Direct Fabrics Blog

5 Tips for Keeping Your Curtains Looking Brand-New - Our Guide

If you own curtains, you know that sourcing them can be quite the project. You might have shopped around for designs, purchased the perfect curtains, and had them installed. However, window care does not end with choosing a set of drapes. You need to have a maintenance schedule for your curtains. If you don’t, you’ll end up with faded, dirty drapes soon enough. 

Before you know it, your stylish fixtures will become dust traps. Help keep your family safe, and ensure your curtains can be used for years to come, by following our tips. Aside from protecting your curtains from sunlight, keeping them looking new also means sticking to a cleaning program. Read on to see what we included in our schedule, which you can adapt to your needs.

Daily – dusting and spot cleaning

Give your drapes a shake or a light dusting every day. You will make your weekly cleaning sessions easier if you do this. Curtains, like any surface in your home, attract dirt particles. Because of this, a daily dusting is ideal for preventing excessive build-up. You should also check your curtains for spot staining. 

Because you cannot take them down every day to wash, you need to clean these dirt spots as your curtains are up. Depending on the type of fabric, you may need to use paper towels or terrycloth, soaked in warm water.

Weekly – vacuum cleaning and mending

Try to vacuum your curtains once a week. This takes care of any smaller particles you don’t manage to shake off from your curtains. Scheduling your floor and carpet vacuuming on the same day as when you’ll dust your curtains helps make this efficient. It is important to maintain a regular vacuuming schedule for your curtains because this prevents allergy breakouts. 

Once a week, you should also check your drapes for holes. If the hole is tucked away to one side, or in an inconspicuous part of the fabric, you can mend it using temporary stitches, so you don’t have to disrupt your cleaning schedule.

Monthly - washing and drying

If you vacuum regularly, you just need to put them in the laundry dryer once a month. Spinning your drapes helps remove any remaining dust particles. 

You need to make sure, though, that your curtains are machine-washable before putting them in the spinner. Definitely check with your provider if your drapes have other cleaning instructions.

Every three to six months – deep cleaning

Even the most vacuumed curtains need to be taken down for cleaning. If you haven’t washed your drapes in three months, you should machine-wash them or send them out for dry cleaning. Check what kind of laundry options you have for your curtains. For example, cotton is completely machine-washable, but wool should only be dry-cleaned. Some curtains are made of materials that are so delicate that you need to hand wash them in warm water. 

When using a washing machine, do not overload your drum with all of your panels. It may be tempting to do your load all in one go, but one panel at a time is best. You should do your laundry in the summer or during long stretches without rain as it takes more than a day for heavy curtains to dry out.

In Conclusion

Having a maintenance schedule for your curtains will help keep them looking new. It is not enough to clean them by just dusting or occasionally vacuuming. You need to wash them as well and check for holes or frayed parts. Finally, it is good to have them pressed. Crisp drapes always look better than wrinkled ones. When you have a schedule for your curtain upkeep, you are sure to make them last.

If you are looking for a source for quality curtains, try Direct Fabrics. We supply soft furnishings across the UK and Europe and will be with you from selection to installation. Get in touch with us to see how we can help.

3 Factors to Consider When Dividing a Room with Curtains - What to Know

While you can divide your large rooms in many ways, perhaps the most affordable way to go about it is by installing curtains. Thanks to their flexibility, you can have them installed in a myriad of ways to get you the private spaces you want. That said, the key to success when it comes to using curtains to divide a room is this: proper planning. Without it, you're going to end up with nothing more than a mess of curtains.

Here are three factors to consider when dividing a room with curtains.

1. Type of Fabric

You can find curtains made in a variety of fabrics. However, note that most, if not all, will work as a room divider. The choice of material will depend on what you're looking for. 

For example, if you want the light from the windows to fill the whole room, consider using light-weight fabrics, such as cotton. However, this fabric won't help when it comes to privacy, but if you don't have a problem with that and want natural light to fill every divided room, this is the way to go. However, if you do care about privacy, reflective fabrics, such as silk, can also do well to light up the darker areas of the room while blocking the view from one compartment to another.

2. Purpose of Installation

There are many reasons to install dividers in a room. For some, the divided room can act as a storage area that's easy to access. For others, it might be a place to hide all the mess while they're working on something. For some other people, they might need more room because there are more people than there are actual rooms in the house.

Figure out what reason you must install the curtains. That way, you can install them properly and utilise the right type of curtains to do so.

3. Installing the Curtains

Of all the ways you can install the curtains, the most common is to hang them from the ceiling. That said, there are many ways to go about this as well.

If you've ever been to hospitals, they use rods to install the cubicle curtains to separate one bed from the other. You can do the same in your room, installing rods at appropriate sections and using the curtains to separate them. If you want to divide a room from wall to wall, you can easily do that using high-tension wires that run from one wall to the other, then running a curtain or two across. 

Whichever installation route you take, be sure to hang them through the ceiling's joist. Failure to do so means that the installation can easily break off from the ceiling, damaging the walls and ceiling in the process.

Wrapping Up

There are many factors to consider when it comes to installing curtains as room dividers in your home. From the type of fabric to how you install them, they will all depend on your wants and needs. Once again, before you begin the work, always plan thoroughly. That way, not only will you enjoy a smooth installation process, but the outcome is one you've envisioned it to be.

If you’re in the UK and looking for curtains, blinds, and other types of fabrics to buy, browse through our website and check out our vast collection.

5 Reasons You Should Purchase Fire-Retardant Curtains - What to Know

When you're looking for curtains to adorn your home with, you might be putting style and design on top of the "important things my curtain should have" list. However, if there is one thing you should put even higher than any of those, it is that you should purchase fire-retardant or fire-resistant curtains. Why? Well, the name speaks for itself.

If you need convincing on buying flame-retardant curtains, here are five reasons to do so:

1. Enhances Quality of Life

Fire-retardant curtains are typically much thicker and heftier in construction compared to other types of the curtain. While this may mean that they don't flap around as much when they catch the wind, this also means a few other things.

First, the thickness helps block out the sun, perfect if you want to dim the room. Second, it also helps minimise the noise, allowing you to enjoy a much more peaceful household. Finally, they too do well at stopping smoke and smell from the outside entering your home, such as a BBQ party at the backyard.

2. They Look Great

If you think that fire-resistant curtains look boring, think again. They come in a variety of designs, just like standard curtains. That means that not only are you enjoying the benefit of a safer curtain but that it is still enhancing the aesthetics of your home.

3. Helps Insulate the Home

Flame-retardant curtains, as previously mentioned, are thicker than the standard curtains. This quality helps benefit the home greatly by offering improved insulation.

That means that your air-conditioning doesn't have to work as hard, keeping the house cool during the summer or warm during the winter. It translates to less electricity spend, lowering your electrical bills and paying itself off in savings.

4. Slows the Spread of Fire and Smoke

When fire does occur, these curtains benefit you in more ways than one. 

First, thanks to their build, they're much harder to catch on fire, meaning that the flames are left stopped in its tracks, trying to jump to the curtain. Second, when the curtains do catch on fire, they won't go ablaze like standard curtains. They'll emit much less fire, which means more time for the inhabitants of the home to make their escape.

If your home has multiple floors, curtains on top of it can stop smoke and fire from engulfing the lower part of the household. Again, this means more time for you to get out of the house before it is too late.

5. Keeps Inhabitants Safe

Perhaps the most important reason to purchase fire-resistant or retardant curtains is this: It will keep the inhabitants safe.

Remember, safety is always number one, and it would be in your best interest to implement as many solutions at home that will ensure the house is a safe place to live in.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, fire-retardant and fire-resistant curtains provide you with many advantages, each being a good reason you should have them installed. From stopping fire in its tracks to aesthetically enhancing your home's interior, it is a delicate balance of function and form combined into the fixture.

Are you looking for flame-retardant curtains in the UK to install at your home or property? Get in you with us today! We’re happy to help.