Curtains for Goan & Portuguese Houses

The best curtain in a Goan house is often the one you barely notice by day: drawn back to the wall, clear of the window, letting the shutters, the frame and the oyster-shell panes do the talking. Our journal on oyster-shell windows explains why those panes deserve the light.

At night, the same curtain closes for privacy. That means a generous track or rod, wider than the window, so that when open the curtains sit on the wall and when closed they cover the whole opening.

Lime plaster over laterite crumbles under a careless drill, and carved timber frames should not be screwed into at all. We prefer to fix into the ceiling, a timber beam, or the solid masonry above the reveal. Where a house is being restored, we can coordinate with the restorer so fixings go in at the right stage.

Lime-wash in white, ochre, indigo or Goan pink glows in daylight. Natural linen, cotton and soft voile in ivory, oat, sand or a muted colour picked from the floor tiles sit well against it. Strong synthetics and shiny fabrics look out of place.

If the house has coloured window frames — the classic white, green or blue — let the curtain be quieter than the frame.

A slim wrought-iron or turned timber rod with rings suits the period. In very high rooms, or for wide openings, a discreet ceiling track can be used instead, hidden by the curtain heading. Avoid bulky modern fittings that draw the eye away from the window.