Buying guide

Clarke and Clarke Curtains: Designs and How to Choose

Choose Clarke and Clarke curtains by pattern, colour, fabric feel, lining, room use and made-to-measure fit with British Made Interiors.

British Made Interiors21 July 2026

The best Clarke & Clarke curtains are the designs whose pattern, colour, texture, fabric weight and lining suit the room’s style, light needs and use, then made-to-measure by British Made Interiors for the window size and finish.

If you are comparing Clarke & Clarke fabrics, start with the room first. A fabric that looks beautiful as a swatch still needs to work as a full curtain, in your light, beside your furniture, and with the right lining and heading.

Key Takeaways

Choose the design family first: botanical, decorative, geometric, textured, plain-led, statement or understated.
Strong pattern usually needs calmer walls, furniture or flooring around it.
Order a sample before deciding. British Made Interiors offers Clarke and Clarke Allure Mink samples from £1.30^[9].
Match lining to the room’s need for privacy, warmth, light control and everyday use.
Once the design feels right, browse our Clarke & Clarke made-to-measure curtains.

Situation	Best choice	Main trade-off	What to do next
You are unsure whether Clarke & Clarke suits the room.	Check whether the space can take expressive colour, texture or pattern.	A very plain or formal room may need a quieter direction.	Compare design families before samples.
The room already has wallpaper, rugs or printed upholstery.	Start with textured, geometric or plain-led fabrics.	A bold curtain may compete with the scheme.	Hold samples beside existing colours.
The curtains need to work hard every day.	Choose fabric weight and lining for handling, light, warmth and privacy.	The most decorative fabric may not be the easiest everyday choice.	Shortlist fabric and lining together.
You are ready to order.	Use British Made Interiors so the designer fabric is made to your sizes and style.	You still need confidence on sample, heading, lining and size.	Use our measuring support if needed, then order through the Clarke & Clarke curtain range.

Are Clarke & Clarke Curtains Right for Your Room Style?

Clarke & Clarke curtains suit expressive, design-led rooms as well as calmer layered schemes. The brand’s fabric range includes decorative prints, velvets, cottons, semi-sheers, bouclés, colour and pattern-led looks^[1]. Sanderson Design Group describes Clarke & Clarke as a design house with British flair, luxurious textures and bold colour combinations^[2].

Use stronger designs where the window can become a feature. A simple sitting room with plain walls and a calm rug can often carry a botanical, geometric or velvet curtain. A room with patterned wallpaper, a detailed rug and printed cushions may need the curtain to support the scheme instead. Designer examples show curtains framing living rooms, balancing privacy and adding expression when the surrounding scheme lets them breathe^[3]^[4]. In one House Beautiful room, Dane Austin chose drapery that echoed the wallcovering background colour without matching the pattern exactly, a useful lesson for harmony without overload^[5].

Which Clarke & Clarke Curtain Design Should You Compare First?

Start by comparing design families rather than individual fabric names. Botanical and decorative fabrics suit colour and focal-point impact; geometric designs feel more structured; textured and plain-led fabrics are safer when the room already has pattern.

Where can you order Clarke & Clarke made-to-measure curtains?

Criterion	British Made Interiors	Britannia Rose	House Decor Interiors
Clarke & Clarke design range	Presents Clarke & Clarke as a contemporary, modern fabric direction built around vibrant fabrics, wallcoverings, on-trend colourways and patterns for drapes and soft furnishings.	Presents a broad Clarke & Clarke made-to-measure curtain range with many colours, styles and patterns, and states 3,455 fabrics found.	Presents its Clarke & Clarke curtain collection as extensive, using fabrics from selected ranges for custom curtains.
Made-to-measure service	Makes Clarke and Clarke curtains to your sizes and style, manufactured in its Yorkshire workroom.	Says its Clarke & Clarke curtains are made to exact measurements, handcrafted in the UK and tailored to the home.	Says it specialises in bespoke made-to-measure curtains designed to fit the buyer’s windows perfectly.
Lining and interlining options	Explains thermal lining for warmth, blackout lining for reduced light, and interlining as an extra fleece-like layer between face fabric and lining.	Says its Clarke & Clarke curtains can be customised with cotton sateen, blackout or thermal lining, plus interlining options.	Offers natural-colour lining choices, thermal or blackout options, and interlining for enhanced thermal performance.
Heading and curtain style options	Explains heading choices for Clarke and Clarke curtains, including pencil pleat, deep pleat and wave curtain considerations.	Says its Clarke & Clarke curtains can be customised with the buyer’s choice of heading style.	Says pencil pleat is standard, with pinch pleat, eyelet and wave headings also available.

Clarke & Clarke’s Passiflora fabrics show how one floral idea can move from rich rouge velvet to a brighter kingfisher colourway^[6]^[7]. If the room already has other patterns, understated does not mean dull; it means the curtain is doing a quieter job. Designer Anna Haines notes that smaller classic prints can be versatile, while larger prints can work because curtains use a generous amount of cloth^[4]. Ian Mankin’s curtain advice also frames the choice around room, window and finish, not just the print online^[8].

How Should Fabric Feel, Weight, and Lining Shape Your Curtain Choice?

Choose fabric and lining by how the finished curtains need to behave. Softer cloths tend to feel more relaxed, while structured or heavier choices can look neater. Designer advice on curtain fabrics starts with use: the cloth needs to be beautiful, practical and fit for purpose when a room gets strong sun, daily handling or regular family use^[10].

In our own fabric language, country-led weaves, soft decadent velvets and traditional wool looks all give a different mood. Lining then turns style into performance. British Made Interiors explains that heavyweight curtain interlining is a dense cotton layer that creates a thicker barrier, while lightweight interlining adds body without adding as much weight^[11]. It also describes blackout lining as a triple-pass fabric useful for bedrooms and spaces where less light should enter^[11].

For a deeper follow-up on how cloth changes a scheme, see our advice on adding texture with curtain fabrics. For lining detail, our curtain linings explained guide is a better next step than guessing from fabric alone. Full-length curtains also change how fabric reads: House Beautiful shows curtains balancing privacy and atmosphere^[12], Homes & Gardens points to full-height curtains making a room feel taller^[13], and British Made Interiors lists a Bude Mist curtain drop from 30cm to 650cm^[14].

Will the Pattern Scale and Colour Work at Your Window Size?

Judge Clarke & Clarke pattern and colour at curtain scale, not from a screen alone. Large prints can look superb across a wide window but too dominant in a compact room. Small prints can be easier to live with, yet lose impact across a very wide drop.

Colour should be checked against fixed room elements: walls, flooring, furniture and nearby soft furnishings^[15]. Daylight can make fabric look fresher in the morning and heavier at night, so view samples next to the wall colour, beside the main upholstery and at the window. A product page may list wide made-to-measure ranges, such as a pole or track width from 30cm, Max: 550cm^[14], which is why a motif should be judged at the finished window size.

Which Clarke & Clarke Designs Work Best in Each Room?

Match the design to the room’s job. Living rooms can often take richer pattern or texture because curtains frame the main seating area and set the tone; Homes & Gardens and House Beautiful both show how living-room curtains affect privacy, colour and proportion^[3]^[12]. Bedrooms usually need a calmer balance of comfort, privacy and light control. House Beautiful highlights a bedroom by Brian Paquette where sheers and blackout drapes give flexible light control^[16].

Dining rooms and occasional rooms can take more drama when curtains are meant to add polish or occasion. Homes & Gardens describes curtain ideas as part of pulling a home together^[17], and House & Garden notes that curtains can contribute as much to a room as furniture when the details are right^[18]. The risk is choosing for the room you wish you had, not the one you use every day.

What Should You Check Before Ordering Clarke & Clarke Made-to-Measure Curtains?

Before ordering, check the sample, design direction, lining, room fit, heading and final made-to-measure requirements. If sizes are uncertain, use our curtain measuring guides rather than guessing.

Choose Clarke & Clarke made-to-measure curtains through British Made Interiors when you want genuine designer fabric made to your sizes, with British-made workroom production and the fabric, lining, heading and proportions handled as one finished order. Homes & Gardens notes that made-to-measure gives buyers freedom over fabric and size, especially where a window is unusual or the finish needs to look exact^[17]. British Made Interiors states that our Clarke and Clarke made-to-measure curtains are manufactured in our Yorkshire workroom and made to your sizes and style^[11].

The same page says British Made Interiors has over 50 years^[11] of experience producing soft furnishings. It also explains that all curtains are pattern matched from the top so different curtain sizes in one order start in the same place^[11]. Another product page states that fabric joints are matched 100%^[19] on made-to-measure curtains for a seamless flow. If timing matters, British Made Interiors says priority curtain orders are shipped within 10 working days^[11]; check the current delivery estimate before relying on it for a deadline. For heading help, use our guide to curtain styles.

Frequently Asked Questions

How should you care for Clarke & Clarke made-to-measure curtains once they are fitted?

Follow the care guidance supplied with the finished curtains. British Made Interiors advises professional dry cleaning rather than washing curtains or Roman blinds.

Can Clarke & Clarke curtains work in a layered interior scheme with blinds, cushions, upholstery, or other designer fabrics?

Yes. Clarke & Clarke curtains can work in layered interiors when the pattern, colour and texture coordinate with blinds, cushions, upholstery or other soft furnishings rather than competing with them. Keep one or two nearby elements quieter if the curtain is patterned; if the curtain is plain-led or textured, it can sit more easily beside patterned cushions or upholstery.

What sizing support does British Made Interiors provide before ordering?

Use our curtain measuring guides before ordering rather than estimating dimensions. Choose the fabric, lining and heading first, then use measuring support when you are ready to order.

Ready-made or made-to-measure: what is the difference?

Made-to-measure Clarke & Clarke curtains are made to your window sizes in British Made Interiors’ workroom. Ready-made curtains or fabric by the metre are bought separately and will not be made to fit your exact window.

Which construction details, such as pattern matching or hand-sewn options, should you ask about?

Ask how the workroom handles pattern scale, lining, heading, window proportions and available hand-sewn options together. Pattern matching is especially important for decorative fabrics, wide windows and same-room orders, and hand-sewn finishing options are worth confirming when the rear-side finish or bottom edges matter to the finished curtains.