Draw Draperies have come a long way from your Grandmas sheers. But Grandma was smart, because they can actually be the perfect solution in several cases. When you know when to use draw draperies in your home the effect can be beautiful & extremely effective.

The important things to know are what applications work best for draw draperies, what is the best pleat style for your design & application, and what type of fabric to use to achieve the look you want.

Let’s get started on better understanding when to use draw draperies in your home…

Wall of Windows

Draw Draperies tend to be associated with an ornate traditional design style. However, I find them to be very useful in contemporary design, especially because of the walls of windows often used in modern architecture.

We often see wall of windows in high rise condos with beautiful views of the skyline. I find draw draperies are the perfect application to prevent my clients from feeling like they’re in a fish bowl, exposed for the world to see.

Extra Privacy

Large bedroom windows are an excellent place to use draw draperies especially when you want a total blackout effect. I’m sure you’ve noticed that hotels always use draw draperies. They are the perfect application to blockout unwanted light & help you get the best night sleep.

For more on getting a good night’s sleep, be sure to read my earlier blogpost, The 5 C’s to Designing a Bedroom for a Good Night’s Sleep.

Improve Acoustics

If you have a room with a volume ceiling & hard wood floor, draw draperies are an outstanding application to help buffer the noise. Fabric is a natural sound absorber. When watching television or entertaining this is a valuable feature.

As a Room Partition

Draw Draperies, originally were used in Royal Palaces as room dividers. It was the perfect way to section off spaces to create more versatility.

I used this approach between my dining room & family room. When I replaced my sofa a few years ago, I purchased a sleeper sofa so that we could accommodate more guests during the holidays. The double sided draw drapery serves as a room divider and offers a sound barrier from the other main floor rooms.

We put it through the test the past couple of weeks as my daughter & son-in-law slept there while their home was undergoing some renovation projects. My granddaughter slept in one of the rooms upstairs I set up as the nursery. It was nice for them to put a little distance between them since my daughter is due any week now with their second child.

Temperature Control

Hands down, when it comes to window treatments, lined draw draperies will provide the best temperature control. Fabric does a great job shielding the glass & holding in your preferred temperature.

Cut Glare

Adding lots of windows in your home always seems like an excellent idea. Who doesn’t want more light?

However, there are challenges that they present & one of them is TV glare. In the image below, this was the case. The television is located on the opposite side of the room of these windows. Even with the best technology, glare was a problem. The draw draperies served as the perfect solution to eliminating glare.

They also check some of the other boxes as well helping with the acoustics & maintaining the temperature.

What pleat is right for your application?

The pleat is more important than you think.

Most of you are probably familiar with the classic Pinch Pleat. It’s the basic pleat to use in more traditional applications. It does the job of holding a nice, neat pleat that carries down the length of the drapery panel.

If you’re looking for a more relaxed look, the Euro Pleat or Three Finger Pleat is one of my favorites. It’s slightly less structured, yet offers the benefit of holding the pleat in place. It’s a great look for those of you that have a transitional design.

The Inverted Pleat is excellent for a more tailored, polished look. This is for the “neat freak ” because with the right fabric it can offer a very clean look.

The Goblet Pleat offers a pretty detail that works well in a traditional design. It’s important to know, when your draw draperies are in the open position, the stack will be wider than other pleats, taking up more of your wall or window space than you might want. The detail is a trade off.

The Ripple Fold is a great look for contemporary, moden design. It requires a specific rod that is designed to work with this pleat style. This is the style pleat used in my clients home pictured in the image shown earlier in this post.

The Cartridge Pleat, also know as the Pencil Pleat is an excellent look for contemporary, modern design. It has a very clean, sharp look, however, remember it is fabric, so you will get crimping under the pleat.

The Grommet Top works well in contemporary, modern design. It adds an interesting detail and relinquishes the use of rings.

The Flat Pleat is another excellent style for a transitional look. This works well in a farmhouse style home because it has a more layed back structure.

Is the type of fabric important?

You bet it is!

When selecting a fabric for your draw draperies most manufacturers will guide you on what is appropriate for drapery use. However, if you’re looking for a drapery that will fall into place nicely when you open & close it, fiber content plays a major role.

My favorite combination for fiber content is a cotton, polyester mix.

Here’s why…

Cotton fabric holds a nice pleat but adding a little polyester helps to give it a longer life from fibers breaking down from intense sun.

You might ask, why not use a fabric that is 100% Polyester?

Here’s Why…

100% Polyester will resist holding a good pleat all the way down the panel, causing a flare at the bottom. The longer the drapery panel, the more you increase the chance of this happening. The more length you add over & above a standard 84” length the more you increase the risk of flaring.

You might ask, what about other natural fabrics like silk or linen?

You don’t have to rule these out. They can actually be a gorgeous choice. However, it’s important to know that the beauty of these fabrics is their imperfections. They naturally have a wrinkled look & the risk of the fibers breaking down from intense sun as well as color fading is greatly increased with these fabrics.

I should also mention shrinkage.

Early in my career as a designer, I had a situation where I used silk draw draperies in my clients bedroom. It was a really gorgeous look & my client loved it. However, after 5 or 6 months the fabric started shrinking hiking the curtains up. But guess what? The lining was a cotton/poly mix and did not shrink. You might be able to relate … maybe you have had a pair of wool trousers that have done this.

Yikes! I was panicking.

Fortunately, my drapery workroom had left enough of a hem in the curtains and were able to let down the silk portion enough to rectify the problem. Even better, the silk had stabilized at that point and did not shrink again.

I’m happy to say, I still work with this client :) Sometimes it’s not what happens, it’s what you do about it.

It’s also important to know what types of fabric & lining to use when you use draw draperies in your home.

Sheer Fabrics are great for when you want to obscure the view but you don’t need all the other bells & whistles that go along with draw draperies. They will help a little with acoustics & maintaining the temperature but not as much as lined draperies.

Medium Weight Fabric that is lined will serve the purpose for most of the other benefits of draw draperies. However, if you want total blackout for sleeping use a blackout lining.

Blackout Fabric is another great way to achieve total darkness. This is what most hotels use now. It keeps the draperies from getting to heavy since you don’t need lining with this type of fabric. One of my favorite lines for this option is JF Fabrics.

Heavy Weight Fabric can be great for hand drawn room dividers. I used a 2 layers of chenille for my room divider. It really helps buffer the noise & keeps the room extra dark without having to use an interlining.

As you can see there is a lot to know about when to use draw draperies & how to achieve the best results. Just know that this can be the perfect application for your home & it can be done in a stylish, sophisticated way.

I look forward to your questions & comments below & hope you “like” this blogpost.

If you’re still struggling, consider my Local or Online Design Services! My Pick My Brain Package might be perfect for your project.