How To Choose Living Room Curtains By All Things Snug

If you’re here, it’s either because you want to get something new or try something different.

Luckily, I’d help you with both here, together, we’ll check out 7 easy tips I use when choosing new living room curtains for my home.

Oh, and just for fun, I’d throw in a treasure hunt – in various parts of this article, I’ve shared links to some high-quality, affordable, and beautiful curtains currently on discounts.

Finders keepers, If you love them, feel free to get them 😉

My 7 curtain-choosing tips at a glance:

  • Consider the purpose.
  • Consider your living room’s theme.
  • Consider maintenance.
  • Consider layering options and effects.
  • Consider the hardware.
  • Consider the fabric.
  • Consider your budget.

There! Easy right?  I didn’t lie.

Let’s get started 🙂

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1. Consider The Purpose:

Here’s where you ask yourself what you need the curtain for, is it just aesthetics, or do you want it to serve a particular purpose?

I made a short table to guide you.

Purpose

Curtain Type

Privacy

Light Control

Sheer Curtains

Insulation

Noise Reductions

UV Protection

Decorative Accents

Patterned Curtains

Room Divider

Room Divider Curtains

Outdoor Use

Outdoor Curtains

Child Safety

Cordless Curtains

Easy Maintenance

Machine-Washable Curtains

Psss, I’ll write another article explaining different types of curtains soon, if you’d love to check it out, sign up for our newsletter and we’ll send you a holler when it’s live.

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2. Consider Your Living Room’s Theme:

Opt for curtains that compliment your living room theme and decor.

  • If your theme is modern and minimalist, go for curtains in solid, neutral colors,
  • If your theme is more traditional, consider luxurious curtains,
  • If you’re all glam, opt for velvet curtains in jewel tones,
  • Blackout curtains go well with industrial living rooms.

I give more recommendations here, you can jump to that section now if you want.

3. Consider Your Living Room’s Theme:

No no, I don’t mean repairs, I’m talking cleaning. Curtains accumulate dust and dirt over time, if you have furry pets and little children, then that’s a mess waiting to happen, lol.

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Opt for curtains that are easy to clean;

  • consider easy-care fabrics like linen, synthetic blends, and cotton if frequent maintenance isn’t your thing,
  • Consider curtains with removable liners if you live in an environment that’s prone to dust,
  • If you have kids and pets, opt for stain-resistant curtains, easy to clean, and machine-washable, a good place to start would be polyester blends.
  •  

4. Consider Layering Options And Effects:

Bet you thought you could only use one curtain at a time huh? Think again!

Feel free to layer your curtains to achieve various depth, dimension, privacy, and light control levels.

You can layer;

  • sheer curtains over blackout curtains,
  • Patterned curtains over solid-colored curtains.
  •  

5. Consider The Hardware:

Remember when I said to choose curtains that complement your living room decor… well, you also have to consider the rods and finials.

Hey! You could use finials to complement your personality too.

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6. Consider The Fabric:

Yea yea, living room decor, yes, I understand, you know. But did you know you can elicit different feelings based on your curtain’s fabric?

For example, lighter fabrics like linen and sheer evoke airy, breezy feelings, and heavier fabrics like velvet evoke warmth and coziness. The former is best for casual setups, the latter for more formal setups.

7. Consider Your Budget:

As usual, I saved the best for last, if your budget is super tight, then many curtains may not be available to you.

What I love to do is draw a hierarchy, I start with what I like at the top, then what I need the curtain for, I’m quite lazy so I have a bias for curtains that don’t require frequent maintenance, and then I keep thinning my options down with budget being the final qualifier.

I’d love to add a photograph of that, but I have a doctor’s handwriting, so I won’t bother, lol.

My Curtain Recommendations

To save you some time, I recommended some curtains that best fit different living rooms. Don’t worry, I made sure to consider 16 living room types, styles, and themes.

Living Room

Curtain

Formal Living Room

1. Pinch-pleat curtains in a solid color like navy blue or emerald green.
2. Floor-length drapes in a luxurious fabric, e.g. silk or velvet.



Glam Living Room

 1.  Curtains with a metallic sheen.
2. Velvet curtains in a jewel tone.

French Country Living Room

1. Floral patterned curtains.
2. Linen curtains in a lavender or toile print.

Industrial Living Room

1. Blackout curtains in a dark color, say black or charcoal gray.
2. Curtains made from raw materials, like concrete or canvas.

Mid-Century Modern Living Room

1. Geometric patterned curtains.
2. Curtains in a bold color, try mustard yellow or orange.

Scandinavian Living Room

1. Try white linen curtains.
2. Or sheer curtains in a neutral color.

Coastal Living Room

1. Linen curtains in a light and airy color, use white or sky blue.
2. Curtains with a seashell or starfish motif.

Rustic Living Room

1. Linen curtains in a natural color, consider oatmeal or beige.
2. Curtains made from a natural material, like burlap or jute.

Casual Living Room

  1. Linen or cotton curtains in a neutral color (white or beige).
2. Tab-top curtains in a fun pattern.

Modern Living Room

1. Grommet-top curtains in a bold color or graphic pattern.
2. Roman shades in a solid color.

Traditional Living Room

1. Jacquard curtains with a damask pattern.
2. Tailored curtains with a fringe trim.

Minimalist Living Room

1. White sheer curtains.
2. Blackout roller blinds.

Bohemian Living Room

1. Macrame curtains.
2. Floral print curtains in a vibrant color.

Eclectic Living Room

1. Mix and match patterned curtains.
2. Solid color curtains in contrasting colors.

Gothic Living Room

1. Velvet curtains in a dark jewel tone.
2. Blackout curtains with a black or silver damask pattern.

Smart Living Room

1. Curtains with built-in sensors (motion or temperature sensors).
2. Sheer curtains with smart lining (if sheer curtains are your thing).
3. Motorized curtains.

I’m Sorryyyyy

I’m sorry if you were enjoying this article, but these were all the tips I could squeeze together before my brain juices dried up.

If you still want a deep dive into curtains, stay tuned, our next article will be the dolphin that guides you… If not, check out these 22 living room window ideas, I’m sure you’ll find it a good read.

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