Pelmets

Pelmets, are also known as a fascia, are an accessory in window design, used to conceal the headrails of a blind or a curtain. Although for curtains, pelmets look more like a headboard, and they have been used for decades to cover the rails of different kinds of drapery. Now a days, architects and interior designers have been using pelmets for curtains, to evoke an old fashioned and classic look into a home. The decision on whether to select pelmets or not depends, obviously on the style of the room, the selection of window dressing, and the budget available. The size of the room or area, should also be considered when selecting pelmets, where pelmets, can also make a room look smaller or fuller, depending on the size selected, especially for curtains, the selection of pelmets, would be much be suited to a larger and more open area.

When it comes to blinds, pelmets are very straight and simple, they can also be selected in a very short length as to not make a space look smaller. Roller blinds are very straight forward, even though they can be selected in a variety of colours and textures, they are a window dressing that does not bring much movement to a room. So, the use of pelmets could fill the area up, when a space is to large; it can also compliment an area, when pelmets are selected perhaps in a more matching colour, or even in a different colour to the actual blinds, or a pattern design, for example when screen blinds or light filtering blinds are used. Pelmets for roller blinds or roman blinds, can many times be the finishing touch to an area, and they can also be used to bring out a design or a theme in a space, like for example a child’s favourite colour in a children’s room.

In this particular window dressing, pelmets have been used since the Victorian era, to decorate large halls, with heavy draperies, pelmets were large, lavish and over decorated back then. When selecting pelmets for curtains there is an endless selection:

• Size: depending on the size of the room and the height of the ceiling, pelmets can go from 1/5 of the height of the curtain to even 1/8.
• Shape: pelmets can be straight, or curved at the edges or even curved along the width of the curtain.
• Material: Pelmets can be made of wood, foam or even metal, although they are usually made out of wood and wrapped in fabric.
• Colour: depends in the style and design of a room, they can be exactly the same as the curtains hanging below, in a matching colour or even in a pattern or design to compliment the final design of a room.
• Style: there is a large variety of styles for pelmets, starting from the old fashioned, very heavily dressed pelmets, with tassels hanging from the edges, such as the Bordeaux or Louis the XV, all the way to straight and simple short box to simply conceal the fixings behind.