Home theatre curtains made easy

When someone asks me about home theatre curtains they are usually not sure exactly what they need. They don't usually want curtains that close across the screen like they used to in cinemas of old. What they are after are curtains that cover the window into this room. They want to block most if not all the light into the room. They want to create the right atmosphere to watch their favourite movies.

My advice for home theatre curtains is to use blackout lining with a matching fabric covered pelmet/cornice. It's more than just buying these and fitting them.

The great thing about using curtains against blinds for your home theatre is acoustics, It soaks up the echo giving a more pleasing sound. This is especially important if you have a wood floor in the room.

To get a perfect finish you need to do a little bit of planning before you start. First step is get a pen and paper also a steel tape measure.

before we go any further I recommend you don't pick a room for creating your home theatre with a floor length window. You will never stop the light from leaking under the curtain.

First step measure up

So with your pen and paper to hand you need to measure your window. The general idea is to measure a lot wider than for normal curtains and a lot longer than normal. Usually you would measure 5 to 8 inches wider each side of your window. With home theatre curtains you would measure at least 15 inches wider each side of your window (assuming you have room).

If you room is just a few inches wider I would measure the entire wall width and have the curtains going corner to corner. I like this look it really gives the room a great feel.

You need to measure ceiling to floor for your curtain length. It is going to take a fair bit of fabric but it's the only way to get the result we want. Total light block from our new home theatre curtains

The sizes you now have are okay for working out how much fabric you need, but not for making your curtains. You need to do the following step before you can take the final measurements.

Fitting your home theatre hardware

As I said earlier I favour the pelmet/cornice top treatment for this job. First reason it does the job we need. It blocks the light that leaks out the top of the curtains. Second it is a really contemporary design for this kind of room, simple but stylish.

First item on your fitting list is the pelmet top board. Very simple a plank of timber 6 inches wide 1 inch thick and as long as your curtains are going to be wide. Before you fit the top board you need to paint one of the 6 inch sides in black. Don't worry about the other sides you won't see them when finished.

Next once your top board is dry you need to fix it up to the ceiling over the window.With the black painted side facing down. If you have coving around the edges of your ceiling then you will have to fit the top board just under this. Sometimes I fix the board to the ceiling, but in the case of home theatre curtains I fix tothe wall over the window using shelf brackets.

The reason for this is you have big heavy blackout curtains to hang. You will get a much better fixing into the wall rather than the ceiling. (don't want to get up one morning and find you have brought the ceiling down.. ouch!).

Curtain Tracks

You will need 2 curtain tracks to do this job. Why's that you ask, well the answer is simple. You need to overlap the curtains when you close them. not only overlap them but by more than normal. Forget using a single track with an overlap arm, it will just not do the job.

So you need 2 tracks measure half the width of your top board and add another 12 inches. This is the length you need for both tracks. Then fix the first track towards the back of the top board fixing up into the top board. Then fix the second track towards the front of the top board. They will now overlap at the centre by 12 inches. This will give you total light block where the curtains overlap. (see diagram below for example)

Taking you final measurements

Now you have your hardware fitted you can get some accurate measurements for making your home theatre curtains and fabric covered pelmet/cornice. simply measure the front edge of your top board.This will give you the width of you need to make your fabric covered pelmet/cornice. If you are not going corner to corner with your top board. Then you will need to measure the ends of the top board as well (also called the returns).

You now need to measure the depth for your pelmet/cornice. I would go no less than 12 inches and preferably go up to 18 inches if your room is high enough to make this look okay. Instead of using standard cream/ivory lining fabric for the back of your pelmet/cornice.You need black curtain lining fabric. This will help to stop light reflection into the room.

Next step measure for your blackout curtains. The width first take the length of one track and double it. This will give you the width needed for each curtain using pencil pleat gathering tape. Next hook your tape measure on to the top edge of your track and measure right down to the floor. This will give you the finished made length of your home theatre curtains.

making the pelmet or cornice

I have a page on how to make these with all the details you will need. So just click on the link below to check it out.

How to make your own pelmet/cornice

Making the blackout curtains

Again I have a page on how to make curtains. So if you fancy a try at this check out this page.

How to make your own curtains

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