5 Rules For Hanging Curtains & Common Mistakes to Avoid!

A beautiful set of curtains has the power to transform a dull space into a stunning one. Unfortunately, even the most luxurious fabrics won't enhance a room if they aren't hung properly. In this video, I'll go through my 5 best rules for hanging curtains and some of the most common mistakes that you should avoid. When it comes to curtain rod or track placement, there are two main options that you can go for, either ceiling mount or face mount. Ceiling mounted curtains create a seamless floor-to-ceiling aesthetic while face mounted curtains are suspended from a wall-fixed rod located above a window. Generally, ceiling mount curtains are used in more contemporary spaces as they have a cleaner aesthetic. Face mounts, on the other hand, are more commonly used in classic and traditional spaces, but they're equally suited to contemporary homes with more minimalist hardware. With face mounts, people often make the mistake of mounting the rod too low, making the window look smaller than they actually are or disproportionate in relation to the curtain size. This often occurs when people purchase curtains that are too short, so they have to lower the rod to make up for the lost length. To avoid this common mistake, make sure the curtain rod is mounted at least halfway to two-thirds the height between the top of your window and the ceiling. This will draw your eye upwards, giving the illusion of a taller window and ceiling. Any lower than halfway will create an unbalanced look in the room and the illusion of short ceilings. You can even bring them all the way up to an inch below the crown molding for a bigger impact. Another common mistake is purchasing curtain rods that are too short for the window length. This means that the curtains cannot be drawn apart without the stack covering the glass and blocking out light. This will not only make the window look smaller, but also make the room feel smaller as there will be less sunlight streaming in. Avoid this mistake by extending your curtain rod 6 to 10 inches, approximately 15 centimeters to 25 centimeters, past the edges of your window. Alternatively, measure your window length and multiply it by 1.3 to add a third extra length of the window to the curtain rod if your space allows for it. If you have no wall clearance on either side, go full length. This will give a dramatic look as the whole wall is covered by fabric when closed, while allowing for maximum natural light to enter when drawn apart. For corner windows, you can get one with a corner rod connector to get a seamless look. There is also the option to just butt them up together if you're using ceiling tracks, or get a seamless curved track if you decide to go custom. Curtain drop is the length of the curtain from the rod to the bottom hem. There are three main types of drop, including float, kiss, and puddle length. Float curtains do not touch the ground at all and hang less than an inch above the floor. It is a modern and minimalist aesthetic that can highlight a beautiful floor and also gives a sense of visual airiness to a space. This curtain drop is the easiest to maintain as they don't accumulate dirt or dust like other drop styles. Kiss curtains barely touch the floor and hover with just a millimeter or two between the curtain hem and the ground. They are the hardest to accomplish because you have to take super accurate measurements, but they give the most impressive and custom look. The gentle touch of the curtain with the floor facilitates a soft transition between the wall and the floor, which has a type of room expanding effect. Puddle curtains have two to four inches of fabric, which, as the name suggests, puddles on the ground. The puddle drop has a romantic and old-world feel as the fabric pooling on the ground adds a sense of luxury and opulence to the room's ambience. Additionally, high-quality heavyweight fabrics such as velvet or washed linen are usually used in favor of lighter fabrics, which adds to the luxuriousness of the atmosphere. The downside is that puddle curtains tend to collect a lot of dirt and dust. Be careful not to puddle excessively because they'll just look messy and become a tripping hazard. They'll also look like a mistake instead of something intentional, so try to stick to the guideline of about two to four inches of excess fabric. When planning your curtains, it is important to choose one of these drops. Otherwise, your curtains will either be too short or too long. Most ready-made curtains are 84 inches or 96 inches long. However, the standards may vary by country. Some places will even sell extra-long curtains that are 108 inches or 120 inches long, but if you want anything longer than this, you'll have to get it custom-made. There are also short curtain drops like 72 inches, but I find that these are better for specific applications such as hanging curtains above a built-in bench under a window. If you're buying ready-made curtains, I recommend getting ones that are longer than the distance of your curtain track or rod to the floor. For example, if you have an 8-foot ceiling and your curtain rods are installed 6 inches down from the ceiling, the distance from the ground to the rod will be approximately 89 inches. In this case, don't get the 84 inches curtains. Instead, get 96 inches curtains. You can then hem the curtain or fold the top if you're using a curtain clips to get the float, kiss, or puddle length. At the end of the day, you can always reduce the length of your curtains, but you can't add more fabric. But what about short curtains or half-length curtains? This is something that is not often talked about. My take on this is that there is nothing wrong with this, but it only works in specific situations. If you live in a log cabin or cottage, short curtains can be suitable and really charming. It can also work in very casual spaces like an attic dormer or paired with a window seat. You also have to be careful with the length. Have it in, around, or just slightly under the sill and it will look much more considered. Curtain length gets really tricky if you have rake ceilings. Your options are to either hem them manually if you are very skilled, or have them custom made. As you can see with this curtain set I recently did for a client, the fabric was cut according to the slope of the ceiling to get the base to be flat against the floor. If you have double height ceiling with super tall windows, well, you're both in luck and out of luck. Good news is you can get them custom made to your ceiling height, and they will look really dramatic. Just look at some of these beautiful projects. But as you can imagine, it will likely cost a fortune, as you need way more fabric and professionals to install them. Many people also make the mistake of purchasing curtains that are not wide enough. You'll know that you've bought the wrong panel width if when closed, your curtains cover the windows but are taut and don't have any fullness. This makes it look really cheap, and is one of the reasons why many people often have the misconception that curtains make a room look cheap. So it is important to avoid this mistake. Instead, buy curtain panels that are 1.5 to 2.5 times the width of your windows. For example, if you have a 2 meter long window, get 3 to 5 meters of curtain fabric. The extra fabric will make them look full and plush, and give you the desirable wavy fold. If you're buying ready made curtains, you may have to buy 4 panels, and place 2 on each side. This is totally fine, as you can't really see the break because they are so full now. But you can always bring them to a tailor to sew them together. In most cases, people underbuy curtain fabric because of the cost. If cost is an issue, I'll suggest looking for cheaper curtain fabrics at Ikea or from Amazon, as they have many affordable options. Cheap fabric done right, will still look much better than expensive fabric that is done wrong. Some of the most commonly used curtain materials are silk, linen, and cotton, which are natural materials, and polyester and velvet, which are man-made materials. While I do love natural materials, they are not always the best choice. Silk is very expensive, and will disintegrate with exposure to sunlight, especially if unlined. Linen is beautiful, but wrinkles very easily. They're also notorious for stretching and shrinking in humid environments. If you know what you're doing, then these fabrics can be a great choice. Otherwise, my suggestion is to get a synthetic blend fabric, which are typically made from natural materials like cotton and linen, combined with polyester. This will give you the linen look that drapes nicely, are more doable, and easier on the wallet. There are also full polyester fabric that looks like natural material and doesn't look cheap, but they tend to be more stiff than blended fabrics. I'd also avoid using full polyester in the kitchen, as it can easily absorb odors. The three most popular pleat types are the ripple fold, otherwise known as S-fold, pinch pleat, and grommet style. There are also many others like tailored pleat, inverted pleat, goblet, rug pocket, and tap top. However, I'll just focus on the main three for this video. The ripple fold, otherwise known as the S-fold, is one of my favorites, and I use it in many of my client projects. It gets its name because the fold results in gentle S-curves. Ripple fold curtains are usually installed on a track, as they have pendants installed in equal distances that click into the track, resulting in a symmetrical fold. This also makes them super easy to open and close as they glide smoothly across the track. I especially like this look with sheer fabrics, as they instantly elevate the space at an affordable price. In case you're wondering, you can get tracks with a face mount that gives you a similar look to rods. Pinch pleats are a more classic style. While they exude a classic elegance, they are also very versatile and can be used in any home style from traditional to contemporary. The pinch pleats are usually located four inches from the top of the curtains, which results in a gathered look extending down the face of the curtains. Grommet curtains have rings pressed into them approximately one inch from the top. The rings are then threaded through the curtains rod in an S-shaped pattern, which creates deep dramatic folds. The main downside of this style is that the rings can make it difficult to pull the curtains back and forth compared to an S-fold system on a track. If you have grommet curtains, you may also experience uneven folds when they're drawn apart. A really good hack that I found online is to use toilet paper roll at the back to get a more even and symmetrical look. Credit to Lone Fox for this genius hack. The most difficult part of curtain installation is getting the curtain rods level, especially when the rod is longer than 2 meters. My hack is to use a laser level. If you don't have one, I highly recommend that you borrow one or buy one. While they're not super cheap, they'll save you heaps of frustration which is worth so much more than the cost of the laser level. Stud finders are also super helpful, so you can get the rods mounted right on the first try. Wall studs are typically long vertical pieces of metal or timber that form the structural support for the frame of a wall. You should put the majority of your curtain brackets into studs, as it is much more structurally sound than putting them all into a drywall. Most stud finders will light up red when they're hovered over a stud in a wall, which makes installation that much easier. I hope that these rules for hanging curtains were helpful. Remember to like this video and subscribe if you haven't already. Thanks for watching, and I'll see you in the next one.