How do I Choose the Best Curtain Poles?

The best curtain poles for your home should suit each room's overall decor, the size of the window and the weight of the fabric or panels. For a cohesive look to your home, using a similar type of curtain pole style throughout can be a good idea. The curtain poles don't have to be matching, as it can be much more interesting to unify them through basic style or color.

For example, you can still give all of your windows a connected look yet be free to choose a variety of curtain pole styles if you use the same color. If you like this approach, decide on the one color for curtain poles that will work best in each of your rooms with windows. It doesn't necessarily have to be black, white or a natural wood or metal tone, although it may be.

If you have a modern home with many stainless steel fixtures, clean-lined silver-toned curtain poles can create a high end look that black or white may not be able to match. On the other hand, this look could stand out too much in a Tuscan or Mediterranean home style. In that case, black wrought iron could be the unifying color as well as material to tie all of the window treatments together visually.

For other, more rustic types of interior design styles, the unifier could be rough, unfinished wood. In this case, unfinished wooden store bought curtain poles could be used in the same home as well as tree branches or canoe paddles, all in the same wood tone. Finished, polished wooden curtain pole styles that are wood-turned to offer varying textures would suit more traditionally decorated homes.

One detail that shouldn't be overlooked when choosing curtain poles is the end caps, or finials. These are usually removable to place the curtains onto the pole, then cap the ends to help keep them from slipping off. Since finials are at each end of a curtain pole and tend to be noticeable against the wall when the window coverings are hung. They should fit in with the room's general theme as well as the style and pattern of the curtains.

Choosing a narrow curtain pole with delicate finials is not likely to work well with heavy drapery material. Even if the curtains do hang effectively, the look of the thick drapery on a thin pole may still seem out of place. When choosing curtain poles, going through a quick mental checklist to see if they first suit the fabric, then the window, room and overall home style may help you find suitable pole styles.