Today, we will discuss draperies. If you’ve been keeping up with this series, you’ve been through every step of our journey in which we design for a teenager – my teen daughter that wanted something different and something she would grow into. If not, then I invite you to read Part One, Two, and  Three  in order to catch up. If not, then start here and at the time we found her draperies.

 

We Were On The Hunt For Draperies.

 

      Sometimes, when we least expect it, we find what we are looking for. This was the case for the drapery fabric for my daughter’s bedroom. I had previously found a beautiful ivory silk that was just perfect. However, due to the fact that there was only one three-yard piece left in stock and it was being discontinued, I re-thought the textile. Again, it had to be light and airy because of her dark furniture; And I wanted to take them as high up on the wall as possible since her ceilings were very high. This is a small detail we could not overlook. The height of her ceiling required Custom Draperies since that length could not be locally sourced unless they were custom-made. Most people will deflate at that thought but hear me out. It’s pretty interesting to hear that even we Design Professionals go through the same things our clients do.

 

     So What Happened?

     We’ve already discovered her style was a French inspired. We visited New Orleans, found her bed, the chair and decided the direction of her room. And now, we were working on the draperies…

     We decided to install the  drapery rods high to showcase the height of the room. Regarding  the print on the textile, it had to be just the right scale in proportion to the other prints in the room i.e, the chrome print on the duvet since they were to be placed so close to one another.  If one was too large or too small, it would look too busy and do away with the fresh  appearance I was going for. I was disappointed that the first fabric I had found was no longer available but I knew I would come across another.
Yesterday I was visiting another textile showroom when I saw this gorgeous poly satin that was just waiting for me. I was taken by this fabric and I couldn’t help but reach out and touch it. It looked like silk, felt like silk but had no silk – thumbs up for this one! Best of all it had the gray and french blue embroidery that I kept thinking of. I thought, “This is it. This is what I have been looking for..” Until I felt the worst thing any client feels, something no one else thinks we feel as designers:     STICKER SHOCK. *insert gasp here* Ahem. At a sheer cost of $75.oo per yard that was… amazing. The question was “Do I forgo the cost in exchange of what I would be getting?” The look, the feel, the perfect print and no more searching, not to mention the need to exchange them for years and years to come? It was expensive but it was what I had been looking for.

 

What Was the Problem?

 

      Two draperies panels required 12 yards of this fabric and it made me wonder if I could find something lower in price. Then it dawned on me : This. Was. It. This was as close to perfect as I was going to get and this was as well-priced as this part of the project was going to be. My professional experience with textiles and having owned and operated a designer workroom told me that walking away was not an option. And in hindsight, I realized I was doing what people normally do: they think the cost of the fabric be lower without sacrificing the effect it will have in the completed design. Wrong.

     What Did We Do?  We purchased the fabric and the hardware, had them fabricated and installed. Here are the draperies, hanging in their glory. I won’t expect them to be replaced for ten or fifteen years, maybe longer since they are exactly what she and I both wanted.  Having them made and seeing what they brought into the room really made them worth the purchase, don’t you think? The best part? Perfect length, perfect finish, perfect style, perfect color so there will be no replacements needed anywhere in the distant future. 😉 Mission: Accomplished.

     Here are her Draperies. Fabricated  by our very own Workroom. 🙂

 

 

 

So Let’s Recap:

Top Three Perks to having Custom Draperies:

 

1. You get to pick your fabric. I mean, your absolute choice. You get to  select which you want out of the colors and textures that best suite your project. Your chances of being happy are 99.999%. It’s totally your choice! Who doesn’t love that? Don’t settle. 😉

2. Less time re-decorating and replacing them. It’s easy to think it’s cheaper to buy from the store but once you factor the drive-time and cost of the actual product plus how many times you replace them over the next 10-15 years, you may as well have gone custom and gotten it over with. You’re simply making the investment up front and at one time. Less fuss for you, right? Right!

3. You have what no one else has. Your neighbors won’t be able to run to the store and buy what you have so you won’t go through seeing your things at a friend’s house. Do I really need to say more to those that love to keep up with the Jones’s? I hope not.

What To Expect When You Do Decide to Inquire About Custom Draperies?

 

1. You’ll probably get sticker shock but if you do the math, it’s no different from going to the store and exchanging the look, color, hand and style of your current draperies over a span of a couple of years but you get it right the first time. Once and you’re done! Who doesn’t love that?

2. . You’ll hesitate and guess that you can get better for less. Perfectly normal but it’s not necessarily the truth. When you opt for a much lower price point, you risk  sacrificing the look of the overall project. I often find that those that do go for a drop in price can expect a different look and feel in the end. Why? Because what was chosen  took hours of research and expertise to select it for  you. Changing one thing due to its price may incur changes throughout the rest of the space.

3. You’ll want to go shorter on length to save money. Please refer to Point No. 2 above. What you will want to do is go up as high as possible. There’s no sense in going with high ceilings if you’re going to cut their height short with low drapery hardware. It’s like putting a cafe rod in a window that doesn’t call for cafe curtains. 🙁

 

      I hope you learned something about draperies and ask that if you found it useful, please share to your favorite social site. Sharing is caring and that’s how we stay in business. You help us stay in business by sharing this post and all our other posts with your friends. If you’re interested in obtaining a custom drapery quote, feel free to Contact Us. We’d love to help you get your custom draperies up for your next holiday event!

*This article was originally published on August 6th, 2011