Striped Curtains & Window Drapes

Patterned curtains come in a million ways but few are as versatile as striped curtains and window drapes. In maximalist spaces, they balance intricate curvy detailing while in minimalist spaces, they offer a lighthearted deviation from solids. Besides, custom striped curtains come with a vast spectrum of choices - from the most simplified bare-bones beauties to the most amplified jaw-droppers - so every taste is catered to.

Owing to this versatility and adaptability, striped curtains are never expected to go out of style. So if you’re looking for a timeless window treatment that can go with the flow as your taste evolves over time, your search ends here. But before you shop, do take a minute to browse insights and tips from our drapery experts so you can find the perfect striped curtains for your space.

The Illusory Power of Stripes

Unlike patterns like florals or plaids, stripes have a linear, straightforward build that suggests momentum and guides the eye in a specific direction. Use this to your benefit.

Vertical striped curtains effectively pull the eye upward. Take advantage of this trait to optically elongate low-ceiling rooms. Striped curtains will pull your attention upward, making you gauge the full vertical span of the room and thus, making it ‘seem’ taller.

Horizontal striped curtains make the eye cruise across the room. Use them to optically widen small rooms. They will make the eye move around the room, thus making you ‘feel’ its spaciousness rather than its spatial limitation.

Intermediating Solids and Busy Patterns

Striped curtains are friends with all design elements - the loudest and the quietest. Introduce them to a space dominated by solids and they become the focal point without being too busy for such a quiet place. Or, pair them with the busiest of patterns and they rest the conundrum.

Striped curtains can be used to achieve the balance between solids and patterns in almost any given space. If your decor style hinges on straight and clean lines of modern sensibilities, use them to further the agenda. On the contrary, if it leans towards traditional design's intricate, floral ornamentation, use stripes to balance out the curves of paisleys and damasks.

Striped curtains are a safe bet regardless of your style, but here’s the caveat - the type of stripe you choose will decide whether your goal will be achieved. When the aim is to counter busy patterns, select quiet stripes like pinstripes or candy cane. And, when the goal is to create a focal point in a patternless space, consider imposing ones like bold, awning stripes or barcode stripes.

Scale will Make or Break

As with all patterns, scaling correctly is of utmost importance when picking striped drapes. The wider the stripes, the more attention-grabbing they become.

Decide which scale of stripes is right for your space based on four things - the size of the window, the dimensions of the room, the scale of other patterns in the space, and the intention to call attention or relinquish it.

Here’s how the size of the window and the spaciousness of the room have to be factored in. While slim patterns like ticking stripes look proportionate in a small room or on a small window, they might completely fade away on a large window or in a grand room.

Similarly, large windows and rooms call for wide-striped curtains which may seem, by the same token, a misfit on small windows. Wide stripes may get cut abruptly at the seams and do a disservice to small rooms by visually shrinking them further.

While the decision of scale stays informed by the dimensions of the space, also consider whether you need to make the window a focal point or not. So, for example, although a large window in a grand room can be rightfully dressed in extra-wide awning stripes, it may be dolled up in sleek pinstripes when you don’t want it to be the focal point.

Aligned with the same decision is another one related to the scale of other patterns. Go for wide-scaled stripes when other patterns in the space are medium and small scale. On the contrary, if there is a large-scale motif at play already on the walls or rugs, consider slim stripes lest they vie for attention.

Palette As a Decisive Factor

Not just the type or scale of stripe, the palette has got to have its say as well! Striped curtains with a bright palette will outperform a dull one in garnering attention. Likewise, stripes with stark contrasts will capture attention instantly whereas those with subtle contrasts will do so gradually and with a limited visual impact.

Also, remember that the palette gets its energy from its saturation levels. For example, pastel orange pales in impact compared to fiery reddish saturated orange - one soothes the eye, and the other alerts the senses.

So, if the stripes are wider scaled or busy but pared back in the palette, the curtains will not vie for attention. Whereas, if you intend to make the curtains the focal point, don’t be wary of selecting a drapery with wide-scaled stripes as well as a striking palette.

Straight, Wavy, Eclectic - Striped Curtains Have a Million Flavors

While stripes are generally conceived as straight-edged lines, the gamut of options is actually much wider. So, if the strictly straight lines fail to sync with your decor, you have plenty of other options that offer you a similar visual effect.

Consider, for example, our 'Dawn Pie' curtains that have climbing vines in a wavy pattern. They combine a floral element that can easily partner with the delicate flourishes of traditional design whereas their controlled rhythm and repeat smacks of a modern flair.

A tasteful fusion of stripes and ikat, 'Marble Stone’s' fading and shadowing motifs are a delightful twist to the fine-tuned stripes that add a unique character and eclectic overtones to the decor.

Or consider an option closer to the traditional stripes, as seen in our blackout drapery 'Carolina' that seems like stripes seen through a foggy lens. The smudgy edges take away the austerity of flat-edged stripes while bestowing a similar visual effect.

Inspiration Corner

CAMEROON: Welcome stripes home in flamy fall hues with this pure cotton drapery. With a busy body of stripes in various scales, these drapes are sure to steal the show, no matter where they are placed. 

CITY AROMA: If beige is the neutral hue of your decor and the curtains need to recede into the background, trust this drapery to fulfill the role. With subtle shadow stripes in hazelwood beige and white, these drapes can ground the space for some other decor piece to be the star of the show. 

REDWOOD: Although the stripes in this drapery have various scales and multiple hues, they tend to stay on the darker side of the palette and the larger side of scaling. Dress an oversized window with these bold stripes and watch them shed their mojo.

DANCING SEA: Two classical patterns, harlequin and stripes fuse together in this versatile drapery that can blend into several decor styles and color schemes with ease. The wavy pattern has a striking linear movement that makes for a glad departure from the sharp-edged stripes.

Decorate Your Home with Timeless Versatile Striped Curtains

Striped curtains can be as quiet or as loud as you want them to be. Whether you want them to sink into the background or stand out bold, trust that you’ll find the perfect one in our wide collection, and benefit from their ability to optically elongate any room or window. So let your striped curtains be playful and exotic, a diversion from the oft-trodden path, if that’s what aligns with your aesthetic vision!

Browse our catalog for more inspiration and our blogs for more insight. Get your striped drapery stitched in any one of the dozen heading styles that we offer and be assured that your stripe patterned custom curtains will spice up your home with just the right measure of pizzazz and flavor that you desire! 

STRIPED ROMAN SHADES | FLORAL CURTAINS | GEOMETRIC DRAPES