It's time to rethink curtains instead of cabinets
There's not one single way to design a kitchen or bathroom and more and more, we've seen designers embracing an old-fashioned design choice: a curtain in place of a cabinet. Where a wooden door might be commonplace, instead a fresh piece of gingham, clean white cotton or elegant Toile de Jouy can be an easy way to add softness and charm to an interior. If you need convincing of this decorating comeback, let the below inspire you.
Chris Horwood1/24You can trust Max Rollitt to design a gorgeous kitchen and in this Hampshire cottage, the combination of rich yellow units and panelling in Farrow & Ball’s ‘Sudbury Yellow’ with a curtain in a Tissus d'Hélène fabric creates warmth, softness and texture.
Mark Anthony Fox2/24Along the back wall of this bijou stable-turned-guest-cottage, Anna Haines added an unfitted kitchen, created through a combination of an oiled oak sink unit with Merchant & Mills curtains, an antique shelf unit and a wall unit from Berdoulat.
Kate S Jordan | Styling: Brittany Albert3/24This exceptional timber-framed farmhouse in Upstate New York has an impeccable wooden kitchen, whose rustic perfection is enhanced by tempera on the walls and a sheer linen curtain on one end.
Paul Massey4/24Octavia Dickinson designed the vanity unit in her London house, which has fabric panels made from Bennison’s ‘Petites Fleurs’.
Michael Sinclair5/24The kitchen in Catherine Chicester's Cotswolds barn is pretty and feminine, thanks in part to the abundance of pink. The addition of two pleated curtains in the place of cabinets adds to the overall feel.
Owen Gale6/24The kitchen in The Flint House, a pretty cottage on the south coast, is all marble and rich colours. The addition of a simple curtain under the sink unit softens the space.
Paul Massey7/24Fabric plays a key role in Lisa Mehydene's house and that's no different in the kitchen, where oak-topped units from British Standard by Plain English are painted in ‘Pollen’ by Atelier Ellis, with a curtain in ‘Little F’ linen in tutti from Howe at 36 Bourne Street concealing extra pan storage.
Simon Brown8/24In the kitchen of this expansive London flat by Beata Heuman, the butcher's block trolley table was designed and made by the owner's brother. Underneath the skirt there is ample storage for pots, pans and trays. The surface itself gives a hardy additional work surface but also is perfect for serving when entertaining.
Simon Brown9/24In the same London flat, the dressing room is filled with bespoke designs, including the mirror, mirrored cabinets and dressing table. The skirting adds a fun flair to the room.
Owen Gale10/24Writer Olivia Laing and her poet husband Ian Patterson in the kitchen on their Suffolk house. Olivia swapped cabinetry for a gingham-patterned curtain to hide storage space.
Maura McEvoy11/24The kitchen in this 1850s Cape house in Maine features a simple curtain that covers the under storage of the room's sink.
Paul Massey12/24The basin skirt in the guest bathroom in a colourful house in west London is in Molly Mahon’s ‘Luna’ linen in oyster/pink.
Chris Horwood13/24The office in this rental flat in Chelsea, with desk skirt custom-made from fabric by Chelsea Textiles, makes a perfect and innovative use of curtains.
Boz Gagovski14/24Creative consultant Max Hurd’s London terrace is the perfect illustration of his eclectic influences, from Oscar Wilde to Verner Panton. In Max's kitchen, the lower cupboard doors were removed and replaced with a curtain made of Sibyl Colefax’s ‘Teapots’ fabric.
15/24The hearth is the focal point of this 17th-century Cumbria farmhouse. To the right, an antique sink has been transformed into a chopping block, its piping and additional storage below covered by a simple patterned curtain.
Ngoc Minh Mgo16/24In Harriet Anstruther's restored farmhouse, a butler farm sink and a curtained under-sink area creates a classic countryside style.
Paul Massey17/24A cottage in a Sussex village has been transformed into a distinctive family home by the designer Beata Heuman, who has given the interiors a bold update with her confident use of colour and playful blend of styles. The smart utility room has brass wall lights from Visual Comfort and cupboard façades in Pierre Frey’s ‘Aquila’ wallpaper, softened by a pretty curtain.
Rachel Whiting18/24The wardrobe doors in Octavia Dickinson's Battersea flat are lined with a Jean Monro fabric.
Simon Upton19/24The vertical lines of the panelling in this Welsh farmhouse by Hackett Holland add height to the awkwardly shaped room, while the window gives bathers a view of the sky. A sink curtain emphasises the country feel of the scheme and hides any unsightly pipes.
Adrian Brisco20/24This kitchen, with its hanging linens and under-counter curtain, is reminiscent of a relaxed holiday home in the Mediterranean. The curtain fabric is in 'Leila Stripe' (pink/gold) by Brigitte Singh, available from Aleta.
Mel Yates21/24This bathroom in a West Country house uses chintz throughout. In the bathroom, the windows have been dressed in 'Geranium' by Colefax & Fowler.
Andrew Montgomery22/24This kitchen at Wardington Manor in Oxfordshire, is a restored Jacobean manor house with a Victorian walled garden, which now serves as the HQ for The Land Gardeners' business. The AGA and wooden benches set up a classic country look, helped on by the clean, fresh white curtain under the sink.
Simon Upton23/24Another charming country kitchen with a stripey under-sink curtain in Miranda Alexander's house in Dorset.
Simon Brown24/24At Holker Hall in Cumbria, the bathroom overlooks the private garden. Notice the bathroom table; topped with glass, it has been dressed with 'Roses and Pansies' by Colefax & Fowler. Table skirting is an easy and inexpensive way to introduce pattern into a room.
