Shower Curtains

Despite the fact that it is likely the largest fabric item in your bathroom, your shower curtain provides a lot more than a mere decorative accessory and needs to be chosen as much for its practical functionality as for its design and finish.

Making sure you get the material right

There are two main types of shower curtain readily available across most retailers – vinyl and material. Vinyl curtains are easier to wipe clean and tend to be cheaper, whereas the fabric designs create more of a luxurious feel but will not hold up as well when saturated with water regularly. As a rule of thumb, we would recommend only looking at material shower curtains if you have quite a large shower space and are using t for privacy rather than to deflect water away from the rest of the room. If your shower space is small, a vinyl curtain will dry much faster and stay looking its best for longer.

How to put your shower curtain up

Your shower curtain will likely be hung from a rod, but whether you choose to do this with rings or a fastening at the top will depend on the curtain you choose and the style you are looking to achieve. If you opt for rings, remember that these will be on show and so should be chosen to match your bathroom style. Equally, when you put up your curtain, think about if it will simply stay hanging across the shower all the time, or if you want to pin it back at one side when not in use. Again, this will hugely impact the overall feel of your bathroom – as leaving the curtain draped shut all the time will essentially cut off the entire shower / bath section of your room from view, and so will make it look and feel much smaller. When you put up your shower curtain, if around the edge of a bath it is also worth ensuring that there is a secondary lining of lining material, which can be separated from the main designed curtain and hung on the inside of the bath. This is to ensure than any water splashes hit the lining and fall inside the bath rather than outside of it – protecting your floors.

Choosing the right design

A new shower curtain has the power to completely update a tired looking or plain bathroom, whether you use it to tone down a colourful bout of accessories or add a splash of colour to an otherwise very neutral room. There are certain designs which lend themselves really well to shower curtains, for example tropical plants and water-focussed images, as well as block colours and other bold patterns. For a larger bathroom, intricately designed imagery and patterns can look really great in the corner around the shower, though if your bathroom is smaller we suggest moving away from detailed designs and instead considering large sweeping colours and light finishes to maximise the light in the room.

Buying the best shower curtain

The best shower curtains can be found in department stores and specialist bath retailers, with many offering both off-the-shelf sizing and tailormade shower curtains according to your measurements. When you purchase your shower curtain, a few additional things to be aware of include the instructions for washing your curtain, the way that it has been made to be hung – either with built-in hoops or not – and the length of the curtain; will it fit and provide enough coverage to achieve its practical function?