Burrows' strongly "figural" laces look best when hung relatively flat, in order to show off the exquisite detailing. Even if you're going to tie them back, the upper part should not be too full. When excessively full, all that intricacy is lost. The swoopy tons-of-lace look (tied back or not) is more appropriate for a lace with a consistent allover pattern throughout the field, with or without a border or edging detail. (Although Burrows doesn't carry them, a pointe d'esprit lace looks lovely when hung very full and "bunchy".) Designs where the most detail is concentrated on the bottom, such as "Kelvin Rose" and "Neo-Grec", look particularly nice at sill length where you can see the fancy stuff - don't bother with them if you're into puddling your draperies. Note how the curtains are not very full in the photograph of the elderly woman sitting in front of the window on the main Lace Curtains page, the floral pattern is very clearly visible.

Queen Anne's Lace has a larger selection of Scottish cotton laces, with many of the same designs as Burrows under different names (made in the same factories, there are only a few Scottish/Nottingham lace factories left), so if you aren't 100% jazzed with Burrows' offerings take a look at them. Their website's a mess (although Burrows' isn't anything to write home about either, what with all the missing pictures and detail information) so I'd download the catalog and order by phone. Ditto for London Lace and Decorating with Lace (which carries some real knock-your-socks-off patterns).

So helpful to get your input, johnmari! Thanks, also, for passing along the additional links - so great to see the variety that is out there...now do you have an opinion as to whether there is such a thing as drapes that are too long -- is it a more or less formal look to "puddle" the drapes? I think that I'm inclined to go with the 84" length, but i just don't know... I'm hoping to stumble across additional images on the www to give me a better sense of how the different approaches might play out. Thanks for your very helpful response to my post!

JMHO, but puddles look better with heavier fabrics - not necessarily heavy damasks/brocades, but a silk or something that drapes and folds nicely. My mom has thin gauzy-type drapes with rods attached to her window casings, her ceilings are only 7'6" or 7'9" and the drapes must be at least 84" (maybe 95"), she's got over a foot puddled on the hardwood floors getting dust bunnies and insists that they're made to be that way, won't move the rod up closer to the ceiling (she could only move it up 6-9" anyway, windows are so close to ceiling). Even has them on the DR window right behind my dad's chair (about a foot clearance - he has to squeeze in), I tell her he's going to rip them one of these days!

I bought 95" drapes thinking 84" might be too short with 8ft ceilings, I'll be back here to post asking for advice on hemming vs. puddling once I'm ready to hang them. But they're heavier, more formal fabric than my mom's.

"now do you have an opinion as to whether there is such a thing as drapes that are too long"

Um, heck yeah? ;-) I detest the puddled thing, to me it looks sloppy, like someone was too lazy to hem their curtains to the proper length, although other people think it's a very luxurious look. ajsmama is also 100% right about the dust bunnies! Pets have also been known to "nest" in the fabric that's on the floor. I've seen dense, heavy laces (the cotton laces do tend to be weightier than the polyesters) puddled, and it does look rather better than the really lightweight sort, but I still don't think it's practical or attractive. Me, I like long WTs to stop about half an inch to an inch from the floor so they don't catch as many dust bunnies and you can vacuum without fussing with the curtains, but I'm also willing to compromise aesthetics a bit for practicality.

With the very complex laces with a lot of bottom detailing, an inside-mounted sill length, which many people think of as being an informal style, can still look quite formal because the lace is so intricate. Just for pity's sake don't use tension rods. Use an inside-mount barrel-bracket rod instead. Here's a picture of one style and of another. The visible-screw ones are cheaper from annwallace.com, just the pics on that site kinda stink. IMO inside mounting something longer than sill length looks sloppy where it flops over the sill.

If you want to go long, whether you go 84" or 95" depends on where you want to put your rods. If you want to do a casing mount or wall mount parallel to the top of the casing, measure from the top of the casing to the floor to get the correct length. I don't like to see a lot of wall between the rod and the window casing, so IMO the "put rod up near ceiling to emphasize room height" routine only really works with a WT that's going to conceal that area, and lace usually isn't dense enough to do so. I'd rather have curtains hemmed to the right length than place my rods based only on a stock WT size. (Remember that most laces are hemmed from the TOP by removing the stitches creating the preexisting rod pocket and sewing either a new pocket or a hem for hanging from rings. Sewn-on rings look MUCH better in a formal setting than clip-on!) I also don't like those clear plastic "lace curtain" rods, I think they look tacky. Use a good quality brass or wooden rod (very traditional) or a finish that matches lighting fixtures, door hardware and suchlike other metals in the room.

The period of these curtains is associated with two movements, the Aesthetic Movement and the Arts And Crafts Movement--a shift from some of the perceived excesses of the late Victorian period. The paneled designs especially are not meant to be gathered. If you read contemporary books about design --(Elsie de Wolfe) for example, these pieces are meant to be flat, against the glass, and not really appreciably larger than the window. The design is lost otherwise.

It is so generous of you all to give such thoughtful responses to my questions...you've given me MUCH to think about! Very interesting to read your explanations/descriptions of some the features associated with various periods. Our house is a 1902 Colonial Revival...so, more Aesthetic, as opposed to Arts and Crafts or Victorian. Ceilings are 10' and the crown moulding is pretty substantial...oak floors, walnut (natural) woodwork. I think I'm going to give the Burrows site and a few of those that johnmari linked another look, this time, with palimpest's advice regarding what might be best for a paneled design. BTW, johnmari, I promise not to use tension rods, lol! Amazingly enough, the original brass hardware/rods are still there.

Can I trouble you all with another question? How many panels should I do per window? Should there just be one each, so that the panels are truly flat? Two narrow panels per window? The bay window (if that is the correct term) has a 32" or so window (doesn't include woodwork) flanked by two narrower ones that are abour 18" per. On another wall, there is another 32" window. Thanks so much for the very helpful advice, everybody!

Kelvin Rose Pattern comes in a 47" width and an 18" width, so perhaps the side panels could hang very flat and the center panel could have a bit of a gather. 32" + 16" = 48" so you would have 1-1/2 fullness on the wider windows. This could possibly work because the narrow panels are all "border" and the wider panel has a center area...you could gather it unevenly so the center lay a bit flatter and the border would read on the narrow windows. (Or vice versa, you may need to play around a bit)

Does this configuration work: one 30" panel each for the narrow windows (18") and then one 50" panel for the larger windows...or, would it make more sense that the larger windows were each hung with two 30" panels? Thanks for any input!

Here is a link that might be useful: Another option: meadow lily lace curtain

Thanks, palimpset! I like the Kelvin Rose suggestion very much - I'm really drawn to the idea of using the narrow panels for the flanking windows. Just so I am clear re: your recommendation for the center window, would you advise that I use two panels on it or just one? Just trying to envision this...

Here is a link that might be useful: Kelvin Rose panels

I would try just one of the wider in the large windows and one narrow panel on the narrower windows.