The curtain cleaning guide

Every one to two years for most rooms; more often in kitchens, on busy roads or in homes with smokers or open fires. Between cleans, a gentle vacuum with an upholstery brush keeps dust from settling into the weave.

Face fabric, lining and interlining often shrink at different rates, which is how home-washed curtains end up puckered and short. Professional cleaning assesses the construction first and uses a process that keeps all the layers stable.

Cleaning is the ideal moment for maintenance: sun-rotted linings replaced, hems relevelled, headings repaired or converted. Tell us about anything that's bothered you about how they hang — it can usually be fixed in the same visit.