I'm sorry, that must be really horrible considering how much made to measure curtains cost. You should go back to the person/company who made them if possible and ask them for help.

I'm by no means an expert but I have had curtains with blackout lining, and the bulk was a bit of a problem for me too.

A couple of things which might help:

- That looks like standard header tape. That sort of tape encourages lots of tiny folds which maximises the problem. Changing the header tape is likely to be much cheaper than doing whole new curtains - maybe look at doing that?

- There's wall space either side of the curtains. Could you fit a longer curtain rail? I know longer curtain rails can be difficult to find / expensive but it may be an option. I think without extra space for the curtains you're going to have to choose between a decent lining and having the curtains pull right back.

Good luck!

Don't despair!! As mayfly182 and julia suggested, you can work with what you have and their ideas are both very valid. You could also consider adding maximum width to your present rail and readjusting the tape; or else switching to a simple wall to wall rod and adding grommets through your tape. The grommets will allow the bulk to fold up further but it will mean manual drawing. I hope you solve it.

If they don't pull back any more than this then I would ask for a refund as they have not done as you asked. They should have probably advised you to have eyelet curtains as these pull back very neatly into perfect folds. Stand your ground and good luck.

I would add extra length to the pole, especially if the curtain supplier can't help with your request.

Shannon

There may be some hem to play with for length.

Thank you everyone, this has been so helpful for me.

@colourhappy - I have told my curtain maker that I'm not happy but haven't been able to get in touch with her today. Payment is still outstanding so I'm sure she will get in touch soon. I will stand my ground! The curtains are actually really neatly done, its just not what I wanted.

@tezz4 - There is a hem but I'm not sure if this is sufficient.

@Sartorial Soft Furnishings - The hooks are on every second pocket on the tape, I believe this was because of the weight ( we started off on every fourth one I think).

I am going to look into longer poles and alternative headings in the mean-time while I try to find another curtain-maker to help me.

One last question - will it help at all to get rid of the blackout lining?

Thanks again for all the advice.

Thank you Catherine, I will discuss a different heading. Back to the drawing board!

@kikiamack - The curtain maker has used plastic hooks! I will look into the one you mention - thank you.

Measurements (I've measured myself so might not be 100% accurate)

Width of the doorway: 360cm

Length of the pole from bracket to bracket: 465cm

Distance from the edge of the doorway to the curtain pole bracket: 58cm

Number of widths of fabric in each curtain: This one I'm not sure about. I ordered 17m of material and have 160cm left so thats possibly 770cm on each end?

The curtain maker recommended this track which I'm not sure is strong enough as I've noticed this morning that its causing strain and damage to the wall when pulling on the cord to open/close. http://www.halliswebshop.com/hh_esa/esa/ItemDetails.jsp?@where.ItemID@EQ=U100W300550T&sessionkey=LZIQ-FSSD-5X2B-4TPB-1JVU-XQ3G-ZTSX-A3T1.

I definitely need to look into getting a pole instead I think.

Hope you have been able to solve your problem with the curtains. I sympathise, it must be so frustrating.

On another note, and I hope you don't mind me asking, I love your sofa, where did you get it from?

Making the pole longer is a good idea, however the curtains are made to FIT, so wont draw right without releasing the gathering to fit the new width and backfire the problem. Large eyelet top curtains draw back flattest (not the ring tops) if you dont mind the curtains being more flat instead of fully gathered when drawn. Maybe get them remade with eyelet, and also put the pole to the ceiling and have them longer ... would make the doors look bigger. They really do cover a lot of the doors dont they, I'd be upset too

Hi everyone - just wanted to post a quick update on this. I had someone come over yesterday to look at the curtains for a second opinion. The curtain maker was quite shocked at what she saw so I think I made a really poor curtain-maker choice to start with. Live and learn!

The advice I was given: The curtain rail needs to be removed (my wall fixed and re-painted!) and the rail re-fitted higher up and brought in a bit (not further out). The heading needs to be changed - she suggested pinch pleat. The interlining removed and blackout lining used instead (I didn't even know it was interlining as its not what I asked for!).

However, all of this means that more length is needed and therefore I either need a plain border at the bottom or I need to buy a whole new set of material and start again. I'm really nervous about a border so I am still thinking about what to do next.

Thanks for you all your advice so far, much appreciated.

Could you border the top instead?

Hi Jas P, sorry to hear about your dilemma, I think that it has been mentioned before, but the curtains heading seems to be a pencil plate tape. I normally only make hand finished curtains, but you should definitely request that the tape be changed out to a wave tape or a cartilage pleat finish.That way the curtains will be more in keeping with the rest of the room, ie. a little more contemporary, and fold back on themselves a lot neater and tighter. If you want more or a traditional look (not recommended for that room) a double pinch pleat will also make a difference, although not as significantly. The other thing is (for future reference) - for the curtains to look like those you see in the magazines, you either want to go unlined for something like a floating light linen look, or interlined for a beautiful neat drape. Face fabric with only a black out lining will never look the best. In regards to the track you should be able to order additional fittings to make it more secure, however the correct screws given the surface is also important. Annika x

PS. sorry about my typo of Pleat (plate) :-) x

Tezz4 - I could do a border at the top or top and bottom - but I can't really decide whats best.

ig designs and interiors - Thank you for your comments. I had actually suggested wave tape to the lady I met yesterday but she dismissed it straight away, She seemed adamant it needed to be double pinch pleat! No prob about the typo :-)

kikiamack - you are right, interlining definitely doesn't seem to be the right choice in this room. Useful to hear your thoughts about the track - thank you. I am going to look into this further.

I stay in the Wimbledon area - does anyone by any chance know of someone else I can contact that might be able to help me?

one of my interior design clients, who I am working with again at the moment, has sent me a photo (for you) of a cartridge pleat curtain I did for him a while back (the panel you can see is 2 drops of fabric. As you can see it folds really neatly into itself. I would absolutely advise you to keep the interlining and if possible get this hand finished heading done. Good Luck with it all. Annika

Thanks so much Annika for sending me the pictures, it looks great. I'm definitely going to suggest this to the new curtain-maker.

Quick question - do you know if I would need more length if I used this heading (I have a pencil pleat heading at the moment)? Reason for me asking is that I am wondering if I really need a border or if the heading could be changed using the existing material (and then I would have to keep the track where it is now).

Thanks again.

Your curtain maker should be able to unpick the heading (which will take time) and insert buckram to enable him/her to do this hand sewn finish. She will have to take a look and see whether it can be salvaged. Although, I cover the whole of London for full interior design projects, I only do smaller projects locally. If you were local I would definitely offer to pop round. Please let us know how you get on. x

No problem, I wish you were closer :-) The curtain-maker said to me that there won't be enough length in the material to go from pencil pleat to pinch pleat (maybe its different for cartridge pleat but we didn't discuss this) and hence the need for the border. I'm just not totally convinced by this so I might try to get a third opinion. I still have 3 other sets of curtains to make so I need to find the right person before I make any of the others!

If you get stuck, email me at annika@loveiginteriors.com and we can try to get together for a phone chat. If you are happy to pull out the tape measure ( I can guide you on this one), I would be able to give you an estimate for all your windows excluding fabrics and we could take it from there. Hope you enjoy the rest of your Sunday.

Thanks so much. I already have measurements so can pop them in an email :-)

Could you pop a contact number on the mail as well. My work number is 0203903 4935 or you can reach me on my mobile during the week and Saturdays at 07815140959 x

oh brilliant, they look fantastic, so well proportioned around the door frame. :)

So glad to hear you are happy!