Home Interior Design and Decorating Soft Furnishings, Curtains, Drapery and Accessories for Window Treatments

Curtain Terms

Face Fabric

The main fabric that faces the interior of the room. The "good" side of the fabric.

Return

Part of the drapery that goes around the side of a cornice, valance, drape to sit flush and at right angles with the wall.

Head / Heading

The top of the curtain. It often gets called heading because of the heading tape that is used to make curtain decorative designs, ie french pleat, pencil pleat etc at the head of the curtain.

Stackback

This is the area required and used by pleated curtains when they are open on either side of the window. You need to allow for this when you measure for your curtain track.

Padded Edge

This is a roll of padding along the leading edge of a curtain.