Dear Alice | Drapery - The Next Level

This week on Dear Alice, we’re doing a Q&A on drapery! The segment can be found on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or Google Podcast. Go have a listen!

We’ve already done an episode on drapery, A Detail You Can’t Overlook | Window Treatments (January 23, 2020), but we felt like since we’ve had so many more questions on drapery recently we would go into more detail on this subject!

We answered questions that came in from our Dear Alice Podcast listeners, and hope this information is helpful to you! Thank you for sending them in! Let’s dive in!

Q: What is the best way to add drapery around an old school sliding glass patio door?

Some see these sliding glass doors as a utility and that they don’t need to dress these up or make them look special. But they can be gorgeous when draped! With any window we go from the casing and go out 12-18” so your door can still operate. We would suggest a panel and do it as tall as it could go and then drape the side and let a bit of that drapery interrupt the light.

If there isn’t room on one side or the other you could drape it heavily on one side but make it believable that you can close it all the way and it would completely close the window. It’s such a lovely look when the drapery is closed. And it sets such a mood.

Q: What fabric will hold up and what fabric will look beautiful?

Try to stay away from an all natural fabric. It’s beautiful, but it will receive sun rot and breakdown that natural fiber. If you can find a synthetic or polyester it will help it from disintegrating. If you do want to do a natural fiber we would suggest a liner with a UV rating which will hold up a lot better and protect that beautiful material.

Q: When do I use pattern on drapes?

This is so fun! It depends on your style. We did an old hotel bedroom suite style recently and took the drapery all the way to the top. Jess also has some pattern window treatments too. They have black brushstroke faces on them and feel a bit Roman. It makes the space feel a bit modern. She fell in love with the fabric immediately and knew it was something she had to have! She bought a bolt of it and didn’t know what she wanted to do with it but ended up making these drapes in her bathroom with it. She did this seven years ago and says she would still make the same decision. She loves the so much! The fabric has been discontinued and wouldn’t be able to get it again. It feels like an artist lives in her house. We love it!

Pattern is one of those things you’re going to know if you love it. Every time we have done a pattern it matches the people that live there. You’ll know you’ll love that pattern. There does need to be a backdrop. Analyze your room. If something is missing maybe you just need a pattern or a wallpaper in that room.

If you’re going to have a patten on your window treatment it shouldn’t be organized like a damask, trellis or a repeat. It should be irregular, natural or organic.

Q: How often do I change my drapes?

We love this question! Any time you’re going to redecorate your whole room you’ll probably reassess your window coverings. We’ve met clients that have invested so much in shutters and they feel like they don’t need to invest in drapes because they have the windows covered. But drapes live on the wall and shutters block your light or your view. We rarely do shutters in the history of Alice Lane for this reason.

Drapery is something that is going to bring light in and can give a more gracious feeling to the home. But also, if you don’t like them just take them off! And then take your time to find something you love. Permission granted.

Q: Budget

It’s the B word! What do we recommend? Where can we cut corners?

It depends on the custom level of the home. There is a good, better, and best.

BEST: You’re going to hire a custom workroom. You’ll choose your custom fabric, custom rods, the rings and clips. The entire process is a very custom experience.

BETTER: The other way to do a very good job is from one of our lines, Fabricut. They also offer drapery and a good turnaround. They have certain fabric selections to choose from and are comparable to RH or Pottery Barn. They are a really good catalog level drapery.

In our experience it’s been tricky for the end user to get them in, install them, etc. so if you do need help our Home Furnishing Design Team is awesome! Our team designs homes all over the nation and can figure out how many panels you need to make it look really luxurious. They can help determine how much you will need to order and walk you through that process!

Q: How to do drapery on an arched window

Good new people! Arches are back in style again! But if you just aren’t digging your arch we recommend taking the curtain rod to the top of the window so you barley see the arch. Take it as tall as the top of the window or as high as your ceilings and add drapes on both sides and layer the drapes nice and heavy. We don’t recommend going halfway where there is a break because you would just be accentuating the arch. We want to allow the other pieces in the room to be the hero!

Q: At what point in the designing process does drapery come in? At the very last? Before furnishing?

When we are designing we do consider the draperies at the beginning when we are designing a whole room because we don’t want it to be forgotten. Draperies are the poor lost child that gets forgotten at the end. And you need privacy! For the actual drapery consider it while you’re doing your furnishings or painting a room. If you’re looking at your room and thinking something is just not right or clicking we guarantee it’s the window coverings that you are missing. It makes the house somehow feel finished, like putting art on the walls. It makes the home have a soul and a softness to it. It’s like putting mascara on. If you forget your mascara your eyes get lost. It’s the same for window treatments. Don’t wait until the end.

But we know they are expensive! Most recently we’ve been going through some things like window treatments, wallpaper, etc. that we know you’re not going to want to live without and calculating and building these into the peoples mortgages so they aren’t forgotten!

Q: Are there rooms to cut costs in?

If you have secondary rooms or areas that are more utilitarian and don’t necessarily need privacy like a pantry, laundry, or a mudroom, these rooms are good choices to cut costs on. Those places don’t need to have window treatments. However, your primary bedrooms, places you occupy and are really living in, those would be our first priority. You do want some functionality and privacy for guests when they are visiting. At a minimum put rollers up so they can control the light and have privacy. When you do have means to do more go ahead and put those drapes in the more utilitarian rooms. This will just be the cherry on the top!

Q; What drapery goes with each style of design?

We do 90% of drapery in a white linen look. It’s everlasting, allow softness and lets light in but doesn’t interrupt too much of what’s going on in the space. And with French or Euro pleats at the top it gives it a nice clean look. This means they take three folds at the very top and pinch it by the ring which allows a nice hang and a beautiful fullness.

For a Contemporary look a sheer is always nice. It’s a beautiful, minimal, lightweight look. Transitional and Coastal we typically use a beautiful white linen with an open weave. This lets the daylight in and bounce around in it. Transitional to Traditional you’ll want more texture and a bit more weight.

Eclectic is when it’s fun to use patters or trims. Formal we always like to say ‘more is more and less is a bore’. You’ll have a tassel with formal. Let yourself go wild with this style! Glam we like to use linens with a hint of metallic or silk. It instantly makes the room feels elevated.

Whatever it is you decided to do there is a beautiful finish that comes from drapery. And at the end of the day, if you hate it take it down! And take your time finding what you love.

Thanks for the questions and for listening to Dear Alice! Until next time.