Why Bespoke?

Like anything that is handmade, bespoke curtains and blinds too, cost on the higher side. If you’re not already convinced, here are my top 5 benefits of investing in your soft furnishings:

1. The new feature/focal point:

Once upon a time, the ‘feature wall’ was the big thing - and it still is - but it has evolved from the bold wallpaper on the largest wall in the room. It now looks a little more like a gallery wall, and its main purpose is to add interest and pizzazz. 

I tend to feel the feature wall can be a little ‘obvious’; I prefer to add, more of less obvious points of interest. 

Your curtains and soft furnishings usually play a huge part in your overall colour scheme. Painting your walls is the cheapest, quickest and easiest way to refresh a room. Texture, colour and pattern are mega important for adding depth, interest and comfort to a room; your soft furnishing do this. Wallpapers can be too much, but sometimes the same pattern in a fabric can add what you’re looking for, but a softer version, on a smaller scale. Experementing with, by mixing and mismatching colours and patterns can be game changing for your interior. With so many fabrics to choose from, and more coming to the market, it’s impossible to not find something to reflect your personal style, something to offset something else, and something that can bring the whole room together. Budget can be a little more tricky!

2. Value for money:

Yes, that pesky budget… If you find you have expensive taste, you may need to take a deep inhale when you receive your invoice, BUT the age old saying: “You get what you pay for” is so true here. 

Firstly we have quality - not only are they made to last, but they’ll last whilst still looking great. Again, the range of fabrics helps here; Fabrics tend to range anywhere between £20 - £220 per meter. Being able to choose exactly what you want means you should also be able to love them for years too. Buying cheaply, what you don’t really love, often results in repeat buys, and waste. 

3. Functionality:

Besides the main purposes, generally, privacy or keeping bedrooms as dark as possible; this is really part of ‘value for money’ providing you opt for interlining (I always recommend that you do).

Interlining, as an independent curtain maker, it’s kind of our unique selling point. In my opinion it is the ‘je ne sais quoi’. Some online companies appear to offer interlining, but it tends to be a bonded lining and interlining - this is absolutely NOT the same quality and standard as separates. Interlining can play a key part in saving on those energy bills by retaining heat and excluding draughts. It improves drape and adds thickness and luxury.

Sumptuous curtains are especially favoured in a bedroom. Their drape is perfect for adding to the comforting, cocooning effect we want from a bedroom.

4. Eco friendly:

As already mentioned, bespoke may reduce waste on repeated, cheaper buys. But also many companies, as with paints, are catching on to the consciousness towards natural and ethically sourced fabrics, and dyes. Many of us are wanting to reduce our exposure to unnecessary toxins and damage to our planet. As I continue to bleat on in most of my blogs, our living environments are SOOOOOOOOO important to overall health! There’s an ever increasing number of natural and organic cotton fabrics, using natural and non toxic dyes. Interlining comes in cotton or synthetic.

5. Choice:

To conclude, handmade curtains, and blinds, truly are bespoke. You have the ability to choose practically every component - down to the person that makes them for you if you shop with small, independent makers like myself :-).

In a time that everybody wants something individual, this is your route. You also have a range of headings to choose from to suit your style or the style of your property, OR just to compliment the fabric. Handmade really is in a class of its own, and if you are passionate about your interior space, you should absolutely not neglect your soft furnishings.