Steaming your curtains is arguably the easiest way to remove those stubborn wrinkles and creases that creep up over time, and it's also the best option, says Frej Lewenhaupt, the co-founder of Steamery. "The fabric will feel richer and more natural in texture with steaming, as opposed to ironing," he says.
Use a steamed room
Once the bathroom is filled with steam, let the curtains hang in the bathroom for 30 minutes and then hang them back on the curtain pole. By the time the curtains are dry, the steam from the water would have removed all the creases present in the fabric.
Lay the curtain on the ironing board with the back part facing up. At the top part of the curtain, place the iron on top of it with a little distance and press the steam button. Slightly press the steam iron on the area and glide slowly. Raise the iron once in a while to repeat steps nine and 10.
Start by steaming or ironing your draperies to remove any creases. If you're steaming, you can leave your drapes hung to do this, but remove them from the rod if you're ironing. In either case, check the fabric content of your drapes first to see what temperature they can be ironed or steamed at.
Iron – Use low setting to iron away the wrinkles. However, for more stubborn wrinkles, use a cloth over the fabric side of the drapes or curtains if you need to use a high setting. You could also spray water over the fabric and gently iron on low setting to smooth out the wrinkles.
New curtains can change the look of a room, but if they're wrinkled, they might change it for the worse. When you first remove polyester, nylon or other synthetic drapes from the package, they are likely have creases in them. A trip through the washing machine usually removes creases from polyester nylon drapes.
Drying Machine Washable Curtains
Always dry your curtains on a gentle cycle (tumble dry is best) with low or no heat. It might take longer, but it will definitely make your curtains last longer. Drying your curtains with a hot cycle can set wrinkles, fade colors, and shrink the material.
All you need is a steamer and a support.
The process of steaming your curtains is fairly straightforward, says Lewenhaupt, and the only equipment you need is a steaming tool—he recommends Steamery's Cirrus No. 2 ($130, amazon.com), which works on both clothes and home textiles—and a support, like a ladder or chair.
Use a mild laundry soap that's free of brightening ingredients or bleach, which can affect the color of polyester fabric. For delicate or embellished panels, hand-washing is a safer alternative. If indicated on the tag, tumble-dry on low heat. Otherwise, hang your curtains to dry.
Ironing Or Steaming Your Blackout Curtains
A steam iron is the quickest and easiest way to get rid of creases in your curtains.
It depends on factors such as window length, but more often than not, curtains look best when touching the floor. However, how low you want your curtains to hang will determine what you want to achieve. In reality, different decorating styles employ varying curtain lengths.
If you purchase curtains that are washable it is very important to wash them prior to hanging. They normally shrink the most the first time they are washed. I washed mine in hot before hanging them the first time to get all of the shrinking behind me.
When steam cleaning, the dirt does not "go anywhere". Instead, the dirt is broken down by the heat from the water vapor, but remains in the area. To remove the loosened dirt from the area, you need to manually wipe it with a steam mop, cloth, or vacuum it.
You only need to fill the tank with water, glide it across your floor, and it's spotless in a matter of minutes. And more so, steam cleaners will finish the job much faster. Additionally, you'll be able to get rid of invisible bacteria on surfaces easily, which traditional mops cannot do.
The beauty of steam cleaning is that it effectively trades heat for chemicals without sacrificing strength. In fact, when used correctly, steam can quickly kill 99.99% of germs and bacteria, making it a safe, healthy, eco-friendly, all-natural way to clean your home from top to bottom.
While some blackout liners are sewn directly onto the curtain, other liners are a separate structure, one side looking like vinyl, the other like fabric. The fabric side faces the window to help protect the coated side, although the blackout feature works regardless of the lining's direction.
Stretch the curtain and spread it out as much as you can. Fill your iron with water and set it to the ideal temperature for your curtains. Iron the top half of the curtains, pressing firmly down and releasing steam/spraying as needed for the fabric. Once the top half is done, hang them back up on the rod.
Should You Just Steam Them Or Let Them Hang? In most cases, you really don't need to iron your curtains unless they have awkward creases from packing, causing them to hang improperly. Most curtains will eventually drop to their ideal hanging style, especially if you live in a more humid environment.
They'll shrink. I do not know but I always hang my curtains back when still wet, they dry and look fine without drier or ironing. They will shrink.