Raising the curtain on a fresh home

When was the last time you gave your curtains a good clean?

Here’s why it’s so important for your home to scrub down something you least think about cleaning.

Along with furniture and carpets, curtains are one of the biggest absorbers of smells and dust in the home and yet, not many people ever think about giving them a regular clean.

Yet doing so, will keep your home fresh and fragrent.

Curtains spend large portions of the time folded into pleats, pet hair and even mould gathers on them.

They also take on smells from around your home such as bacon frying in the kitchen and cigarette smoke. Such as aromas leave them smelling foul and can also cause discolouration.

And then of course there’s dust that also clings to curtains which in turn can be a problem for those with allergies or asthma.

Fortunately, there’s no set time on how often you should clean your curtains but most experts recommend giving them a good wash once every three to six months depending on the fabric.

Curtains like this Onyx Magma one will always need a wash no matter how great they look. Hillarys/PA

Here’s a clever guide when it comes to washing your curtains:

a) Remove all hooks and even let down the hem if the fabric is likely to shrink. Then make sure you give them a good shake to ensure most if not all of the dust is gone.

b) Soak the curtains in cold water before then washing them gently carefully, according to the fabric they’re made out of. If the curtain is to be hand-washed, make sure the detergent is thoroughly dissolved before immersing the curtains being careful not to rub or wring. When hand washing curtains, use a mild laundry detergent. Be sure to wear rubber gloves if you have sensitive or damaged skin.

c) Once the washing is done, make sure you rinse it through remembering to squeeze out the water. You can even use a short washing machine spin. Be careful to check first for the type of fabric that’s about to go into the washing machine.

d) If you’re planning to iron your curtains, make sure that they are still damp. A good tip is to work lengthways (on the wrong side), stretching the fabric gently to stop the seams puckering. You should also hang the curtains while slightly damp so they drop to the right length.

e) But not all curtains can be hand washed or put into the washing machine. Some are large and heavy so it may be easier to simply get them dry cleaned professionally. If your curtains are interlined or made of fabrics such as silk, wool, velvet or tapestry,, then they should definitely be dry-cleaned.