Do you wash your curtains? If so how often?

Curtains are taken down and dry-cleaned once a year and I vacuum them about once a month. We’re non smokers.
I saw a programme about Buck Palace and the cleaners vacuum the curtains there, so what’s good enough for the Palace is good enough for my house. ?

I never thought of vacuuming them. Sounds like a good idea.
I wash all the curtains every year. The living room ones need it because of the coal fire, and the rest all get done too.
Apart from that, I'm very sloppy at housework

In the year I got married, 1971, I was astonished to see a shop selling only ready-made curtains. I couldn't believe people would pay those prices rather than make their own.

All the ones I have now, except one set in the living room, are from charity shops - excellent bargains they were.

You can steam clean them yourself if you buy a steam cleaner, it will be easier than taking them down. Steam cleaners really aren't that expensive anymore

I'm glad the hear so many of you don't smoke in the house

No I dont wash curtains I have the blackout ones I m sure it wouldn’t do them any good to wash them
Bluebelle if they are the type of fabric with the blackout backing bonded on, then I would not recommend washing them.
DD washed a pair carefully and some of the lining came away so light shines through the little holes.

My house is always a bit cluttered with 'projects' and we never seem to get round to a thorough clean, but I do have floor to ceiling summer and winter curtains!

Velvet with thermal linings for the winter, and lighter ones with black out linings for the summer.
I made them years ago, and it was such a faff of a job I'm determined to keep them going for as long as possible

They get a steam clean and a blow through on the line, which is getting a bit difficult as they are heavy.

I wash all my curtains once a year when the weather is good and they can dry on the washing line. This includes my 'dry clean only' living room curtains (including patio doors) which are done one at a time in the washing machine. No problems. They all look fresher and cleaner afterwards.

We tend to use Blinds rather than Curtains, but the ones we do have get changed every two to three years when we come to change the decor in a room, and we buy new ones to match. My late Step Mother had the same curtains up in her Bungalow for over 25years, and never once took them down to clean or wash them. If anyone mentioned the fact, she would simply compare her home to a stately National Trust property saying that they never took their curtains down to clean them either!
Not True, and her house was a lot smaller and easier to manage than any National Trust place, she just simply did not like housework!

I must be old fashioned - as I still have summer and winter curtains. I wash the lightweight ones on 30 degrees, but the heavy ones are dry cleaned. I steam the creases out when I hang them, no ironing!

Grandma11, 25 years? Oh dear!

As rarely as possible. Hate housework. My blackout linings are removable, so I tumble the curtains about annually.

Very rarely though sometimes I vacuum them with that hose thing. Last time I actually washed them they shrank so I had to get new ones. Taught me a lesson. Dry cleaning costs too much, rather buy some more in the sales.

I don’t have curtains. Just blinds or naked windows.

I would vacuum them if I thought they needed it....

In our old home, I would wash the curtains about once a year, as they were small windows, unlined curtains and simple to wash and dry.
In our present home, the windows are bigger, and all the curtains lined. Some are washable, but big and heavy. When we decorated the sitting room recently, I managed to wash the curtains but had to go to the launderette to tumble dry them.
Others say dry clean only, expensive and I never think as good as washing, but don’t want to risk them shrinking and the lining ending up hanging below the curtain.

nanna8

Very rarely though sometimes I vacuum them with that hose thing. Last time I actually washed them they shrank so I had to get new ones. Taught me a lesson. Dry cleaning costs too much, rather buy some more in the sales.

This is all that is necessary.

I did occasionally wash curtains when the children were small and rubbed mucky little hands and faces on them.

I did enquire about having some dry cleaned once but it was so expensive. I just replaced them when we redecorated.

Back in the day when I used to make my own (washable fabric) curtains and we didn’t have central heating, I too had Summer and Winter curtains and they used to be washed each time I took them down, just like my Mum did.
All our curtains are now floor to ceiling and Dry Clean only , where they charge by the metre, as we bought all of the curtains in the sales, it would cost more to dry clean them than buy new.
My new approach is to open the and close them and not look at them between times, maybe they need cleaning? Who knows.
When they become full of holes and drop off the curtain pole I might be inclined to sort them out , until then..........anyway until we sort it, the carpet is so awful it will take everyone’s mind off of the curtains and don’t get me started on the sofa!

Only if I think they look dirty.So osmetime between 1 and 5 years. We live in a rural area, although we do have a wood burning stove, but that is only used Sunday afternoons and in exceptional cold snaps.

I make all my own curtains so make sure the fabric is washable. When the only fabric I like is dryclean only, I cut the lengths with plenty of spare and wash them before I make the curtains so that they are pre=shrunk.

This reminds me of Shirley Conrad who said life is too short to stuff a mushroom ?

We only have curtains up in the main room. Long floor length silk and lined. The local independent fabric shop measured up and made them when we moved in 10 years ago. I’ve rung them twice to come and take them down, fold them and off they go to be dry cleaned, brought back a week later and the lady rehangs them for me. Curtains make me nervous I’m no good around them!

We don’t smoke, have no pets and I’ve done this twice since we’ve been here - so every 4 years I’d say, whether they need it or not ....
??

Oopsadaisy a woman after my own heart

When I washed the small net curtains from the bathroom I was amazed at the black dirt. We lived near the carriageway then.

Summer and Winter curtains here in this house too, so they are cleaned when taken down. I have a net curtain on the small window by the front door, it is washed once a month as it has to be bright white.

I consider myself s clean person, but I never wash them and they all look fine. I would wash them if they looked dirty though.

We have light curtains which I wash in the summer usually, in the bedrooms, along with blackout blinds, but the living room ones are heavy. They were made for our last house, but fitted these windows. I had them dry cleaned when we moved, and have done the same once since we moved. Each time it has cost an arm and a leg. We put the Dyson over them once a month. I have washed two pairs of curtains that were dry clean only on a cool short wash and they’ve been perfectly okay and I’m tempted to do it with these.