A lot of you have asked me how to get that structured, wavy look in curtains.

So this week I’m answering it, along with a few curtain mistakes I see all the time.

The Fold Comes From the Track

That look is called an S-fold, sometimes ripple fold or wave fold, after the gentle S-shaped curves the fabric makes along the top.

Most of the work is done by the hardware. S-fold curtains hang from a dedicated track, and the carriers that run along it are spaced at an exact distance from each other; when the curtain clips in, the fabric is pushed into the same fold at every point.

That’s why the waves stay even whether the curtains are open or closed. The result is a clean, contemporary look where the fabric reads as rich and generous.

I like it most with sheers, which glow when the afternoon light comes through the folds. Textured blockout fabric works just as well if you need the room dark.

Budget for Double the Fabric

Skimping on fabric width is the mistake I see most, with any style of curtain.

If the fabric is about the same width as the window, it has nowhere to go. It stretches flat and taut across the glass, and flat curtains look cheap, however much you paid for them.

S-fold needs roughly double. For a 3m window, plan on around 6m of fabric in total, either two 3m panels that meet in the middle or a single 6m panel that draws to one side.

One thing to watch if you order online: a lot of S-fold curtains come with the fullness already built in. Twopages, for example, makes theirs at 2x and asks for the width of your track.

Let Them Hover or Just Kiss the Floor

Once the width is sorted, the length decides whether the whole thing looks finished.

With S-fold, I either have the curtains hover about 1 cm above the floor or just touch it, so the hem brushes the floor without bending. At most, a very slight puddle.

A big puddle doesn’t suit this style. The whole appeal of an S-fold is those clean vertical lines running all the way down, and a heap of fabric at the bottom breaks them.

If you love the romance of a generous puddle, a pinch pleat on a classic rod is a better match for it.

Where I Got Ours

You don’t have to go fully custom to get this look anymore.

For our recent living room makeover, we used TwoPages Curtains (Use code AFRLOWELLPTY at checkout for 20% off). You order online and customise the fabric, the width, and everything else. We went with their Jawara linen cotton in Ivory Beige, and the curtains came to under $300 in total.

That figure doesn’t include a track, because I reused one I already had. If you’re starting from scratch, budget a little extra for one, since a regular rod won’t give you the fold.

If you’d rather have someone measure and install for you, most custom window furnishing companies offer S-fold too.

Ask for it by name and check how much fullness they’re building in, because that number decides whether you get proper waves or a flat sheet.

Curtains often take up more of a wall than anything else in the room, which is why a cheap-looking pair drags everything around it down too.

Give them enough fabric and the right drop, on a track that sets the folds for you, and they’ll make the rest of the room look more considered.

Cheers,
Reynard