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17 COMMENTS
Those curtains (especially the ones from Colefax & Fowler) are just so beautiful! And nothing like you see in Bed, Bath & Beyond. It would be so worth it to have curtains custom made. Gorgeous!
Whilst perusing real estate listings daily, I see so many drapery “fails”. Sometimes the rooms are beautifully appointed, only to have the windows bare or carelessly dressed, destroying the whole effect. Fowler, Buatta and other designers understood that draperies were everything to a room. There seems to be a tendency these days to leave windows bare – basically the equivalent, decorating-wise to having a bare light bulb hanging from the ceiling. There are occasions when windows should not be covered, but they are few, and certainly not in bedrooms or regular living areas. Custom draperies are costly, but should be thought of as an investment, as all decor is. Trendy is not the way to go. Classic never goes out of style.
Beautiful post! Some of the images I had not seen before- these designer curtains are horribly expensive- I recently did some relatively simple ones for a client that were well over $22,000.00 – the ones we took down were $40,000.00 !
I love that you love the romance of fine workmanship translated into whimsical and functional curtains! The fastest way to make a house a home is to have custom window treatments installed.
what a feast for the eyes!! I adore curtains and drapery – my mother did not have a lot of money for decorating but she was a master seamstress so she made all of her own curtains/drapes and designed and had made her own cornices. These photos are just beautiful – thank you so much for this post!
Oh, the limitations of a photograph… Perhaps drapery loses most in the translation from reality to photograph. Not only can one not perceive the cut of the material (or its “lay”), but one cannot see the dimensionality created by its stitching and folds, one cannot see the interplay of directional light upon colour against/amongst colours, one cannot feel the all important weight of multiple layerings of fabric, or feel the texture of each fabric itself (does it slide or does it hold?). There are so many stories in a well-executed drapery composition (sorry, but “curtains” will always allude to only the simplest form to me). Thank you for these beautiful bespoke images of drapery at its best. May beauty live on.
Glorious article! What a shame that these days, only the very wealthy can afford the look. I remember when many years ago you could buy ready mades that were similar, if not as opulent. Presently buyers are only offered one style and today’s design is lacking the personality that beautiful windows add to a room. Plain windows are like eyes without makeup!! I’m hoping for new looks in the near future, where one can choose the design they like rather than having it chosen for you, as is the case today. More variety, PLEASE! We are not all alike and our homes should be able to reflect that!! Thank you for reminding us that there are so many beautiful that ways we achieve that! You are rare gem of inspiration.
Amen to that, and thank you for the kind words! I’ll tell you a little secret… You can often find these fabulous works of art for pennies on the dollar via eBay and at auction as people buy into the latest trend. 🙂
I love this post SO MUCH, if you turned it into a small book, I’d buy it and keep it on my coffee table. I’d probably buy more as little “just because” gifts.
I’m wondering why the photos can’t be Pinned?
Thank you for a great Friday morning coffee read!!
A book I highly recommend is Window Dressings: Beautiful Draperies & Curtains for the Home https://rstyle.me/+hjkZNsQl5KYgl6mrsnwQGQ. I should have included it in my post, I will add it now. It is gorgeous, you will love it!
Regarding the Pin button, I checked with my tech support, and it should be working… They said you might need to clear browser cache and make sure your browser is up to date. Does that help?
I still have such curtains in 3 rooms in my house. Alas, my gorgeous C&F “Fuchsia” DR curtains had to finally be replaced (after 31 years!) with ones with a simpler valance. There is no longer local workroom or seamstresses who can fabricate the elaborate valances. Gawd, but I loved those curtains!
Curtains make a room. They give it individuality, to say nothing of COLOR. I’ll hang onto the ones I have til they turn them into a shroud for me one day.
BTW – I much prefer the term “curtains” to “draperies”. When I hear “drapery”, I think of flat, pinch pleat ones careful hand dressed to fall straight and narrow, often made out of the ubiquitous “antique satin” favored in the 60’s & 70’s. Colefax & Fowler always used the term curtains and Rita Konig does as well. Curtains, they are!
I couldn’t agree more! I can’t stand bare windows! I know that has been and is the trend, but don’t you want some privacy? I can’t afford such beautiful curtains, but I’ll start looking on Ebay. Thanks for that wonderful tip.
Have you ever read Joni Webb’s post on window treatments from her “Top Ten Series on her “Cote de Texas” blog? It’s a real education on draperies. It’s wonderful and so lengthy. I highly recommend it.
I’ve got a curtain crush on every one of these beautiful creations. What a lovely post Andrea! It cheered me up after feeling quite heartbroken this morning. I just came home from the beach here in Oceanside, seriously depressed because another beautiful victorian home down on Pacific Street has just been smashed down by a bulldozer. They didn’t even try to save the gorgeous windows. The charming little lady who used to live there had the most beautiful curtains hanging in those windows! I’m sure the new owners threw them in the trash just like they threw away a beautiful charming house. I’ll miss it and those windows and curtains. It was one of the prettiest houses in town.
Those curtains (especially the ones from Colefax & Fowler) are just so beautiful! And nothing like you see in Bed, Bath & Beyond. It would be so worth it to have curtains custom made. Gorgeous!
Excellent article!
Whilst perusing real estate listings daily, I see so many drapery “fails”. Sometimes the rooms are beautifully appointed, only to have the windows bare or carelessly dressed, destroying the whole effect. Fowler, Buatta and other designers understood that draperies were everything to a room. There seems to be a tendency these days to leave windows bare – basically the equivalent, decorating-wise to having a bare light bulb hanging from the ceiling. There are occasions when windows should not be covered, but they are few, and certainly not in bedrooms or regular living areas. Custom draperies are costly, but should be thought of as an investment, as all decor is. Trendy is not the way to go. Classic never goes out of style.
Fabulous article. All of those curtains are swoon worthy! Many thanks for so many glorious photographs.
Beautiful post! Some of the images I had not seen before- these designer curtains are horribly expensive- I recently did some relatively simple ones for a client that were well over $22,000.00 – the ones we took down were $40,000.00 !
I love that you love the romance of fine workmanship translated into whimsical and functional curtains! The fastest way to make a house a home is to have custom window treatments installed.
Thanks for a fabulous post Andrea!
MB R.I.P.
what a feast for the eyes!! I adore curtains and drapery – my mother did not have a lot of money for decorating but she was a master seamstress so she made all of her own curtains/drapes and designed and had made her own cornices. These photos are just beautiful – thank you so much for this post!
Oh, the limitations of a photograph… Perhaps drapery loses most in the translation from reality to photograph. Not only can one not perceive the cut of the material (or its “lay”), but one cannot see the dimensionality created by its stitching and folds, one cannot see the interplay of directional light upon colour against/amongst colours, one cannot feel the all important weight of multiple layerings of fabric, or feel the texture of each fabric itself (does it slide or does it hold?). There are so many stories in a well-executed drapery composition (sorry, but “curtains” will always allude to only the simplest form to me). Thank you for these beautiful bespoke images of drapery at its best. May beauty live on.
Glorious article! What a shame that these days, only the very wealthy can afford the look. I remember when many years ago you could buy ready mades that were similar, if not as opulent. Presently buyers are only offered one style and today’s design is lacking the personality that beautiful windows add to a room. Plain windows are like eyes without makeup!! I’m hoping for new looks in the near future, where one can choose the design they like rather than having it chosen for you, as is the case today. More variety, PLEASE! We are not all alike and our homes should be able to reflect that!! Thank you for reminding us that there are so many beautiful that ways we achieve that! You are rare gem of inspiration.
Hi Dianne,
Amen to that, and thank you for the kind words! I’ll tell you a little secret… You can often find these fabulous works of art for pennies on the dollar via eBay and at auction as people buy into the latest trend. 🙂
Xx,
Andrea
The Glam Pad
I love this post SO MUCH, if you turned it into a small book, I’d buy it and keep it on my coffee table. I’d probably buy more as little “just because” gifts.
I’m wondering why the photos can’t be Pinned?
Thank you for a great Friday morning coffee read!!
Hi Kyrah,
A book I highly recommend is Window Dressings: Beautiful Draperies & Curtains for the Home https://rstyle.me/+hjkZNsQl5KYgl6mrsnwQGQ. I should have included it in my post, I will add it now. It is gorgeous, you will love it!
Regarding the Pin button, I checked with my tech support, and it should be working… They said you might need to clear browser cache and make sure your browser is up to date. Does that help?
Thank you so much for your kind words!
Xx,
Andrea
The Glam Pad
I still have such curtains in 3 rooms in my house. Alas, my gorgeous C&F “Fuchsia” DR curtains had to finally be replaced (after 31 years!) with ones with a simpler valance. There is no longer local workroom or seamstresses who can fabricate the elaborate valances. Gawd, but I loved those curtains!
Curtains make a room. They give it individuality, to say nothing of COLOR. I’ll hang onto the ones I have til they turn them into a shroud for me one day.
BTW – I much prefer the term “curtains” to “draperies”. When I hear “drapery”, I think of flat, pinch pleat ones careful hand dressed to fall straight and narrow, often made out of the ubiquitous “antique satin” favored in the 60’s & 70’s. Colefax & Fowler always used the term curtains and Rita Konig does as well. Curtains, they are!
Hi Suzanne,
Ahhh, Fuchsia is such a fabulous print! I love it so much I wrote an entire post on it. 🙂 https://www.theglampad.com/2017/10/colefax-and-fowlers-classic-fuchsia-chintz.html And yes, I agree with you about the term curtains!
Xx,
Andrea
The Glam Pad
I couldn’t agree more! I can’t stand bare windows! I know that has been and is the trend, but don’t you want some privacy? I can’t afford such beautiful curtains, but I’ll start looking on Ebay. Thanks for that wonderful tip.
Have you ever read Joni Webb’s post on window treatments from her “Top Ten Series on her “Cote de Texas” blog? It’s a real education on draperies. It’s wonderful and so lengthy. I highly recommend it.
Beautiful post !! A feast for the eyes indeed
I’ve got a curtain crush on every one of these beautiful creations. What a lovely post Andrea! It cheered me up after feeling quite heartbroken this morning. I just came home from the beach here in Oceanside, seriously depressed because another beautiful victorian home down on Pacific Street has just been smashed down by a bulldozer. They didn’t even try to save the gorgeous windows. The charming little lady who used to live there had the most beautiful curtains hanging in those windows! I’m sure the new owners threw them in the trash just like they threw away a beautiful charming house. I’ll miss it and those windows and curtains. It was one of the prettiest houses in town.