Window Treatment Trends: Countries’ Favorite Curtain Styles

Fashion trends affect the appearance and style of clothing and the home interior – from actual wall decoration to curtain color trends. There are so many trends that it’s difficult not to get confused. The key to the right choice of stylish window treatment is considering all the interior features and the latest Window Treatment Trends. Here, you will find the different countries’ trends of window treatment.

Window Treatment Trends

In most cases, window decor is integral to a stylish interior. Allowing yourself the absence of curtains is possible only on the top floor of the building or with panoramic windows with a mirrored outer side; in other cases, curtains are necessary.

“Correct” curtains can save a simple interior, and “wrong” ones can ruin an ideal design idea.

Today, unusual novelties in window design and time-tested options with new textures and trend shades are relevant.

Good to Read: Should Curtains Match Walls?

Classic Curtains

The traditional and familiar tandem of light fabrics (tulle) and dense (curtains). The modern reading combines plain light fabric of different colors from dairy to graphite with printed curtains. The print can be absolutely anything: floral motifs, inscriptions, portraits, stylization, and all that the designer’s soul desires.

Classic is universal for all types of premises. It differs from the kind of fabric (for example, jacquard for the living room and blackout for the bedroom), by the method of fastening: on hinges, on hooks, on eyelets (on rings), on ties, on the drawstring (worn on a bar), according to the decoration method: hooks, magnets, cords, curtain tape.

A common version of the living room design – curtains with a lambrequin. It closes that part of the cornice, on which the curtains are fixed, and the composition takes on a decorative and complete look. However, it is important to consider that the lambrequin is not intended for rooms with low ceilings since it visually reduces their height.

Austrian Curtains

The second name by which they are known is festoon. Represent a cloth that gathers in horizontal folds using special laces or tapes. They pass along the wrong side of the fabric through several rows of loops or rings. The curtain hangs directly if the cords are loose; only soft folds-puffs are preserved along the lower edge. Open curtains gather in voluminous flounces, giving the window a festive look.

Austrian curtains are made from fabrics of different grades and densities. The most popular products with shiny surfaces: are silk, cambric, taffeta, or polyester. They close the window tight enough and look original. For light curtains, translucent flying fabrics give the window airiness.

French-Style Curtains

If you combine the features of classic curtains with lambrequins and festoon curtains, you get what is commonly called French curtains. They consist of two vertical drapeable canvases and one horizontal piece reminiscent of a puff lambrequin.

These curtains can be combined with transparent or colored tulle. The canvases themselves are best chosen from a plain and well-draped fabric.

Romance Curtains

This is a one-piece canvas draped along the upper edge with curtain tape.

There are as many variations of drapery as there are types of curtains:

• Columns – neat folds identical to each other in one row. The quantity and density is regulated by laces and the width of the fabric;
• Puffs. Unlike columns, they give the opposite effect – uneven folds. When assembled, they resemble a “waffle” surface, so “Waffle” is the second name for this type of drapery;
• Pencil. They are leading in simplicity and versatility. They look like columns, but folds are less.
• Glasses (glasses, glasses). The name of this species is speaking since the folds are similar in shape to elegant glasses. Of all the types of drapery, they are the most magnificent.
• Bows. Simple bows formed by folds towards each other;
• “Butterfly.” It looks like rhombuses in appearance. For the screed, four cords are needed in the tape;
• Counter folds.
• Fan. “French assembly” of several fans with 4-5 feathers.

You can buy ready-made curtains or buy tape in the department of sewing accessories and sew on a typewriter to the upper edge of the fabric.

Assembly of folds is carried out in a few simple movements with the help of laces in the tape. Their density can be adjusted by changing the assembly coefficient.

English Curtains

By the name, they fit best into the ethnic style in the interior since the print variations on the curtains are very limited here. The English pattern prevails a cage, a strip, printed flowers of small roses. They are more decorative than practical.

Cascade assembly (when the canvas forms folds, gathering from bottom to top on ribbons on both sides) makes them not too lush and appropriate in the living room and the kitchen, bedroom, and nursery.

Related: Should Kitchen Windows Have Curtains?

Crossed

Light translucent or transparent canvases are a combination of two and sometimes three. The upperparts are fixed on the cornice and are located on top of each other, and the lower ones are laid apart. The more the fabric shines through, the more elegant the window design looks.

You can decorate with flowing folds most of the rooms in the house.

Crossed curtains do not move apart, so the material should transmit enough light, and the fabric itself should be beautifully draped. Sections of the fabric of varying length and width will form asymmetry that is fashionable in the room’s design.

Italian Curtains

In children’s drawings, curtains on windows are often found, which do not move to the middle but are collected on the sides of the window and tied with a beautiful ribbon, braid, and tassels. This is what classic Italian curtains look like.

Modern models are tied up and pulled together by cords, passed through rings, or tucked into unique holders.

An important nuance: the ceiling height should be at least 3 meters for the curtains to look perfect.

As for fabric choice, it is worth choosing something expensive and luxurious for such curtains: silk, satin, velvet, and other noble materials.

Japanese Style Curtains

They differ from ordinary curtains because they consist of several dense canvases with weighting agents in the lower part that prevent them from bending. The sliding system works like a blind can be one-sided or central.

Roman Blind

A new technique in window decoration based on blinds-pleated technology. Roman canvases in closed form tightly close the window, even if recessed into a niche. Instead, they are assembled into an “accordion” to the middle or across the entire surface in the open.

Convenient in those rooms where you need to save space.

Good to Read: How to Dye Curtains?

Roller Blind

According to the principle of operation, they are similar to Roman ones, but they do not fold but are wound onto a bobbin using a manual or electronic control mechanism. The canvas can be made of different fabric types, including blackout for the bedroom.

Chinese Curtains

According to the assembly method, they can be either rolled or Roman, but at the same time, they are not fixed close to the window and do not consist of one canvas but several independent ones. They are made of beautiful translucent fabrics resembling rice paper tied with ribbons. Their main purpose is window decoration to cover an unsuccessful landscape.

Bamboo Curtains

As the name implies, they are made of natural materials. There can be three types: wicker fabric wound on the shaft, pleated blinds, and vertical curtains, which are folded “accordion.” The latter type is intended for zoning a room instead of interior doors.

Curtains made of bamboo look beautiful expensive, and the unique properties of the plant make them durable and healthy since bamboo kills germs.

Jalousie

Horizontal and vertical blinds mainly represent a popular type of window decoration in modern interiors.

• Horizontal, more functional, designed for minimalist interiors and protection from external light and prying eyes. Relevant in the kitchen, bedroom, study.
• Verticals perform a decorative function. Their width makes it possible to experiment with materials and colors. You can find fabric products, plastic, aluminum, wood, bamboo, combined, 3D photo curtains, and models of threads (rain, noodles).

Screen

This is a shortened version of the curtains, which is attached to a two-level cornice for the lower and upper edge with the help of a drawstring. Suitable for kitchen and bathroom.

Hourglass

A distinctive feature of the curtains is that they are designed for narrow and high windows, and in the middle, they are pulled together with ribbons, bows, or laces. You can decorate the assembly place with decorative elements.

By the principle of fastening similar to screen curtains. Being worn on a round bar, they can freely move left and right.

During assembly, the color or pattern on the canvas should not be very distorted, so monophonic coloring and simple prints are suitable.

Rope

The canvas of threads (kisei, “rain,” beads, and other forms of plastic, wood, or textile) is attached to the cornice and hangs to the floor. These curtains give the room a unique, bohemian look while functioning flawlessly to protect from prying eyes and letting in enough light. They can be used on windows and as interior curtains in the doorway.

Window Treatment Styles

All design ideas flow from the three main directions: historical style, ethnic, modern.

• The historical style, luxury, and chic of Victorian castles, Baroque, Renaissance, Art Nouveau, is embodied today. They also include classicism and neoclassicism, empire, Romanesque and Greek styles.

Whatever direction is chosen as the dominant, the resulting interior should be synonymous with respectability and genuine beauty.

To achieve this effect, it is unnecessary to purchase antiques and order stucco molding from the master on the ceiling; it is enough to use stylization from solid modern materials. Still, it’s hard to live among things resembling museum exhibits, and it will be problematic to maintain order in such a house.

• Ethnic styles are trendy in interior design. With their help, it is straightforward to reflect the interests and preferences of the apartment owner, using national motives.

For pedantic personalities inclined to maintain perfect order in a cozy house, variations on the theme of the English style will be interesting.

Ascetics will suit the Indian style, sophisticated personalities, and romantics – the ambiance of Eastern tales.

For adherents of all-natural – Russian style, Moroccan, Mediterranean, African.

Democratic moods are easily reflected in the American style, and you can get as close to modernity with the help of modernity.

• Modern trends consider people’s need for free space, saving on household items, and the need for self-expression. As a result, they are the most varied and diverse decorating the room.

Minimalism, techno, high-tech can use shutters and blinds, glossy, plastic, and metal surfaces.

Grunge is characterized by classic window decoration techniques using modern materials, loft, and contemporary music for beauty without frills.

Fusion and pop art can afford to be defiantly vibrant and unusual; Japanese curtains, blinds, bright plain pleats, photo curtains, rope curtains to create a bohemian atmosphere, crossed curtains are suitable for such interiors.

Shabby chic, chalets, Provence, boho, country gravitate towards a provincial romance with natural motives. Natural fabrics and floral patterns in different colors and sizes will be beneficial for window decoration with textiles.

Standing apart from contemporary styles is vintage, which is a paradoxical phenomenon since it uses things from past eras. It is characterized by a retrospective of several decades ago, hereditary values and things in the spirit of “treasures from the mezzanines.”

Exciting Ideas for an Apartment

The beautiful design of the apartment implies an interior within the framework of a style corresponding to the size and layout of the apartment and the taste preferences of its owners.

• For the studio, modern styles are perfect, in which free zoning of space, freedom, and elements of creativity are welcomed. Window decoration, in this case, maybe the most unexpected. Still, priority is given to light translucent fabrics that let in natural light, which is necessary for visual lightness and visual increase in a small area.
• In the design of apartments with a standard layout, it is important to consider their size and the number of windows. One big thing is convenient to decorate to become the central element of the composition. Classic views with lambrequins or more modern vertical photo blinds with vivid images are suitable for this. This technique works in the hall’s design and design in the living room.
• If you need to distinguish between a room and a hallway, accordion blinds or rope curtains will come to the rescue. Blinds isolate rooms entirely from each other, and thread cloths will create more ease and airiness.
• For the bedroom, it is important to use shutters, horizontal and vertical blinds, blackout in combination with an air curtain. This will allow you to let in a lot of light into the room during the day and completely darken the bedroom at night.

Further Read: Curtain Designs for Bay Windows

Window Framing in a Private House

The possibilities of designing curtains in a private house or cottage are often much wider than in an apartment with a standard layout. Here you can find attics with ceiling windows and huge living rooms, with two to five windows, and exits to the balcony from the room.

Decoration depends on the dominant style in the house, the size of the windows (often non-standard), such as curtains.

In a classic wooden interior (ethnic Russian style, eco trends), curtains made of natural fabrics, a combination of dense and light fabrics, classic types of curtains will be appropriate. A variety of drapery on a curtain braid and a game with color will help to add a highlight.

Designers are advised to adhere to universal rules:

• Curtains should be combined with the decoration of the walls, floor, and ceiling in color or texture;
• You can decorate several windows in one room in different colors; the main thing is to adhere to one style and choose harmonious combinations;
• The paler the walls, the brighter the curtains can be, and vice versa;
• Drawing on the curtains can and should work to increase the space and their shade visually.

More modern finishes require appropriate materials and decoration methods.

Dimensions

In the choice of curtains or blinds, an important role is played by the parameters of the windows. In typical apartments, there are windows with a height of 60, 90, 120, 140, 150, 180 centimeters and a width of 160 to 180 cm.

The width of textile curtains and vertical blinds is measured by the width of the cornice with an increase of 10-15 centimeters on each side. Length – from the cornice to the expected length (to the windowsill, below the windowsill, to the floor).

The distance from the glazing bead determines the width of the roller blinds and horizontal blinds to the glazing bead since they are mounted directly on the frame. The window opening measures length.

See how to measure and calculate the height of curtains in the following video.

Color Schemes and Decor

The color spectrum is very important in interior design. Of course, what colors to choose is a matter of taste, but there is an important rule that designers recommend adhering to: curtains should be combined in shades with furniture and wall decoration.

The living room and hall, with rare exceptions, do not need to be decorated with materials that will completely block natural light. In it, transparent and translucent fabrics of different shades and almost any kind of curtains, except horizontal blinds, are appropriate. She has beautifully combined crossed plain curtains from light fabrics or veils of two colors, classic designs with textured textiles, using ribbons as decor. It is worth paying attention to the classic combinations (black and white, red and gold, shades of milky tones), warm gradients (coffee, cinnamon, honey, saturated greens, orange), pastel palette.

Bold modern interiors, such as fusion or contemporary, can afford styling for different materials and a more juicy palette (fuchsia, yellow, blue, pomegranate).

Given the specifics of the kitchen, it is worth giving preference to washable curtains that are mounted on the frame or deepened into it. It can be blinds made of colored plastic, aluminum, wood, all types of shutters made of dense washable fabric.

Curtains in the bedroom should create coziness and an atmosphere suitable for relaxation. Therefore, it is important to isolate this area from prying eyes and choose fabrics that are most impervious to light. At the same time, it is convenient to combine them with transparent voils. If the bedroom serves as a workplace, vertical blinds made of noble fabrics look beautiful, chic, plain curtains that can be green (soothing color), dark blue, gray, and brown shades, pleated blinds, and all variations from blackout fabric.

Light fabrics with bright patterns are suitable for a children’s room, bamboo or wood for a study, rope for a corridor.

How to Choose Different Windows?

The type of curtains is not always chosen only based on taste preferences. Sometimes it is dictated by the need to decorate a window of a non-trivial shape.

You can close the window opening with a wide window sill with Japanese curtains, any classic version, vertical blinds.

For skylights, special pleated blinds have been created, the design of which prevents sagging on an inclined plane.

The decor of a small window is convenient in that you can use any of the existing types of design.

It is convenient to hang the “hourglass” screen and Chinese curtains on a narrow high window. Also, Chinese curtains and shutters are suitable for non-standard square-shaped windows.

Trapezoidal, round, triangular windows are conveniently decorated with blinds on a flexible cornice.

Ideas and Examples of Interior Design

Design ideas abound for a single curtain made from interesting material, and they incorporate ribbons, braid, buttons, and clips as additional decor.

The easiest way is to modify the classics by combining plain curtains and curtains with a pattern both on one window and on several windows in different colors.

Chinese rope and bamboo curtains give the window an unusual and original look.

An elite interior requires fabrics of appropriate quality and color. Australian velvet drapes, English tapestry canvases, natural fabrics, and vertical wooden blinds can give it a good look.

In the girl’s room, it makes sense to purchase curtains in romantic or calming colors with various decorations, Asian fabrics, silk, and patterns. The men’s room is more disposed to a restrained and noble range, fabrics without texture, quilling, and ribbons.

An exclusive design always works beautifully, taking into account the parameters of the window and the style direction in the home environment.