January 26, 2010
Weekly Q&A with Phoebe
Question: "I am having a hard time finding the right shower curtains for my new house. Do you have an opinion on height for rods, fabric for the curtains, etc?"
Phoebe’s answer: I absolutely have a strong opinion on shower curtain construction. I do not know who decided that 72" x 72" was the proper, universal size for a shower curtain, because I have always considered that size to be skimpy and ineffective. Start by investing in a nice shower rod, not a tension one. They come in 5' and 6' lengths, in a variety of finishes, and they can be cut to fit. These poles should be placed as high as possible (so, the height very much depends on your bathroom, but go as high as you can), and they should be screwed into the tile or wall.
For the shower curtain, I make a pair of panels, each panel 54" in width (again, height depends on your bathroom). I make them hang 1" from the floor, since the humidity can make them stretch. I do not think they should brush the floor. I use extra long fabric plastic liners, roller ball rings, and I put weights in the hem to keep the curtains in place. The curtains can be detailed with trim, banding, monograms, or made in matelasse or print fabrics – whatever it is, it should something that can withstand water and humidity. I think these pairs of shower curtains not only look better, but also do the job much more effectively. Take a look at the photo below and notice the placement of the rod, the length of the curtains and how the divided pair visually frames the bathroom.
I have never seen this before. At first I thought, "this would leak and be such a mess everytime the shower was used". A blogger asked the question of how to keep this from happening and she responed that while in the shower you should overlap the liner to ensure the water stays in the shower instead of the floor.
I guess this would work, but you would have to explain this to your guest and hope they follow directions. This may actually be the answer to my question about my own guest bath shower. I love the subway tile we have in the shower, but with the curtain closed, nobody even knows it's in there. Also, we have a transom window above the shower to allow some natural light and I think the curtain filters it too much. Perhaps if I install a double curtain like the one suggested in the above post, it would solve the whole issue.
We used the same cabinets that we used in the kitchen. I am really happy with the way everything turned out. I found a white cotton seersucker shower curtain at Target and I bought glass knob shower rings that match the knobs used on the vanity. I may try to find another matching shower curtain and trim it out in black to mimic the photo displayed in the Mrs. Howard post.
Any thoughts or advice?
