Choosing curtains is never an easy task. No matter what room you might be buying them for, there are a huge number of questions you need to ask yourself if you stand a chance of getting the best ones for you.

One of the key questions in this respect is whether you want patterned curtains or plain ones. There is so much choice in this department that you could spend months searching and still not find what you want.

So let’s take a look at this question in more detail. If you can figure out whether patterned or plain is best, you can automatically cut out a whole swathe of designs that aren’t suitable for your needs. This means you can choose what you do want a lot more easily.

You ideally need to start by taking a good look at the room you are buying the new curtains for. If there is a lot going on in there at the moment – for example if you have patterned wallpaper – you won’t want to make it busier still by adding patterned curtains into the mix. But on the other hand if you have plain walls, a plain sofa and a plain carpet as well, a patterned pair of curtains could be just what you need to lift the room and give it some extra pizzazz.

This is the rule to stick to then when it comes to working out how you can choose the best design for you. If the curtains are going to be next to another pattern, stick to a plain design in just one color. If they are going into a room filled with plains and no patterns, you can be a bit more adventurous.

However, even if you have plain curtains, you don’t have to go for a flat and uninteresting design. There are plenty of different types of material available that have different textures and looks to them, and spending a bit more money on something more eye catching could be what you need. In this sense it is the feel of the material that can provide some semblance of a pattern. You can get the best of both worlds simply by using this technique. The good thing is that if you get the choice of material just right you can enjoy a great effect as a result.

The key thing to remember is to set your budget as high as you can comfortably afford. The heavier the material is for your curtains, the easier they will hang. Heavyweight curtains always look more expensive and more stunning than cheap ones which have no weight to them at all. They will draw closed more easily as well, and even a plain pair of expensive curtains will look stunning in their simplicity.

So buy carefully whenever you need a new pair of curtains. A little time spent figuring out what you need will stand you in good stead when you stand back to admire your purchase.