House of Drapery's Eight Favorite Drapery Fabrics for Luxury Interiors

Velvet grounds the architecture. It reads as considered, tailored, and permanent — never decorative.

Velvet is a heavy textile. The header, hardware, and mount must be engineered for the weight of the panel, and the pile requires steaming rather than pressing.

• —Formal living rooms
• —Primary bedrooms
• —Home theaters and media rooms
• —Dining rooms

• —Excellent acoustic softening
• —Naturally light-limiting; pairs cleanly with blackout linings
• —Reads differently through the day as light moves across the pile
• —Ages beautifully with proper interlining and care

• —Hand-tacked French pleat
• —Goblet pleat
• —Inverted box pleat

• —Traditional
• —Old-world European
• —Transitional with strong architecture

Jacquard delivers pattern and texture in the same textile, which lets the drapery carry the room without additional layering.

Patterned weaves require careful pattern matching across panels, which increases yardage and workroom time. The specification should be planned around the repeat.

• —Formal living rooms
• —Dining rooms
• —Libraries and studies
• —Study bays and window walls

• —Woven pattern reads with depth from every angle
• —Durable, drapery-weight construction
• —Elevated without feeling ornate
• —Holds a tailored pleat cleanly

• —French pleat
• —Euro pleat (two-finger)
• —Inverted pleat

• —Traditional
• —Transitional
• —European classical

Brocade holds a formal pleat with authority and gives a traditional room the presence it is asking for.

Brocade is a formal fabric. It rewards architecture that can carry it — high ceilings, generous returns, and hardware specified in kind.

• —Traditional and estate homes
• —European-inspired interiors
• —Formal dining rooms
• —Statement windows and cornice-topped installations

• —Structured drape and defined pleats
• —Often reversible, allowing decorative detailing
• —Rich, dimensional pattern woven into the fabric
• —Reads as heirloom rather than decorative

• —Goblet pleat
• —French pleat
• —Fan-topped cornice with pleated skirt

• —Traditional
• —Old-world European
• —Estate and heritage interiors

Voile is the quietest way to bring softness and light control into a room without adding visual weight.

Voile is a sheer. It does not deliver privacy at night on its own, and it benefits from a second layer or an integrated blackout assembly when the room is used for sleep.

• —Living rooms
• —Bedrooms
• —Layered window treatments over blackout linings
• —Contemporary and modern interiors

• —Beautiful light diffusion
• —Adds softness without visual heaviness
• —Pairs naturally with a second layer for privacy and blackout
• —Reads current across a wide range of interior styles

• —Ripple fold
• —Pinch pleat
• —Rod pocket for the softest hand

• —Contemporary
• —Modern
• —Coastal
• —Layered transitional

Lace introduces texture and softness in a single layer and gives a room a European temperament without being costume.

Lace is a specialty specification. It suits rooms with a clear stylistic direction and looks out of place in interiors committed to strict modernism.

• —French Country interiors
• —Vintage and heritage homes
• —Cottage and garden residences
• —Romantic primary bedrooms

• —Filters daylight with delicacy
• —Adds architectural texture in a light layer
• —Reads distinctly European and timeless
• —Pairs beautifully with linen or velvet overdrapery

• —Rod pocket
• —Simple gathered header
• —Pinch pleat on heavier French lace

• —French Country
• —Vintage and cottage
• —European romantic

Linen is the quietest way to introduce softness, texture, and light into a room without committing to a specific stylistic direction.

Linen is a natural fiber and moves with humidity. Panels should be properly weighted, interlined where appropriate, and hemmed with generous returns to allow the fabric to settle.

• —Coastal homes
• —Modern residences
• —Farmhouse and California-modern interiors
• —Scandinavian-inspired spaces

• —Beautifully versatile across interior styles
• —Ages with character rather than wear
• —Excellent natural hand and drape
• —Pairs with almost every hardware finish

• —Ripple fold
• —Euro pleat
• —Relaxed inverted pleat

• —Modern
• —Coastal
• —California-modern
• —Scandinavian
• —Contemporary transitional

Silk carries a light and a hand no other fabric matches; it is the specification when the drapery should be the most beautiful thing in the room.

Sunlight is the enemy of silk. We specify it with proper interlining and blackout backing, and we advise against it on west-facing walls of glass without a protective layer.

• —Formal living rooms
• —Dining rooms
• —Primary bedrooms
• —Luxury interiors with limited direct sun

• —Unmatched sheen and depth of color
• —Exceptional drape and refined hand
• —Reads unmistakably luxurious
• —Pairs beautifully with decorative trims and passementerie

• —Hand-tacked French pleat
• —Goblet pleat
• —Trimmed pinch pleat

• —Formal traditional
• —European classical
• —Old-Hollywood
• —Luxury transitional

Cotton is the honest, hard-working fabric — the one that fits the rooms a family actually lives in.

Pure cottons can crease at the hem. We recommend proper interlining and a weighted hem to keep the panel reading tailored over time.

• —Family rooms
• —Bedrooms and children's rooms
• —Casual living spaces
• —Everyday interiors

• —Breathable and durable
• —Easy to maintain over time
• —Reads clean, current, and unpretentious
• —Works across a wide range of styles

• —Ripple fold
• —Pinch pleat
• —Euro pleat

• —Casual modern
• —Traditional family homes
• —Coastal and cottage