I hope not!!!

My BFF just had new drapes installed in her family room in front of a bay window. I was there while the installer put them up and they were a foot or so off the floor. I with out thinking when I saw them going up said "oh my, they forgot the bottom of the drapes" . My BFF then said "oh God, you hate them dont you". The installer said " this is how they make them now" and my BFF's husband said "its time for you to go home now and at 2am when she is awake asking me if she made a big mistake I'm going to tell her to call YOU "
They are beautiful. But the short length caught me by suprise. I guess I dont watch enough TV to know the new trends.

I think it depends upon the style and the function of the room. Cafe curtains have been around forever...and maybe, yes...they're being seen more now in updated fabrics/sheers..a little different than years before. I had cafe curtains in natural muslin rod run at my ranch. We needed some privacy and covering just the bottom half of the window was just "right" for the rustic look in the room.

In fact, I STILL have those darn curtains except they're now in our office/den. It's easy to close them without having to stand up and it allows most of the light to come in while still retaining privacy when you're sitting down.

So in kitchens, very informal homes, offices...yep, they have their place.

I'm not sure a "foot off the floor" is how they're doing them though...hmmm. That sounds neither here nor there lol!

"I was there while the installer put them up and they were a foot or so off the floor."

A foot off the floor isn't a trend. It's a mistake.

hummm, a regional thing perhaps ? a protest against puddling ?
I would say to the sill or to the floor, anything in between could look odd.

I've never cared for puddling...I always see it as a cleaning issue. Full length drapes should come to just above the floor. But a foot off the floor? That can't have been right.

I think they can look good depending on the room and of course the fabric. For my own house if I were working on a nursury I'd consider using sill length. I don't have too many large windows in my home and the small ones (kitchen, bathrooms) have valances.

"I was there while the installer put them up and they were a foot or so off the floor."
A foot off the floor isn't a trend. It's a mistake.

I agree, talking about cutbacks! jeeeezzz!

I happen to like sill- or apron-length drapes, in many situations they are quite practical. I have a number of "inspiration photos" saved up, some of which I've posted before. I happen to like the "English country" style and I do see quite a few examples of shorter draperies in those books/magazine. If you have radiators or certain kinds of baseboard heating (electric or oil) shorter fabric makes sense. Or if you have a smaller room with furniture against the walls, again, shorter drapes can make better sense.

Personally, I like seeing the baseboards if they're substantial. My husband suggested this for our formal living room and I was *very* unsure about it until I saw them and realized I actually liked them.

That being said, I really, really don't like puddled drapes in most cases and when drapes just break at the floor, IMHO it looks like someone measured incorrectly. But again, this is only MY opinion and I am far from an interior decorator.

I will very quietly admit that when I put up new drapes on an old rod and they landed just a bit below the apron (and about 15" above the floor, my windows are pretty low) that I actually LIKED them that way. I do not like puddling. I not like almost to the floor. When they are tied back they look perfect to me.

One person's mistake is another person's "happy accident" (especially if you live in alaska, have a big afro and paint landscapes in 20 minutes flat).