“A pretty room with poorly hung curtains is like a beautiful, pulled-together lady wearing way too-small pants. It cheapens everything else, stands out in a jarring way and just makes everyone feel uncomfortable,” contends interior designer Emily Henderson on her website. The takeaway? Choosing the right curtains and drapes and knowing how to hang them can make or break the aesthetic of your living space. Here’s a closer look at what you need to know about how to hang drapes.
Fabric choice directly impacts how curtains drape. Interior designer Suysel DePedro Cunningham told Elle Decor, “If they’re too heavy, they may not fold crisply when drawn; too light and they may not fall well.” Silk, faux silk, linen and velvet are known for hanging the best while suede, velvet, tweed and tapestry are particularly effective at blocking sunlight and retaining heat.
Durability is also a concern when it comes to choosing living room drapes. Some drapery fabrics, as well are brighter colors, are more prone to fading than others.
Just like short pants cut off the leg in a jarring way, so do short curtains impact a room. There are three acceptable ways to hang curtains, according to Henderson: the slight float, in which your drapes have no “break” but merely hang straight down while just hovering less than an inch from the floor; the kiss, in which curtains just touch the floor with no — or a negligible — break; and the puddle, in which drapes literally pool (or puddle) on the floor.
Choosing the right length directly impacts the tone of your room. For example, drapes which barely graze the floor have a clean custom appearance while puddled drapes add a sense of drama and romance.
Curtains enhance the appearance of a room, but they also serve a practical function: allowing homeowners to control the amount of light that enters a room. If you don’t hang your rod wide enough, the end result will find your window drapes obscuring part of the window and making both the window and your room look smaller.
Henderson recommends extending the rod between six and 10 inches on either side of the window drape, if space allows. This will allow almost the entire window to show when the drapes are open thereby letting in the maximum amount of light.
The same concept applies to the height at which you hang the curtain rod. Continues Henderson, “The height above your sill can be similar to the space on either side of the window sill – lift and widen where you put the rod so that the window frame feels as big as possible and allows for as much light in as possible. Remember natural light is your best accessory, so let it…shine…”
The appearance of your curtains doesn’t just depend on the curtains themselves, but also on how they hang from the hardware. Top treatments include rod pockets, rings, grommets and double rods. Rod pockets are the most common kind of top treatment, while rings and grommets offer a more contemporary look. Double rods, meanwhile, allow for creative mixing and matching, as well as additional insulation during colder weather.
Beautifully hung drapes may look simple, but the reality is that execution is everything when it comes to achieving the desired look. So while finding furniture that captures your design sensibility is a decorating priority, choosing the right drapes — and hanging them properly — is imperative to making your home look its very best.
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