Curtain fashions circa 1905 - 1915

[Mick_VT]

Hey all,
I know that lace curtains in the post Victorian period became much less full, in fact the panels were almost flat (1-1.25x width of the rod maximum), but i am wondering about the regular curtains. These days people have their curtains 1.5-2.5x the width of the space or even more to give fullness, but something in the back of my mind is saying that in the early twentieth century the regular curtain panels were much flatter too...

Anybody actually have expertise in this / pictures they could share?

[Lily left the valley]

I don't possess any expertise in this area, but I am getting pretty handy with my image search skills. Could you narrow down what you're looking for as to style? I have a lot of arts n' crafts type images, but I don't think that's what you're looking for exactly. Do you want farmhouse? Middle class home? I'm not sure what exactly you are wanting.

Hrm. I tried to do a post Victorian search, and 99% of the returns were about Victorian.

I tried to do an early 19th C/century search, and that was a bit of a misfit too. The first page of results came back with a lot of auctions or sale of antiques, and none were actually hung in windows or showed the full window. Christie's has a lot of them listed as early 19th C, from my search results. but again, a few I checked it only shows partial or they hung the pole on a wall so you have no sense of where it should fall. Flipping through the pages once on their site, though, and you can see how they present them hung which gives a sense of how bunched or flat they could be. Not historically helpful, though.


The latter blue ones, this is the description from the site--I wasn't sure if these were the door style due to the height or if so how Christie's would word that.

TWO PAIRS OF OLD GOLD-METAL THREAD AND MID-BLUE STAMPED VELVET CURTAINS
EARLY 20TH CENTURY
Lined and interlined, decorated with foliate lozenges and stylised pine cones, the tasselled braided borders with the interlaced cypher of Cowdray - alternating anchors and three leaf clovers, with tasselled tie-backs, with stained oak curtain rails
138 in. (351 cm.) high; 108 in. (274 cm.) wide, approx.
Together with two smaller curtains, similar, and a collection of cushion covers en suite, distressed (4)

They do not link to pictures of the smaller curtains nor the cushion covers, sadly.

Searching for early 20th century farmhouse curtains kept me a bit further away from the typical Arts and Crafts styles, even though it yielded Chrstie's style results.


I'm trying to think of what artist like, say, Norman Rockwell, might have painted interiors that you could also try to use for a reference. Rockwell came to mind first, because he does have quite a few interior home paintings that could be used as clues, but again, not sure what style you're going for. If this is about the dining room, the sorts of images he captured might be too plain in look.

[Lily left the valley]

Just for fun...found a few while it was on my mind.

Edward Hopper

Elizabeth Shippen Green

Helen M. Turner

[Lily left the valley]

For 1905:

1907 Anson McCook Beard House:

Hotel Touraine Dining rooms. Photographs ca. 1905:

circa 1905 from "American homes and gardens"

1910 Mission style

1910 Ladie's Home Journal

Dining Room LaSalle Hotel circa 1910

[Willa]

With lace curtains, too much volume can obscure the pattern somewhat, but this will depend on the size of the pattern, delicacy of the lace, privacy issues, etc.

Personally I think curtains with more volume look better. Curtains that are almost flat always look like a bit of an after thought ? It's also important to consider how the curtains will be hung - ie using sewn on rings, clips, with the rod threaded through the curtain in a slot, etc. Not enough rings or clips leave larger droops by the rod which are unsightly. A curtain made of thicker material may be too bunchy if the rod is passed through, so the curtain can't be opened fully because there isn't enough space on the rod, so they are more wisely hung with rings, clips or hooks,

[Gothichome]

Mick, there is always a fall back reference. What does Mr Eastlake say on the subject. If I recall, he champions the simple uncluttered straight panal look as not to hide the pattern of hand made Belgian lace.
Mick, disregard this response, I see your after 'post victorian' sorry for that.

[Mick_VT]

Thanks GH,
I think I need to go look at some period catalogs, but I am thinking that from Lily's pictures (thanks Lily!!) and what I have found online so far that I may be wrong in thinking they were flat (that may be early Victorian). While less voluptuous than the end of the C20th, they had some fullness (maybe 1.25x). I have my lace curtains sized to be pretty much flat, but I am siting those on a cafe rod behind the main drapes, which have yet to be procured

[1918ColonialRevival]

Look at issues of magazines like House and Garden and House Beautiful. There are several years in the 1900s and 1910s that are digitized on Google Books. Period artwork and advertisements like those shown above are good references, as are interior decorating books printed during that era. The latter is not too difficult to find at secondhand bookstores, particularly if they have an older inventory.

I wouldn't use Eastlake or any pre-1895 references if you are going for an early 20th Century look. Styles and tastes really changed throughout the 1890s and those changes would be reflected over the next 25-30 years.

[Lily left the valley]

(thanks Lily!!)

You were just the distraction I needed at that moment. I also love any excuse to find even more imagery to learn from and share.

[nhguy]

I know this post is 5 years old, but it came up in my search for mission style curtains. I have quite a few curtain styles bookmarked for my wife and I too review. It's the last piece in her tubroom with long floor to ceiling windows privacy is not there....lol. One more room after this and the place is done.