carpets and other interiors have a more dense substance, the color of the window curtains has been kept in simple white color. This not only goes in harmony with the key theme of the interior but also adds its own beautiful essence to the room. 

Now, if the interior designs are simple, then you can choose vivid curtain colors. Here the trick is again not to choose the colors which will overemphasize the curtains over the mellow interior theme. 

In the image below, you can see the curtain color is more vivid but has a complete balance with the interior.  

Now, as you have understood the thumb rule for balancing the color of the curtain with the interior style, let’s understand the significance of various curtain colors. 

RED

The Curtain with Red color reflects the deeper ethos and is considered as a warm welcoming. Choosing Red color gives a dynamic theme to the home interiors. The red color goes well with the neutral as well as vivid interior setups and keeps its own significance intact. White and Blue are the most widely used combinations with the Red color curtains. 

Features Of Red Colour Curtains:

• The Red color gives a Royal theme to the home. Besides, its sheer classical aspect always reflects boldness. 
• The Red color simply highlights passion and exuberance. 

YELLOW

The yellow color is famous for its neutral essence. Choosing the yellow color for the curtains adds an optimistic and jovial theme to the home interior. Yellow is an ideal choice if you want to keep the interior designs more warm and rich. Moreover, it is the perfect choice when the other elements of interior designs such as wall backgrounds, carpets are brighter. 

Features Of Yellow Colour Curtains:

• Yellow is easy to match anywhere. It is best for living rooms, bedrooms, or even kitchens. 
• Yellow is the best color for a sunny interior theme. It gives a subtle quality to the home interior. It is the color that gives a comfortable and cozy feel.

GREEN

The Green color holds the abundance of nature. Green often becomes solid than the other colors used in the home interior. 

The best way to use Green is in the deepest shades. This way you can keep its natural essence intact. Generally, the neutral colors go well with red.

Features Of Green Colour Curtains:

• The Green color has the ability to make rooms more spacious.
• Green is also known for this contribution to the proactive environment in the home. 

BLUE

Choosing Blue colored curtains gives your home a complete sense of tranquility. Another benefit of choosing Blue is that it goes well with the other natural colors. And therefore, you get the option to try out different combinations. 

Also, Blue curtains give refined natural lights to the rooms. 

Features Of Blue Colour Curtains:

• Blue can be considered a universal color in interior design. It goes very well with almost every thematic interior style. 
• Blue curtains look good, especially for the bedroom and living rooms windows. The best way to realize the beauty of the blue curtains is by designing the ceiling to floor windows. 

2. Curtain Patterns

Window Curtains absorb a notable amount of space and attention. Therefore the curtain patterns play an important role. If you select the right pattern, it can turn out to be an impressive home interior element.

The printed curtains patterns have an aesthetic appeal but it is necessary to choose them wisely. By using various patterns you can create a unique interior theme. 

We can classify the curtain pattern into two categories- Solid and Printed curtains.

Solid Patterns

Solid curtain patterns are used for a modern and intense look. Color shades play a very important role in the Solid Patterns type of curtains. According to the different shades, you can set a formal or casual tone of the curtains. This makes Solid patterns one of the most versatile and commonly preferred types of curtains. 

The Complete Pattern

The complete patterns occupy the entire fabric or material of the curtain. The Complete curtain patterns can have designs with the fine mesh or coarse mesh but do not have any empty or blank space. The complete pattern curtains are used generally for the Vivid interior themes. 

Small Peat Pattern 

Small net patterns have fine designs and are spread all over the curtain fabric. However, there are some spaces present between the fine designs. The color combinations between the patterns and the background need to be in balance. If the pattern is dark then the background can be light or vice versa. 

Bold Sharp Pattern

Patterns such as stripes, checks, animated patches can be considered as Bold Sharp curtain patterns. These patterns are often used with bright or strong colors. Using Bold Sharp Patterns always needs to go well with the light theme of the interior. 

Floral Patterns

The evenness of the floral patterns gives an aesthetic appeal to the curtains. 

Also, different geometrical patterns with different colors prove to be more impressive. 

3. Curtain Pleat Style

There are different Pleat Styles that you can use as per the suitability of your home interior. Every plinth has its own significance and can be used to have an impressive look. Generally, the pleated window curtains are made from heavy fabric.

Let’s explore different types of pleat styles that can help you for choosing curtains effectively.  

Eyelet Pleat Curtains

Eyelet Pleats are famous for their soft and even folds. Eyelet folds are usually used for the living room and suit best for the ceiling to floor windows. Eyelet curtains give contemporary and serene features to the living room.

You can customize the eyelet size for the curtains as per your requirement. However, careful design consideration should be done while deciding the size of the Eyelets. 

Pinch Pleat Curtains

Pinch Pleats are generally preferred to give a gathered or dense look of a curtain. It is the type of pleat that gives maximum close folds. Generally, the Pinch Pleat curtains reflect the formal tone. However, Pinch Pleat Curtains with vibrant colors and patterns can give a modern look. 

You can decide on the number of folds you want to keep. However, it is ideal to have an identical number of folds on both sides.

Goblet Pleat Curtains

Goblet Pleat window curtains are used to give a traditional look. In Goblet Pleat curtains the shape of the folds is similar to the wine glass shape at the top and then cylindrical down to the entire length. 

Goblet pleats are preferred mostly for the high ceiling and are considered the most conventional type of curtains. 

Pencil Pleat Curtains

Pencil Pleats have fine folds that look like pencils. Pencil pleats give a simple and elegant look to the large windows or even the doors. If the rooms are full of natural lights, Pencil pleats are considered a good option. 

Another benefit of the Pencil Pleat curtain is that it can be set up in such a way that the hooks and the hanging system can be hidden completely. 

French Pleat Curtains

French Pleat curtains have three evenly spaced folds for a ceremonial look. French Pleats are generally used for the living room areas. To make the French Plate curtain more casual, you can use attractive patterns and colors that go well with the other interior elements. 

The French Plate Curtain has a full sleek header along with an adjustable fullness. Because of its three evenly spaced folds, it is called a three-fingered plate. 

Tab curtains

Tab curtains are best for the casual style and tone. The top side of the curtains has loops that can be customized as per requirements. 

The biggest advantage of the Tab curtains is that it requires less fabric. But the quality of the handling system parts should be good as the Tab curtains keep most of the parts exposed. 

4. Curtain Fabric

The foldability, quality of drapes, durability, and texture depends on the curtain material. Therefore the material of the curtain has design significance. 

Also, the material of the curtain defines the light and noise resistance features of the curtain. 

Therefore, here is a list of the most commonly used Materials or fabrics for the curtains. 

Cotton

Cotton fabric is the most preferred material for the curtains. It is better for the quality folds and drapes and ease of customization. Another benefit of using cotton is it is suitable for modern as well as conventional curtain designs. Using Cotton material gives you different options for setting up the light filtrations.

For privacy, tight wave cotton curtains are preferred. On the other hand, for soothing lights, you can go for sheer cotton curtains. 

Advantages:

• Long-lasting
• Cost-effective
• Easy To Clean
• Easy Customization

Linen

Linen material is preferred where you need to maintain privacy and sufficient natural lights in the room. These two requirements can be easily achieved by the Linen material. 

Linen is a type of cotton, also allows you to have better customization and design patterns. 

With Linen curtains, you have to be careful with their cleaning and maintenance. 

Advantages:

• Denser Material
• Good Light Refining Features
• Light in Weight and Airy

Silk

Silk curtain material gives a luxurious look.  Being a natural fabric, the Silk curtain is a perfect material for intricately woven designs and patterns. 

Silk has the quality of being lightweight and gives smooth folds and pleats. Also, for its easy hanging ability,  Light percolation and cool air offer complete characteristics as curtain material. 

The Silk material is costly and the customization needs the right skills and considerations. 

Advantages:

• Durable
• Intricate Design and Patterns
• Luxurious Styles

Velvet

Velvet is a heavy material and therefore it remains in shape. Being soft and thick, Velvet blocks out the stern lights and gives better privacy. 

From a design standpoint, Velvet can be used with a variety of color combinations for a luxury look. Moreover, Velvet can be used for casual as well as modern interior styles. However, for the velvet material, care must be taken as frequent laundry may impact the quality of the velvet. 

Advantages: 

• Elegant Designs
• Block Drafty Air
• Better Privacy & Isolation
• Suitable for Modern as well as Classical interior designs.  

Sheer Curtain Fabric: 

These are light, thin, and airy curtain fabrics that give better light features. One of the best qualities of the Sheer curtain fabric is its light refining ability. Sheer curtain fabrics are made from Polyester, cotton, or a combination of these two materials. Therefore sheer curtain fabrics are durable and economical. 

Sheer curtains do not block all the light and are not perfect for complete privacy. Moreover, the cleaning has to be done with utmost care. 

Advantages

• Different Patterns and Designs 
• Better Colour Options
• Light and Airy

Lace Curtain Fabric

The lace curtain fabric is made from cotton, polyester, and lines. Lace has some historical significance and always gives a classical effect to the overall home interior design. The modern lace curtain fabrics are more robust than the earlier lightweight and fragile fabrics. 

The better way is to use the Lace curtains along with the other type of fabric to give it a more robust structure. The downside of using the Lace curtain fabric is that it is more prone to damages and can be easily torn.

Advantages

• Soft and Subtle Design
• Gives Classical  Designs
• Can be customized easily

5. Curtain Features

While choosing the best curtains it is important to consider the features you need. These features can be achieved by using a specific curtain fabric or a type of curtain pleat. 

Here are the general curtain features that you like to add to your home interior. 

Light Filtration

Keeping the room filled with natural lights is always good for the aesthetic appeal of the home interior. Moreover, by using a certain type of curtain material you can further filter out the natural lights as per your home interior theme. To achieve Light Filtration, you need to identify and choose the right material.

For example, the sheer curtain fabric gives more clear transparent natural colors but may not completely damp the intensity of the colors.

Besides, the type of material and the color combination of the curtains play an important role. Therefore, choosing the right material and color combination is important for the ideal Light Filtration. 

Cotton, Linen, Silk are some of the ideal materials for quality Light filtrations. 

Insulation

Curtains can give you a comfortable room temperature to some extent. Some insulation materials can reasonably block the unwanted heat or cold air thrusts and drafts. 

So, depending on the material you can provide reasonable insulation to your room.

Velvet is considered one of the most suitable materials for providing balanced insulation to your room. Mostly the insulating materials can be designed specifically with the thermal layer. This thermal layer can be made of a material with better insulating capacities such as mylar and foam. 

Privacy

Thick curtain fabrics are used for better privacy. Thick cotton and velvet are widely used to provide good privacy and other essential features. 

Blackout curtains are considered ideal for the utmost privacy. However, the curtains have limitations as they do not provide light filtration or balanced insulation. 

Noise Reduction

To some extent, Window curtains are effective in absorbing or damping exterior noises. Such curtains are usually ideal for bedrooms or living rooms, especially in urban areas. 

There are certain curtain fabrics that can effectively damp the exterior Noise and also give you other features such as Light Filtration and Air Moderation. 

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