20 Curtain Ideas for Your Home

While countertops, cabinets and appliances play a major role in your kitchen design, curtains can enchance your style. Here are a few curtain ideas for kitchens:

• Cafe curtains stop at your window sill, so they’re an ideal fit for windows above a sink.
• Light and neutral colors make a small or dark kitchen feel brighter and more open. Patterned curtains can transform the way your kitchen looks and feels, even in smaller cafe curtain sizes. Stripes, florals and geometric prints are fun and lively patterns.
• Light-filtering curtains let the sun shine in through kitchen windows with a sunny exposure.
• Easy-care materials are great for kitchens. Look for washable curtains that can withstand splatters of food and water and stand up to daily use. You'll find curtain ideas for kitchens with any kind of decor.

Your living room is where you spend much of your time with family and guests. Use these curtain ideas for living rooms to update your decor and make your space more functional:

Go for a neutral tone if your living room already has splashes of color or you prefer understated accents. Solid colors like white, off-white, cream or even some metallics can add texture and depth without taking over the atmosphere.

Look for modern style curtains to update your living room. Black and white curtains, grommet curtains, pinch pleat curtains and those with geometric shapes or abstract prints look refined and contemporary.

If your living room gets a lot of sun, thermal curtains can help keep it cool even in the middle of summer. Thermal curtains come in an array of styles, so you don’t have to compromise on your design theme. Thermal options are also ideal curtains for sliding glass doors.

More curtain ideas for an elegant, dramatic look: velvet or satin curtains.

Your bedroom should be designed to help you recharge after a long day. The right curtains can enhance this space and help you get the rest you need.

Look for quality materials like silk and linen in floor length curtains for your master bedroom. Allowing curtains to drape along the floor adds a sense of depth and drama.

Blackout curtains block the sunlight so you can sleep at any time of day. Layering them with sheer or lighter weight curtains lets you open the blackout curtains, yet still control the amount of light your room receives.

Add style to your get-ready space with these ideas for bathroom curtains:

• Bold prints or bright colors. Patterns and striking hues have a big impact in a small space. They’re also a fun choice for powder rooms, guest bathrooms or kid-friendly spaces.
• Waterproof curtains can stand up to moisture without getting damaged or wrinkled. Easy-care polyester cafe curtains are also a good choice in the bathroom.
• Coordinate small accents in the bathroom when choosing curtain rods, tie backs or other curtain hardware. Bathrooms are small compared to most rooms, so these finishes make a larger impact.

Curtains for dining rooms look elegant and chic when they’re made from materials like linen, silk or faux silk, velvet or lace. For a dining room with a lot of hard furnishings, rather than upholstered ones, consider hanging the curtains so they fall in small puddles on the floor to soften the overall look.

You may want to use curtains in a fabric that matches or complements fabrics on chair cushions or in a tablecloth, table runner or other table linens.

If you can’t find curtains that just graze the dining room floor, but you want that look, install the curtain rod above the usual height of four inches above the window frame. While rods are usually placed 6 to 8 inches on either side of the frame, you can also install them farther apart to make the window look wider. Be sure your dining room curtains are full enough to account for the wider spacing.

If you want to keep the same basic decor in your child's room as he grows older, choose neutral curtains. Basic whites, ivories, beiges, tans and grays make it easy to transition from a toddler’s room to a teen’s retreat. If you prefer, find new curtain ideas for a kid’s room to match his age. Novelty curtains with animals or pastel colors are fun for younger kids, while casual patterns and brighter colors work well throughout the school years.

Sheer curtains are a good choice for rooms that need some outside light but that don’t require complete privacy. They can be pulled across a window to let in fresh air, even if you don’t want a lot
of sunshine. Use sheers by themselves or behind another set of curtains for a layered look that lets you control the amount of light and air you want.

Depending on the pattern, patterned curtains can add a playful, casual or rustic look to your decor. Consider painting the walls of your room in one of the pattern colors, or use a few accents like throw pillows to play off one or two of the curtain colors. Patterned curtains can add life to a room where the walls and upholstered furniture are all solids.

Patterned curtains are available in checks, polka dots, plaids, Jacquards and many other choices.

Striped curtains can pull off some neat visual tricks in any space. Curtains with horizontal stripes can make a room look larger while vertical stripes make a room look taller. Stick to no more than two or three colors in the stripes, or opt for neutral-colored stripes, to avoid overpowering the rest of your decor.

Choose striped curtains that blend in with your wall and furniture colors or use a few accent items to pick up colors from the stripes. Striped curtains and shower curtains often work well in casual bathrooms. For a more formal look in a living room, bedroom or other space, opt for a curtain with a broad stripe or band at the very bottom.

As the name suggests, room-darkening curtains keep most of the outside light from entering a room. Used during the daytime, they block out most of the light and some of the heat from the sun. They differ from blackout curtains because they do allow a little light into a room.

Light-filtering curtains are a great choice for rooms where you want to add style, color or texture, but you also want to enjoy some of the natural light from a sunny exposure. They offer a moderate amount of privacy.

While blackout curtains are ideal for a bedroom with an occupant who needs to sleep during the day, those made from an opaque material with a foam backing can also help insulate a room from heat or cold.

If you still see light coming from around the edge of your blackout curtains once they've been installed, layer them with another set of curtains you can adjust to block the remaining light.

Blackout curtains can be a great choice for a media room or nursery.

Pleated curtains have a decorative heading, which is created by stitching pleats together. They give an elegant, formal look to rooms. They’re usually hung by inserting pin-on hooks into the backs of the pleats. The hooks are then hung on a curtain rod or rings on a curtain rod. Try them in a sophisticated bedroom, living room or dining room.

Grommet curtains have built-in rings at the top. A curtain rod is inserted through the rings for hanging. These easy-to-install curtains have clean lines that give rooms a simple, informal look, and they work especially well with contemporary decor. Use them on decorative rods for a dressier look. Grommet curtains are often made of relatively stiff materials, so they have a crisp, neat appearance, and the grommets let them slide easily over a rod.

Available in a variety of styles, colors and lengths, tie top curtains attach to curtain rods with decorative strips of fabric. These versatile curtains work well in almost any room and typically have an informal feel. They’re similar to tab top curtains, which hang from loops or tabs of fabric that are inserted over a curtain rod.

Sometimes called pole top or casement curtains, rod pocket curtains have a casing sewn onto the back of each curtain. A curtain rod is inserted through the casing for hanging. They’re great to use with layered window curtains since they are easy to pull over or away from the other layer. Some are available with matching valances that can be installed over the top of the curtains to conceal the curtain rod. Rod pocket curtains in lightweight fabrics and sheers are a popular choice for use on French doors and sidelights.

Easy-care curtains come in a wide variety of styles, colors and designs and work well in rooms with casual decor. Some can be pulled back to one or both sides of a window. Look for fun fabrics like colorful or patterned cottons, lightweight voiles, wrinkle-resistant polyesters and synthetic blends.
Many are machine-washable.

Curtains usually come in standard lengths of 63 inches, 84 inches, 95 inches, 108 inches or 120 inches. Tier curtains are often 24 to 36 inches long and can be a good choice for a small kitchen or bathroom window.

Many people use floor length curtains or curtains that come within a half inch of the floor. Long curtains make a room look more sophisticated and finished than shorter ones, but if your room is dusty, or you have children or pets around that might get the curtains dirty, you may prefer short curtains.

Shorter curtains are also better for rooms that have a radiator or baseboard heater. While short curtains tend to cut a wall in half visually, they can provide a welcome casual, informal look.

Some window curtains are actually decorative valances that drape or hang just a few inches below a curtain rod. Decorative valances are a good choice if you want to conceal the top of the window frame and add a finished, polished look to a room, but you don't need much coverage of the window itself.

Other window curtains come as a set and include curtains and a matching valance.

Need curtains for an outdoor space, such as a deck or pool room? Look for outdoor curtains that are fade-resistant, mildew-resistant and/or water repellant. Some are UV-protected (UPF 50+). Sheers and lighting-blocking outdoor curtains are available in a variety of colors, styles and textures.