The curtains you choose for any home should be functional, in blocking out light and helping to insulate windows and the areas around the window frame. However, your home's curtains should also be stylish, if not downright fun! Curtain fabrics are a good way to bring colour and pattern and some interesting visual elements, as well as some texture and warmth, to any room of the home. Rather than just choosing the cheapest curtain panels you can find in a store, note a few tips for choosing something fun and unique for your home's windows.

Colour

Curtains can be a good way to add bold colour, as these pieces won't overwhelm a room, while still standing out from the walls and windows. Opt for something fun and that fits with the room's overall decor or style; for example, you might choose a bright yellow for your living room curtains, to bring out the yellow tones in a sofa, or to contrast with the reddish tones in an area rug. Choose a bold blue for your dining room, and coordinate with matching placemats and table linens.

As a contrasting idea, you might choose a crisp, stark white for curtains in a room that already has lots of strong and bold colours. A stark white on the windows can actually stand out against all those other colours, and seem clean and fresh, while making the room feel brighter overall.

Pattern

Opt for some fun pattern in your curtains; choose a bold horizontal stripe along the middle of the panels, to break up their look and keep them from blending into the wall. You might also opt for oversized geometric shapes to create a more modern look for the curtains; large white ovals on a dark curtain can tone down that dark look, and shapes like triangles and squares can also make a space seem more modern. This can also ensure that surfaces like timber flooring won't seem overwhelming and bland.

Height and width

To make a room seem larger, install the curtain rod closer to the ceiling rather than close to the window frame, and let the curtains puddle on the floor. This can add a certain sense of grandeur to a room and make the curtains more noticeable and visible.

You can do the same for their width; install a longer curtain rod so that the curtains sit outside the window frame completely when opened, with lots of added fabric on either side, for more depth and texture. This can also make a wall and a room look wider and larger, creating an attractive appearance in the space.