Bow Tie Types of Curtain Tie-Backs

Bow-ties can look fancy or whimsical depending on the fabric.

A bow-tie curtain tieback is used to hold center tie fixed curtains in a partially open position. The tieback wraps around the center of the curtain and attaches with Velcro or a snap fastener to the underside of the bow. Usually, this type of bow tieback is changed seasonally to make French doors and fixed windows look festive. Bow-ties range from small size for narrow side-light windows to large bows for French door style windows.

Side Light Windows

Many homes have narrow fixed windows next to the front door. Often these windows are dressed with sheers or lace panels that are attached to bottom and top rods. This pulls the curtain straight down. To add some color and flair to the window treatment while retaining most of the privacy, use a bow-tie tieback. Because the window is small the bow will also be small. Select a bow that is somewhat stiff with interfacing in the colors used to decorate the foyer.

French Doors

French doors are also fixed windows and use similar cafe-style curtain rods at the top and bottom of the window to hold sheer, lace or similarly light curtains. These doors are also candidates for the bow-tie tieback window treatment. Often the tiebacks will be in the same fabric as draperies or valances. Usually the bow is a single, larger bow and the band around the curtain panel will be 3 or 4 inches wide.

Shutter Style

Shutter style sheers are used on the bottom half of double-hung windows. This window treatment is similar to a cafe curtain except that the curtain is stretched between two rods from the midpoint to the bottom of the window. Usually a single window will have four sheer panels. Each panel is gathered at the center point with a small bow-tie tieback. This allows the majority of the lower half of the window to be covered for privacy with just small peek-a-boo triangles between the sheers.

Drapes

One of the more common trends with drapes is to make the drapery more casual by tying back the drape on each side to the center of the drape rather than to the wall. In this way the formality of the drape and its reference toward older drapery styles is overcome by the bow-tie tieback. This bow may be a ribbon sewn to the drape that can be quickly tied into a bow-tie, or the bow may wrap tightly using a sloppy bow-tie style.

References

• Alternative Windows: Making Simple Tieback Instructions
• Home Furnishing: How to Make Curtain Tiebacks
• Prudent Baby: How to Make Bow Ties