Drapery and drapery: what it is, what it looks like and how to do it yourself

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What is drapery? Drapery is an outdated name for a draped curtain. This name appeared in the 19th century. And since at that time everything French was very fashionable, the name of the curtains was borrowed from France (from the word draperie, which means curtains). This word denoted material gathered into folds. With the help of this technique, window and door openings of salons, restaurants, noble houses, etc. were decorated. It was he who gave the room a complete, refined look and brought the desired color to the decoration of the room. At that time, curtains were made of heavy, light-blocking fabrics, often velvet. Nowadays, the choice of materials is much more diverse.

Thus, we found out that drapery is the same drapery, but in the French style.

What is drapability? Drapability is the ability of fabrics to create soft folds, giving the material volume by tightening the material.The result is influenced by the structure of the material, flexibility, weight of the fabric, its elasticity, etc. The type of product and the ability to perform the function that you intended for it depend on this.

The drape of a fabric with a rigid structure requires more effort to bend and is not used for such purposes. But heavy or thin, but flexible ones are perfect.

Creating wavy folds on the material is possible from fabrics that are not very susceptible to deformation (stretching).

We looked at what fabric drape is.

To create a product with your own hands, first of all you need to determine for what purpose we need to choose the decor. For curtains you need heavy fabric, and for curtains - light and airy. It is important that correctly selected drapery will suit any room design, but the selection of fabric is the most important thing here.

Using the draping technique

• In wall decoration. With the help of draping fabric, using it when decorating the walls, you can give the room a special coziness. In addition, it hides possible surface unevenness and increases noise absorption (compared to wallpaper), saving time and money on preparing walls for wallpapering. And if you put a layer of foam rubber between the wall and the fabric, the thermal insulation of the room will also increase.
• When finishing the ceiling. This is the most ancient type of decoration. It looks simply luxurious and hides all surface imperfections. Various arrangements of draperies are possible: cone-shaped, straight, partial. This finish is only suitable for high ceilings.
• Ceiling decoration in the form of a tent (for wedding ceremonies). Creates a particularly festive, luxurious atmosphere. It has been very popular lately for celebrating various celebrations.
• Decoration of openings for doors and arches.It has been used since ancient times and is still used today.

It is important that the fabric is the same or similar to that used as window curtains.

• For clothing design, creating wavy folds on the material gives the image softness and romance, hides minor flaws and emphasizes advantages. Light materials are used for this purpose. If they say that the fabric drapes well, which means it fits beautifully into folds, then you can use it to make beautiful hard folds or airy soft ones, place them at the neckline or at the waist, or you can run them vertically through the entire dress. Excellent results are guaranteed.
• Finishing window openings. Curtains with drapery are suitable for various interior design styles.

Draping means giving the curtains attractiveness, elegance, volume and making them an interior decoration. Can they be compared to simple straight curtains?

In light industry there is a special term - draper - a person who performs draping operations on materials.

There are 2 ways of draping:

1. Fixed folds are placed on the curtains during sewing. They can be transverse or longitudinal, depending on the product model.
2. Folds are created by the unusual arrangement of curtains on the windows, when the fabric is selected with a variety of tiebacks and magnets. The lambrequin is also draped. It is decorated with special decorative elements (molds, swags, etc.).

Making your own drapery

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Let's consider the 1st method - placing folds on the canvas during sewing. For this purpose, a special “curtain” braid is used.This is a strip of braid with cords inserted inside to adjust the placement of the gathers, which is attached to the top of the fabric (from the wrong side). It makes it possible to create folds of any density. This braid comes in different types to create different types of draperies.

Each type of drapery has a certain coefficient that indicates how much material will be required to complete it.

• Vertical simple folds - have a coefficient of 1.5;
• For waffle folds, ruffles and puffs – 2.0;
• For bow folds and rays, the coefficient is 2.5;
• Laying of cylindrical folds – 3.0;
• For “curtain” braid with sewn-in rings (for curtains with eyelets) - coefficient 1.6.

For example, you want to get a curtain fabric with a finished width of 3 m: choose the type of drapery you like (2.0). Therefore, the fabric you need should be 6m wide.

How drapery is performed step by step:

1. We measure the window opening. We choose the type of folds we like and, taking into account its coefficient, determine the desired width of the fabric.
2. We buy the material and all related parts and accessories.
3. Fold the sides 2 cm to the wrong side and stitch. We will bend the top of the canvas to the width of the tape that we will use for drapery.
4. From the wrong side, at a distance of 1 cm from the sides, we attach the braid. At the top - at a distance of 3 cm from the edge.
5. Fold the side seams twice and sew to the braid. The threads for adjusting the tape should remain free.
6. Iron the canvas.
7. To drape means to assemble the fabric with the desired type of tails. Let's get started:

At one edge of the tape-braid we tie the adjusting threads together and secure them.

We take the adjusting threads on the other side of the fabric in our hands and gradually move the fabric towards the center, freeing the thread.

We continue to move the fabric until we reach the finished width of the product we need.

We straighten all the folds evenly and tie the threads for fixation.

Draping curtains is the most important element in the design of a room, which emphasizes the style and originality of its owners. The drapability of the fabric is the most important characteristic when choosing a material. After all, the ability of the fabric to drape correctly is the key to a successfully executed curtain.

Draping fabric with a pencil

Sometimes it's good to use drawing to sketch curtain options. Having completed the drapery in pencil, you will get a clear idea of ​​the future appearance of the product.

We draw in the following sequence:

• We set the dimensions of the drawing - retreat 3 cm at the top, 5 cm at the bottom. Draw an outline.
• We outline the folds.
• We give them volume - we pass with a pencil along the edge of the folds, applying strokes according to the shape of the bend, apply a shadow and shade (with strokes). Our task is to achieve a smooth transition of light into shadow.
• We emphasize the outline and the sketch is ready!