So you’ve recently given your home a makeover and all your curtains are in place and really look the part. The important thing now is to ensure they stay in the best shape possible. In order to do this, we need to ensure they are kept clean, whilst adhering to a number of rules to ensure the best outcome.

Always Check the Label Before Cleaning

While some curtains are machine washable, you shouldn’t assume that this is always the case. In some instances, the curtains you have may be dry clean only. As such, you should ensure always to check the label before going ahead with the cleaning of curtains.

Remember That Bespoke Curtains May Not Have a Label

While ready-made curtains will often have instructions as to how they should be cleaned, bespoke curtains may not have a label, purely due to the fact that they were custom made. If you can, it can be worth speaking to the company who made the curtains to ascertain as to what steps need to be taken to ensure the curtains are kept in the best condition possible. However, if you have had the curtains for some time, then simply speak to the company who produced them. You will often find that they have no problems in providing you with some much-needed insight and advice.

If in the worst-case scenario you are not able to get any advice from the company who made the curtains, then simply search the Internet for some tips on how to treat the material, although you should ensure that the information comes from a reputable source.

Remember to Open Your Curtains

While this may be an obvious statement to many, there are those with larger properties that will have rooms that do not have much use. In this regard, it’s completely normal for us to forget about the opening of curtains in these rooms. However, constant exposure to sunlight can have a detrimental effect on our curtains, in that it breaks down the fibres, and can lead to discolouring, as such you should look to open curtains as part of your daily routine, even if the room is not in use. You may even want to consider putting a protective film over your windows to stop the harmful effects of strong sunlight.

Ensuring your curtains are of a high quality in the first instance will ensure they are long-lasting. However, considering a few more factors will ensure that the curtains you have will last much longer.

Image: Flickr, available under Creative Commons.