Drape and Curtain Tips and Tricks from Picture Perfect Window Coverings

Custom draperies let you unify a room’s design, soften the hard edges of windows, and change the proportions and sizes of unsightly windows. Although your options are vast, there are rules to proportion when designing custom window treatments. From swags to sunbursts to drapes and tiebacks, learning the ins-and-outs of how draperies work can help you make an even better decision with your home’s window treatments

Read on to learn the tips and tricks professionals use to create beautiful, breathtaking window treatments. Whether creating a vision for a new home or spicing up an existing space, knowing how to change a window’s look can complete your room.

When you are ready to create perfect window treatments, call Picture Perfect Window Coverings in Santa Clarita.

Window Dressing with Drapes, Swags, and Panels

When it comes to curtains or drapes, it’s all about the fabric and how it flows. Fullness is crucial in creating style and beauty with luscious fabrics and gorgeous cuts. No matter the shape of your window, you can dress it to bring out the beauty.
Consider the tips below when dressing your windows in drapes:
Fabrics.

Extra wide fabric can be made into seamless draperies, up to 118 inches long, and the fabric can be railroaded, or turned so that the width becomes the length, eliminating the seams.
Layering insulated draperies over window shades will reduce sound from the outdoors and the amount of the heat and cold that passes thru the window shades.
Sheer panels are the easiest way to hide less-than-perfect windows or block an unsightly view.
Cotton is the most used and versatile natural fiber in window treatments.
Silk is the most popular choice for luxurious window treatments.
Silk must always be lined and interlined to protect the delicate nature of the fabric.
Sheers are often left unlined to allow light to filter through, which can emphasize a delicate pattern.
Striped fabrics add dimension and character to all window treatments. Stripes look great paired with floral, plaid, or solid fabrics to create a textured, unique look.
Prints with dark colors make an immediate focal point in any room. With this in mind, the scale of a room has an influence when selecting the print size.
Plain draperies can be transformed into a unique look by adding ties or tabs to the tops or edges of the drapes. Using a separate bottom face fabric will create interest or showcase an expensive contrasting fabric.
Dark-colored, solar screen fabrics provide more glare reduction and better view-through, while light-colored fabrics provide more heat reduction and diffuse interior light.

Hanging Styles

Top-tab draperies work better as a stationary treatment because tabs don’t move easily across the rod.
Pleat styles make a dramatic difference to the look and function of the drapery.
The degree of fullness is a hallmark of custom draperies. When the budget is tight, it is better to use a less expensive fabric or change the treatment than to skimp on the fullness.
Panels are the most popular choice of all window treatment styles for many reasons. Framing the window in fabric evokes feelings of hospitality, security, and comfort in the room while providing decorative appeal and functionality.
Create an illusion by placing window treatments at ceiling height or to the side of the window, making a small window look substantial or visually lengthening short windows with floor-length side panels.
Soft cornice styles are the perfect treatment for prominent print fabrics.
When windows appear ordinary, a simple trick designers use to alter the shape of the window is elevating the center of treatment onto the wall above.
Create width to a tall, narrow window by using drapery panels that stack onto the walls. This will make the window appear wider and more prominent in its length.
Using fabric panels to outline the edge of windows can make a room inviting and very comfortable.
Classic pinch pleat headings can be fabricated with longer pleats across the top of extra-long drapes helping to keep the treatment in scale with the window.
A transom window sometimes needs fabric panels to add warmth; adding sheers or a combination of sheers and cotton panels makes a soft, beautiful accent.
Café curtains are a great choice for windows that look out onto a busy street.
Pulling drapes to the side of a window helps to create a graceful, curved line.
Layered with side panels or an elegant valance, natural woven shades at freshness like no other window fashion.
Boxes valances are a tailored style that lends itself well as an overtreatment for blinds, shades, or tied-back draperies.

Swags

One of the most popular window covering styles, swags, have graced the windows of many fine homes for centuries and across continents.
At first glance, a swag or pole appears to be one piece of fabric continually looped over the pole, but for this treatment, swags and end panels are made individually and stapled to the back of the pole.
Swags are often hung in asymmetric styles, meaning the sides of the jabots end at differing lengths.
Swags are very adaptable, and the gentle curves they offer a room can noticeably transform a cold, austere setting into a delightful, inviting one.

Arched Windows

A graceful approach for an arch window is a soft treatment cut to follow the line of the arch.
A sunburst is a decorative accent for an arched window. The sunburst is softly gathered into the center and usually made in a sheer or lace fabric to enhance the window and filter the light.
When designing a treatment for arched windows, proportion, and fabric selection are the two most important elements.

Tiebacks, Poles, and Holds for Your Draperies

With embellishing tiebacks, you can provide limitless options with custom draperies.
Metal holdbacks are an attractive alternative to fabric tiebacks.
Decorative knobs and pulls can transform any treatment into a personalized work of art.
Finials are the decorative knobs that attach to the ends of a pole or rod.
Depending on what height a tie-back is placed on a drape will affect the visual impact on the window.
Unusual tieback holders can revitalize existing draperies or add a unique accent to new drapery panels.

Call the Santa Clarita Window Professionals at Picture Perfect Window Coverings
With all of this information, you may be wondering where to start. It’s here! Call the Santa Clarita resident window experts at Picture Perfect Window Coverings to get started designing the perfect window treatments today. Let these tips and tricks be your guide and let our team make your vision come true.

Schedule an estimate with Picture Perfect Window Coverings in Santa Clarita today!