Curtain

 ( Furnishings ) 

Uncoated fabrics provide the next level of heat insulation and light absorption. Uncoated fabrics constitute the vast majority of fabrics used in curtains, and are composed of a tightly woven fabric, most typically a cotton/polyester blend, which is mostly when viewed in ambient light. Uncoated fabrics provide a reasonable level of heat insulation due to their tight weaves, but are too thin to completely absorb strong light. As a result, when curtains made from uncoated fabrics are closed in an attempt to block out direct sunlight, light will still be visible through the curtain because its textiles are shiny.

consist of a standard uncoated fabric with an opaque rubber backing applied to the rear of the fabric to provide improved light absorption. To create a coated fabric, a liquefied rubber polymer is applied in a single coat to an uncoated fabric and subsequently fused dry by means of a heated roller, in much the same way that a laser printer applies toner to a sheet of paper before fusing it dry. A fabric that has been through the coating process once is considered a "1-pass-coated" fabric, anecdotally referred to as "dim-out" or "blackout" because of the fabric's ability to absorb approximately 50-70% of a direct light source. To improve the light absorption of a fabric it is possible to re-coat a fabric up to a maximum of "3-pass-coated", which is considered sufficient to block out 100% of a direct light source, hence such fabrics are referred to as "blackout-coated".

Maximum light absorption and heat insulation in a curtain is created through a lined curtain, which typically consists of an uncoated fabric at the front to provide the look and feel of the curtain, with a separate coated fabric attached at the rear to provide the insulative qualities. The coated fabric is typically referred to as a lining, which simply refers to a coated fabric that does not have any particular color or pattern.

Curtains may be held back with tie-backs (a loop of cloth, rope, etc., placed around a curtain to hold it open to one side; typically passed through a ring on a hook attached to the wall, and fastened with a knot, button, or velcro; often adorned with ) or may be closed and opened with sticks called draw-pulls (rods made of plastic, wood, or metal that can be twisted and/or pulled) or which are attached either to the runner or to the first hook. A curtain hook stopper is a device used to stop the curtain from falling off the end of the curtain rail.

Although some curtains may employ pulley systems, they should not be confused with roller blinds or roller shades. They may be generally referred to as , which are cover or modification of the window, often with the aim to enhance the aesthetics of the window and the room.

• Flat panel curtains are simple and versatile: to make them, pieces of fabric are hemmed on all four edges and the final rectangular or square piece is hung from curtains poles with clip-on rings or something similar. If pleated, the look is strongly influenced by the fullness of the pleats.
• Panel Pair Curtains are also known as double panel curtains. They refer to two curtain panels hanging on either side of the window. This is the most common style.
• Tab top curtains are made with narrow straps, that loop or tie at the top edge and hung from the curtain pole.
  Creative Publishing (2026). 9781616733773, Creative Publishing Int'l. . ISBN 9781616733773
  This curtain style is often designed as two stationary panels at the sides of a window.
• Grommet curtains are hung by threading the curtain pole through a hole in the top of the fabric. This could be either a cut-out hole with the edges finished by a row of stitching or it could use a grommet to prevent fraying.
• Sash curtains are used to cover the lower sash of the windows.
• Rod pocket curtains have a channel sewn into the top of the fabric. A curtain rod is passed through the channel to hang.
  Creative Publishing (1998). 9780865733480, Creative Publishing Int'l. . ISBN 9780865733480
• Thermal or blackout curtains use very tightly woven fabric, usually in multiple layers. They not only block out the light, but can also serve as an acoustic or thermal dampener.
• Animal Skin Curtains are sewn together from the skins of animals. Some are made from a single large animal, or the scraps of many small. Although not used in modern times, they were prominent in the Middle Ages, with many significant royal figures known to have animal skin curtains made from rare specimens.
• Curtain liners are used to protect actual curtains from getting wet.
• Eyelet Curtains are attached to a pole (usually metal). A number of circular holes are cut into near the top of the curtain and edged with a metal ring (eyelet). The pole is then threaded through these holes, with approx. 4 cm of fabric showing above the pole.
• Pencil Pleat Curtains are formed by pulling cords attached to "rufflette tape" to gather the fabric into pleats that look like a row of pencils. These curtains are then hung under a pole or attached to a curtain track with plastic hooks fitted in every 4th "pocket" along the rufflette heading. Typically a 1.5 m width of fabric will be gathered to 750 mm width. Rufflette Tape was originally developed from tape which held ammunition (bullets) for semi automatic machine guns.
• Pinch Pleat Curtains are usually formed by machine stitching together either 2 or 3 pleats, then leaving a gap of typically 10 cm before repeating the pleating process. These curtains are then hung under a curtain pole using either metal pinch pleat hooks or vertical sliding plastic hooks sewn into the reverse of the pleats.