We recently completed another contract with the Parliament House of Western Australia. This time it was for a number of curtains in rooms which host foreign dignitaries, so it had to be done to a high standard, whilst also being very mindful of cost – it was actually good to see how the Parliament House staff are so focused on keeping taxpayer expenditure down.
Due to our experience with creating curtains sympathetic to heritage and historic buildings, we were a natural partner for this job. This historic building, built between 1902 and 1904 is one of the oldest civic buildings in the State. If you haven’t ever visited the building, they do run tours for the public, and it is worthwhile to visit.
The challenge was to deliver something which was sympathetic to the building, whilst also being lighter, brighter and more inviting. Swags and tails would have been suitable, however the cost precluded them for this particular job as did their heaviness. Pelmets were also considered, however dismissed as they would also present a heaviness, and detract from the architectural curves at the top of the windows. As such we decided on a curtain rod which we felt wouldn’t take away from the natural beauty of the rooms. The rod used was a hand painted, wooden tracked rod and had a gilt finish.
Curtain headings are often an overlooked component of curtains, but they have a significant impact on the finished result. Many would have just used the simple S-Wave curtain heading, however we opted for a tall triple pinch (most triple pinch is 10 cms high, however, due to the height of this room, we opted 15 cms).
The curtain fabric used was Warick’s navy tyning which has a classic small pattern.
We have long argued that properly designed custom made curtains make a huge impact on the entire room. We were very pleased with the finished result and feel it delivered a light, welcoming ambience, whilst also being sympathetic to this magnificent, and historic, Perth building.
