What are the different types of curtain headings?

When choosing curtains for your home, sometimes the design terminology can be overwhelming.

Wave heading, triple pinch pleat, twin pleat, Euro style or box pleat… with so many different heading styles it’s easy to see how it can be difficult to pick the right one.

But firstly – if you’re asking yourself ‘what even is a curtain heading?’; it’s the very top part of the curtain where it connects to the curtain rod or track.

What curtain heading style you choose can completely alter the overall look and feel of your curtains in a room, which is why it’s important to choose the right one to suit your space.

This short guide will show you some of the different options available, so you can easily decide on the right curtain heading style for particular rooms in your home.

Wave headings

Also referred to as ‘surf headings’, this style doesn’t use bunching or pleats but instead creates a soft wave look. 

Creating a contemporary feel, wave headings are perfect for the rooms in your home that have large windows because of the understated elegance they create.

Wave headings are installed using a specifically designed heading tape and wave track, or with a tracked pole. 

Triple pinch pleat

Also known as a ‘French pleat’ or simply as a ‘triple pleat’ this is a more traditional heading style that creates a classic look. 

The style is quite formal, which makes it best suited to the fancier living areas of your home, such as a formal dining room. 

A triple pinch pleat can be used on either tracks and rods, but fabrics that are too thick or heavy won’t be able to be easily folded into pleats, so it’s worth keeping that in mind. 

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Twin pleat

A slightly less formal look than the triple pinch pleat, but a more elegant feel when compared to a single pleat, a twin pleat can easily suit most spaces. 

Also known as a ‘double pleat’ or a ‘Dutch pleat’, this style can work in both formal and casual rooms, making it a good choice for open plan living spaces.

Like the triple pinch pleat style, it is also installed on tracks or rods.

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Euro pleat

The Euro pleat is perfect for modern homes, as when the curtain is closed it covers the tracks completely, creating a floor-to-ceiling smoothness which creates a very clean finish.

This style has been adapted from the traditional pleat curtain, adding a touch of luxury to the design.

The Euro pleat suits properties with high ceilings and windows, creating a relaxed look and feel. 

Box pleat

If you feel the tailored style pleat seen in pinch pleats won’t suit your style, then the box pleat might be more to your taste. A box pleat minimises the bulk and ‘frill’ from a curtain, by inverting the pleat at the front.

A box pleat suits stiff fabrics that aren’t very soft because, unlike other heading styles, you don’t need to push them into a pleated shape. Box pleats can also save you on fabric costs because you need less material to create the look. 

If you’ve been feeling indecisive about what curtain heading to choose for your home, we hope this guide helps. 

If you’re still feeling overwhelmed, feel free to call me, Sandy, on 0419 909 813 and I can give you some free advice.

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