Linen Curtain Fabric

Linen curtain fabric sold by the meter — 100% flax linen at 220 gsm, stonewashed on the roll, woven 280 cm wide so a floor-length drop comes out of a single width with no horizontal seam. Our linen curtain fabric ships with 2% residual shrinkage and mill-verified specifications.

Why 280 cm wide linen curtain fabric matters

If you are making the curtains yourself, width is the specification that decides how much work the job is. At 140 cm — the width most linen is sold at — a floor-length curtain has to be railroaded or seamed, and a horizontal seam across a linen panel is visible in every raking light for the rest of its life.

Railroaded from a single width, no join

This is woven at 280 cm. A 84, 96 or 108 in. drop comes out of a single width turned on its side, with the selvedges becoming your top and bottom edges and not a join anywhere in the finished curtain. It is the difference between an afternoon and a weekend.

Specification: 220 gsm flax linen, stonewashed on the roll

100% flax linen at 220 gsm, stonewashed on the roll so it arrives with its final hand and the great majority of its shrinkage already taken out. Expect no more than 2% further movement, which on a 108 in. drop is about two inches — allow for it in your cut length rather than hoping.

Working notes for sewing linen curtain fabric

Working notes, because linen is not cotton on a machine. Use a size 90 needle and a 3 mm stitch; a fine needle and a short stitch perforate the yarn and the seam eventually opens along the line of holes. Cut with the grain and pull a weft thread to find it — linen is stiff enough that an off-grain panel will hang skewed and no amount of hemming corrects it. Press with steam and a hot iron from the face; linen is one of the few fibers that genuinely wants heat.

Fullness maths and minimum order

For fullness, multiply your track length by 2 for a rod pocket or eyelet heading and by 2.5 for pinch pleat, then add 30 cm to the drop for a 4 in. double hem and a header allowance. Sold by the meter with a two-meter minimum, cut in one continuous piece.

Colors and free swatches

Alabaster, Bone, Fog Grey, Sable, Ink, Clay, Sage, Indigo, Blush and Ochre, plus the four yarn-dyed stripes. Swatches of every color are sent free — worth doing, because linen photographs a full shade cooler than it looks in a room and nobody’s screen is calibrated.

Linen curtain fabric buying guide

How to care for finished pieces made from your linen curtain fabric

• Cold wash on gentle, line dry
• Iron with steam on the face — linen genuinely wants heat
• Size 90 needle, 3 mm stitch
• Cut with the grain (pull a weft thread to find it)

Frequently asked questions

Why buy linen curtain fabric by the meter?

To make custom widths, to seam-match a bay window, to reuse the excellent cloth on cushions or roman blinds, or to keep an offcut for later hemming.

Do I need to wash the linen curtain fabric before sewing?

No — it arrives stonewashed on the roll. 2% residual shrinkage on the first wash after sewing is normal; allow for it.

What needle for sewing linen curtain fabric?

Size 90 with a 3 mm stitch. Fine needles and short stitches perforate the yarn along the seam line.

Can I request custom colors?

Ten stock colors plus four stripes. Custom color matches are handled through our custom linen curtain service.

Complete the project

Consider our custom linen curtains if you’d prefer we made them, or match with linen throw pillows for the rest of the room.