Curtain Fullness Guide

All about Linen curtains by Ada & Ina »

How to calculate curtain width and fullness

A curtain with fullness is a curtain that is pleated or gathered.

First of all: you don't have to worry about measuring curtain widths or curtain fullness yourself. We will always calculate the curtain width for you and use the correct amount of fabric, based on the heading style you choose. However, you might wonder why some heading styles are less expensive than others — and the answer lies in curtain fullness.

Curtain fullness is the relationship between the length of your curtain track or pole and the total curtain width, meaning the amount of fabric used across the curtains. Each heading type has its own fullness ratio, because some styles need more fabric to look their best when hung. For example, if your curtain pole is 1 m long and the combined curtain width is 2 m, the fullness is 2 times, written as 2x. In other words, there is twice as much fabric in the curtain widths as the length of the pole. The higher the fullness ratio, the fuller and more luxurious the curtains look — and the more fabric is needed.

Example:

If your curtain track is 120 cm wide and you would like to order Tab Top curtains (2 separate curtains), multiply your curtain track or pole width as follows.

120 cm (pole width) x 1.25 (fullness for Tab Top Curtains) = 150 cm

The total width of your 2 curtains would be in total 150 cm when stretched out.

Curtain width per one curtain: 150 cm / 2 = 75 cm

The table below shows how much fabric we use for each style in order to achieve the right width for your curtains

CURTAIN STYLE	PICTURE	FULLNESS RATIO	EXAMPLE: The total width of what your curtains would be for a 100 cm curtain pole
Gathered Heading		1.8	100 cm x 1.8 = 180 cm of fabric 100 cm x 1.8 / 2 = 90 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Cottage Pleat		2.0	100 cm x 2.0 = 200 cm of fabric 100 cm x 2.0 / 2 = 100 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Pencil pleat		2.0	100 cm x 2.0 = 200 cm of fabric 100 cm x 2.0 / 2 = 100 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Deep Pleat		2.0	100 cm x 2.0 = 200 cm of fabric 100 cm x 2.0 / 2 = 100 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Wave Curtains		2.5	100 cm x 2.5 = 250 cm of fabric 100 cm x 2.5 / 2 = 125 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Silent Gliss Wave		2.2 (depends on hook spacing)	100 cm x 2.2 = 220 cm of fabric 100 cm x 2.2 / 2 = 110 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Single Pleat		1.9	100 cm x 1.9 = 190 cm of fabric 100 cm x 1.9 / 2 = 95 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Double pleat		2.2	100 cm x 2.2 = 220 cm of fabric 100 cm x 2.2 / 2 = 110 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Triple pleat		2.5	100 cm x 2.5 = 250 cm of fabric 100 cm x 2.5 / 2 = 125 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Tailored Fold Pleat		2.3	100 cm x 2.3 = 230 cm of fabric 100 cm x 2.3 / 2 = 115 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Eyelet Curtains		1.35 - 1.55 depending on Eyelet positioning	100 cm x 1.35 = 135 cm of fabric 100 cm x 1.35 / 2 = 67,5 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Tab Tops		1.25	100 cm x 1.25 = 125 cm of fabric 100 cm x 1.25 / 2 = 62,5 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)
Rod Pocket Curtains		1.5	100 cm x 1.5 = 150 cm of fabric 100 cm x 1.5 / 2 = 75 cm of fabric (Curtain width per one curtain)