Curtains are the room's only furniture you actively look at every minute the curtains are open. Most people pick them on colour and pattern and skip the four spec lines that decide whether the curtains hang properly, block the morning sun, take the November cold off the windows, and survive the third wash. The order to think about it is functional first, decorative second.
Lining: the spec doing the actual work
Lining is the most-skipped decision and the one that decides whether curtains are doing their job or just dressing the window.
- Blackout is a tightly woven backing layer that blocks daylight. Worth the £15 to £30 per pair premium for any south or east-facing bedroom; you'll know within a week of moving in whether you needed it.
- Thermal linings cut heat loss through single-glazed and older double-glazed windows. Counts more than people expect on November energy bills, and combines well with blackout in bedrooms.
- Standard cotton lining adds body and weight without the blackout function. Right for living rooms where you want softened daylight, not none.
- Unlined curtains are lighter, cheaper, and hang more loosely. Fine for a north-facing kitchen or bathroom where the window doesn't need much from the curtain.
Header type: how the curtain meets the pole
Header type decides what pole or track the curtain works with, and how the gather looks.
- Eyelet: large metal rings sewn into the top edge, threaded directly onto a pole. Modern, casual, easy to draw. Needs a clear run-off at each end.
- Pencil pleat: a gathered top with hooks that work on either a pole or a track. The British default; suits traditional rooms.
- Tab top: fabric loops sewn at the top, threaded onto a pole. The most casual look and the easiest to hang, but lets a thin rim of light through above the curtain.
- Wave: a continuous S-curve gather that needs a specific wave track (sold separately). The cleanest contemporary finish but the most expensive system.
Drop and width: the two measurements people get wrong
Drop runs from the top of the pole or track down to where you want the curtain to finish. Three common stops: sill, just below the sill, or floor-length. Floor-length looks most considered and a fingertip's worth of break on the floor (around 1cm) is the safe stop. Sill-length suits kitchens and bathrooms where pooled fabric on the floor would gather damp.
Width is the spec that catches people out. The total combined curtain width should be 1.5 to 2 times the pole width so the gather looks generous rather than stretched flat. Heavier fabrics (velvet, chenille) want the higher multiple; lighter fabrics (cotton, linen) work at 1.5x. Buying the same width as the pole is the cheap-looking mistake.
Common questions
- Should curtains touch the floor?
- Floor-length curtains look most considered in living rooms and bedrooms. The safe stop is a fingertip's worth of break (around 1cm) on the floor. Sill-length curtains suit kitchens, bathrooms and any window where pooled fabric on the floor would gather damp.
- How wide should curtains be relative to the window?
- The total combined curtain width should be 1.5 to 2 times the pole width. Heavier fabrics like velvet want the higher multiple; lighter cottons and linens work at 1.5x. Buying the same width as the pole is the cheap-looking mistake.
- Do I need blackout lining?
- For any south or east-facing bedroom, yes - the £15 to £30 per pair premium pays for itself in better sleep within a week. North-facing bedrooms and most living rooms work fine on standard cotton lining.
- Eyelet, pencil pleat or tab top - which is best?
- Eyelet is modern and easiest to draw, threaded directly onto a pole. Pencil pleat is the traditional British default and works on poles or tracks. Tab top is the most casual and the easiest to hang but lets a thin rim of light through above the curtain.
Fabric weight and the room test
Velvet and chenille feel substantial, hold a fold, and add real thermal mass to a room. Right for living rooms and master bedrooms where the curtains want to read serious. Cotton and linen hang lighter, wash more easily, and read summery. Right for kitchens, second bedrooms, and rooms where you'd rather the curtains weren't the headline.
Polyester blends sit in the middle and dominate the £20 to £40 ready-made bracket because they crease less in transit and resist fading. Fine for spare rooms; less right for rooms you spend evenings in.
What to spend
The honest range:
- £20 to £50 a pair: ready-made polyester or polycotton in standard sizes (66x54", 66x72", 90x90"). Right for second bedrooms, kitchen windows, and rooms where the curtains need to be fine, not great.
- £50 to £150 a pair: branded ready-made cotton, linen-blend or velvet from The Range and Robert Dyas. Most British households end up here.
- £150 to £400 a pair: properly designed prints, woven jacquards, made-to-measure starting tier. Bedeck Home sits in this bracket.
- £400+: bespoke made-to-measure on premium fabrics. Right when the room is finished and the curtains are the last thing.
Compare current stock across all weights and sizes on our curtains page, or filter by colour, material or price to narrow things down. Prices update daily as the retailers change them.
