Cindy is the owner of Dolman & Taylor specialist curtain and blind makers. She has over 15 years of experience, curtain making, blind making, working with fabrics and making soft furnishings. In the videos she clearly explains and demonstrates the methods and techniques used in her workroom .
Measure Pole length - the length of the track or pole excluding finials or end caps.
Measure Hook to Top - The distance from the curtain ring eyelet up to where you want the top of the curtain to finish.
Decide on where you want the curtain to finish - eg whether to the sill, to the floor or over long etc.
Measure the Hook Drop - The distance from the curtain ring eyelet (where the curtain hook attaches to the pole) down to where the curtain length will finish.
Measure the hook drop in at least 3 positions along the pole/track, If you are measuring to the floor and the value varies due to an uneven floor we generally use a couple of options.
Make the curtains slightly over long by approx 1-2cm longer than the longest drop so you don't notice the difference.
Make to the shortest drop so there is no puddling.
Some people instinctively think you should cover the pole or track with the curtain, however choosing a high hook to top measurement can cause the curtain to hit the pole/track when stacking back pushing the curtain forward between the pleats when the curtains are pulled back.
High Hook to Top - Curtain covering pole or track, but curtain not stacking back properly.
Lower Hook to Top - Enabling Curtain to stack back properly under the pole.
Some people like their curtains to stack forward especially if you are covering a track but your pleat spaces need to be proportionate to you pleats otherwise they will stick forward too much. This can require a greater fullness ratio to do this. We tend to make most of our curtains to hang below the pole and use a hook to top measurement of 1cm to 2cm.