Most people buy curtains twice. The first pair is chosen on colour, hung, and then quietly resented every summer morning at half past four and every January evening when the room will not hold its warmth. The second pair is chosen on what the fabric actually does, and that is where blackout curtains earn their place.
The two jobs turn out to be the same job. A curtain that stops light is dense and usually lined, and a dense lined curtain also slows the heat leaving through the glass. You are not choosing between darkness and warmth — you are choosing how much of both you want.
Three things to settle before you look at colours
Getting these right first saves the second purchase. None of them take long to work out, and all three narrow the options considerably.
Blackout or thermal, or both. Blackout refers to how much light the fabric stops. Thermal refers to the lining that slows heat transfer. Plenty of pairs do both, and in a UK bedroom both is usually the right answer rather than a luxury.
Eyelet or pencil pleat. Eyelet curtains thread straight onto a pole and fall in deep even waves — quick to hang, modern, and they need a pole rather than a track. Pencil pleat gathers onto a tape and suits a track or a pole, gives a softer, more traditional head, and is the safer choice in an older room.
Where the heat is going. A bay window loses far more than a small square one. If the glass is old or extensive, the heavier chenille options do more than a lightweight brushed fabric will.
Six pairs worth considering
Each of these handles the light-and-heat problem slightly differently, and the fabric is what separates them. The thermal curtains here range from smooth brushed finishes to heavy textured weaves.
Berlin Blackout Thermal Eyelet Curtains
- Blackout and thermal in one fabric, so no separate lining to buy
- Eyelet heading for a pole, with deep regular folds
- Plain finish that sits under patterned walls without fighting them
- The default choice for a bedroom that needs to be genuinely dark
Berlin Blackout Thermal Pencil Pleat Curtains
- The same fabric as above on a gathered pencil pleat tape
- Works on a track, which eyelets will not
- Softer head that suits older rooms and deeper window recesses
- Pick this if you are replacing curtains rather than starting from nothing
Rotterdam Herringbone Blackout Thermal Eyelet Curtains
- A woven herringbone texture rather than a flat surface
- Blackout and thermal, with visible pattern in the weave itself
- Adds interest to a plain room without adding a printed design
Ensley Chenille Blackout Thermal Eyelet Curtains
- Chenille, so noticeably heavier and denser in the hand
- The better option for a draughty bay or a single-glazed window
- Hangs with more weight, which keeps the edges flat against the wall
Genoa Chenille Blackout Thermal Eyelet Curtains
- The second chenille in the range, with a different surface character
- Same blackout and thermal construction, alternative colourways
- Suits a living room where the curtains are part of the furniture
Luna Brushed Blackout Eyelet Curtains
- A soft brushed face, lighter than the chenilles
- Blackout performance in a fabric that does not dominate a small room
- The one to choose for a box room or a nursery
Hanging them so they actually work
Light escapes at the edges, not through the middle. Fit the pole wider than the window on both sides so the closed curtain overlaps the frame, and the difference at dawn is dramatic.
Let them cover the wall above the glass. Mounting the pole higher than the window top traps a pocket of still air between fabric and wall, which is where most of the thermal benefit comes from.
Go generous on width. Curtains need roughly twice the width of the window to hang in proper folds — a pair stretched flat loses both the look and much of the insulating effect.
Wrapping Up
Work out whether you need a pole or a track, decide how heavy a fabric the room can take, and only then start on colour. A well-chosen pair of lined curtains changes how a room sleeps and how it holds its warmth, which is more than most purchases of this size manage.
Dunelm carries each of these pairs, with heading type and drop as the first two things you can narrow by.
Plenty more on getting the practical side of a home right is waiting over at The Vogue Club.
