You choose the fabric, the shape of the falls, the construction … and it is time to install them. You can’t screw it up! This decalogue is your lifeline.
They may seem like small details but they are not insignificant. Some mistakes can ruin the effect you are looking for when dressing the windows. In this article, we focus on the installation phase of the curtains. Once you have chosen fabric for the curtain, type of clothing, drape, curtain, or blind. You have done part of the work (and you have done it well because you have followed our instructions and master class on this subject) but there is another related to placing the curtains.
So whether you know how to make curtains yourself, or if you have ordered them, keep in mind that their installation is essential. You can put yourself to work or turn to professionals. In the same store where the curtains are made, surely you can hire the service. In both cases, you should avoid these mistakes when hanging them.
ERRORS TO AVOID WHEN PLACING THE CURTAINS
We are talking about curtains for the bedroom, living room or dining room. For any stay, there are a series of keys that you should know. So the result will be perfect.
1. KEEP THE CURTAINS SHORT
No looking at the window and there is a 5 cm gap between the floor and the edge of the curtain. It’s like fishing pants. The window looks smaller and ridiculous. It is a book error. And it can be related to taking measurements or installing it if you do not locate the bar well. If you made the mistake when measuring and the rod has to go yes or yes at a point that makes the curtain look short, add a cloth skirt that covers that space.
2. MAKE THE CURTAINS LONG
One of the questions that someone asks most when they have to put the curtains is: How much should the curtains hang? One extreme is as bad as the opposite. A curtain resting on the ground (ideally 3-4 cm) will only drag and accumulate dirt and make the window very heavy. Returning to the simile of pants, the feeling will be that the wall has shrunk. Remedy it by gaining a few inches when hanging the bar or undo the hem and take the curtains again as they should go.
3. DO NOT WASH THE CURTAINS BEFORE HANGING THEM
Many fabrics have treatments that prevent them from shrinking, but even so, it is advisable to wash the curtains before hanging them. If they shrink slightly, you will already place the bar in the right place.
4. DO NOT IRON THE CURTAINS
This is another mistake when placing the curtains. Washed or not, if you do not iron, the wrinkles will cause irregularities in the fabric and make it more shrunk. This way, you will not be able to take well the measurements to which you will have to install the bar or the rail.
5. PLACING THE CURTAINS RAW
It does not “strain”. You can’t hang a curtain and hide the hem or excess fabric in a way that saves the hem. This way the curtain will not look good. And it is horrible to see threads. There is no excuse. If you can’t sew, use fislin tape, perfect for setting a needleless hem, just with the heat of the iron.
6. FAILURE TO HEM EACH TYPE OF FABRIC
How long should the hem of a certain measure be? This is one of the most frequently asked questions. And it is that not all the auctions are used for all the fabrics. Some curtains need a conventional hem of a couple of centimeters at most and others to have a wide hem to give them more body and weight. Other fabrics, too light, incorporate the weight of lead. It is a mistake to hem a wide hem on a full-bodied textile.
7. HANG THE CURTAINS TOO CLOSE TO THE WINDOW
When placing the curtains, it is a mistake not to take into account the radiator, when it is located under the window; nor the handle of the folding or swing leaf. While with the sliding leaves there is no problem, in those mentioned above the handle protrudes from the wall. The curtain should not touch because then in the fall the contact point will be seen, it will make a wrinkle, it will cut its natural fall …
8. BUY A VERY THICK BAR FOR THE RINGS OR EYELETS
You must take into account the thickness or diameter of the bar because it must be adequate (always slightly less) than the size of the ring or eyelet of the curtain. This way it will run well and you will not feel that it tells you and you have to pull too much.
9. LEAVE THE BAR SHORT
Not excessively long either but a short bar looks ridiculous in the window. In addition, the function of the piece of a bar that remains on each side of the window and of the fixing bracket to the wall or ceiling is to decorate and support a ring or a hole in the curtain so that it never moves at the ends when running. and draw the curtain. It has at least 15 cm on each side. If the window is stuck to a wall and you cannot leave a bar on that side, choose ceiling support and finish the bar on the wall.
10. INSTALL THE BAR TOO CLOSE TO THE WINDOW
While the rails are installed directly on the ceiling or the base of the blind or curtain box; with the bar, you can choose with a little more margin. If the rod is very close to the ceiling, in a curtain made with eyelets, the fabric that is above can rub against the ceiling. If they support them they go to the wall and you want to place the bar above the window, do not do it immediately above it. You will shorten the wall in height. You should leave 20 cm so that the bar never hinders the opening of the window sashes.
