Hi everyone,

My husband and I got custom drapes installed a couple of weeks ago. Let me preface by saying that I saw the vendor’s work at someone’s house and really liked their drapes, which is why we chose that specific vendor. I picked soft white polyester/linen blend drapery with sheer panels behind it. When the vendor came to install the drapery, I noticed that the actual fabric was much thicker than what I had chosen. I confirmed this because I have a small sample of the fabric I chose. This wasn’t a big deal because the color and texture of the fabric was similar...or so I thought. Once he installed the drapes, we noticed that the drapery didn’t hang well. He suggested we steam it and “tie” it, so it takes its correct shape. He steamed it and tied it for a few days, then untied it and it was still not hanging well. See first set of pictures below.

I was not happy with the result, so I called him to let him know. He came back and said that we needed to add a ‘memory stitch’ to the drapery, which will help it hold its shape. I hesitantly agreed and he took the drapes back, put the memory stitch in, and installed them again today. I am still not very happy with the drapery. The drapery hangs better, but it’s still very stiff and doesn’t hang the way it’s "supposed to”. The folds aren’t the shape they’re supposed to be and I find myself constantly adjusting them. He saw me doing this and said “it’s drapery, it’s not supposed to be perfect”. Please see photos below and let me know if I’m being unreasonable.

I would like to also add that we had other sheer drapery installed by him as well, I am really happy with those. So I know he’s capable of good work, I just think he screwed up with these particular ones because he used a different fabric than we had chosen. My gripe is that we chose and paid for custom drapery, that said, I don’t think it’s fair that we get something that’s just “ok”.

To compare, below are the drapes at my friend’s home where I saw his work prior to hiring him. In my opinion, this is how they are supposed to hang.