Curtain alterations in Dubai, from the hem to the heading

Light grey lined curtains drawn open at both sides of a living-room window, apartment blocks and palms outside, a pale sofa at the left — S02
Curtain alterations
Shortened, let down or lined
Price on visit

If the curtains in your Dubai home trail on the floor or stop short of it, a curtain alteration can make them fit again. It isn't worth it on fabric the sun has made brittle: new stitching can tear it. Send photos on WhatsApp first; if you need new curtains, we measure for them free at home.

Last updated 20 October 2026

Book a free home visit WhatsApp Call 050 257 7765

Which curtain problem is yours?

You've moved, and the curtains came too

Curtains from your last flat will trail or stop short if the new track sits higher or lower. Altered, they can hang from the track or pole the flat already has, so nothing new is drilled. On a lined curtain, keep the spare length folded inside the hem for the next move.

Your ready-made curtains trail on the floor

Ready-made curtains are sold in set lengths, so yours may be longer than the drop from your track to the floor. Shortening them is a simple alteration. Still choosing? Buy the longer size: a curtain comes up more easily than it goes down.

Your curtains stop short of the floor

A curtain can be let down only as far as the spare fabric folded in its hem. With none left, a band of new fabric goes in at the bottom or under the heading. It shows, so choose its colour. On double-height glass, the other route is a new pair cut to the full drop.

The nursery is bright before six

In June the sun rises around 5:30 am, going by sunrise tables, and an unlined curtain lets that light through. A blackout lining sewn behind the curtains you have stops it. Lined curtains weigh more, so ask whether the track or pole can carry them.

A quote for new curtains looks high

Is the fabric still strong, with only the length or heading wrong? Then get the alteration priced before you accept the quote, and ask if that price includes taking the curtains down and re-hanging them.

Dusty blue lined curtains drawn open at both sides of a tall window, their hems reaching the floor, apartment blocks outside — Curtains that reach the floor

What can change besides the length: heading, width or lining?

Curtains you own can take a new heading, extra width or a lining. We alter curtains bought anywhere: we shorten them, change the heading and add a lining.

Heading

New heading tape
Pleats or gathers on hooks, for a track or a pole with rings.
Eyelets to a track heading
The eyelet band is cut off, so the curtain loses a little length.

Width

Greige lined curtains drawn open at both sides of a window on one ceiling track, villa roofs and palms outside — A wide pair on one track

Two panels joined
One wider curtain from a pair.
A panel added
Only if matching fabric is still sold.

Lining

Charcoal lined curtains on a ceiling track, the left one drawn across the window and the right one open, sun on the floor — A lined charcoal pair

A lining added
Blackout, thermal or an interlining, sewn in behind the front fabric.
A worn lining replaced
A new lining behind the same front fabric.

Should you alter these curtains or replace them?

Sun wears a curtain from the side facing the glass, and UV readings published for Dubai reach 11 to 12 in late July. For an unlined curtain, compare that side with the room side: if it feels thinner or brittle, replace the curtain. With a lined curtain, the lining wears first and can be replaced, so test the front fabric.

Oatmeal linen curtains drawn open at both sides of a sunny window, light glowing through the cloth, an armchair at the right — Linen curtains in the sun

Alter or replace, by what's wrong
Your curtain	Alter or replace?	Why
Trails on the floor	Alter: shorten	Cut, or folded into a deeper hem
Stops short, spare in the hem	Alter: let down	The old fold line may still show
Stops short, no spare	Alter: add a band, or replace	Choose by how a band would look
Too narrow for the track	Replace, or add a panel	Pulled flat, it leaves gaps
Eyelets, but the window has a track	Alter: new heading	Fine if the drop can lose a little
Won't hang straight	Alter: re-hem, or add hem weights	Check the track is level first
Fabric weakened by sun	Replace	New stitching can tear it

Why is the new length marked while the curtain hangs?

The new length is pinned with the curtain hanging, at several points across its width. Across a wide window the floor may dip, and the hooks or rings set how high the top sits. A hem measured flat on a table can't follow either.

The finish: choose whether the hem stops above the floor, just meets it or lies on it, before anything is pinned. Our guide to how long a curtain should hang compares the three.
The fabric: heavy and loose weaves can stretch a little once hung, so let new curtains hang for a few days before the length is marked. Needle holes in a coated blackout fabric can show as pinpricks of light; a sewn-in blackout lining is easier to alter.
The track: if it sits too low, stops at the window frame or has come loose, no hem will fix it. Moving or refitting a track is a fitting job.

Fabric too weak to sew means new curtains made to measure. Refits and repairs are among our other services for curtains you own.

The hem of a mocha curtain just meeting a pale stone floor, seen at floor level, a glass door with palms at the right — A hem that just meets the floor

How does a curtain alteration work, step by step?

You can start a curtain alteration with photos on WhatsApp. Then the new length is marked, and the curtain is sewn and hung again.

Sage curtain hanging beside a window, its hem just clear of the floor, villa roofs and apartment blocks outside — A hem just clear of the floor

Photos on WhatsApp
Photograph each curtain closed, track to floor, then its heading, the hem folded back to show the spare fabric, and the care label. If they must be ready for a move-in date, give the day. We work anywhere in Dubai, though not yet in the other emirates.
Marking the new length
We talk the job through on the phone before coming out. At the window, the length is marked on the hanging curtain, and any lining or band fabric is chosen from the samples we bring.
The sewing
We take the curtains down and hang them again once they're altered, or you can take them down yourself. An alteration takes 3 to 5 working days, and your windows stay bare meanwhile. A deposit confirms the order.
Back on the track
Once they're back up, close them and check the hem looks even against the floor from end to end. For curtains not worth altering, The Curtains Dubai measures at a free home visit and makes new ones to measure in its own workshop.

Questions to settle before your curtains are altered

Anything else, ask on the phone: 050 257 7765

How much do curtain alterations cost in Dubai?

Each alteration is priced on the job, so there is no set rate for shortening, a new heading or a lining. The price moves with the drop, the number of curtains, any new fabric, and whether re-hanging is part of it. Our quote puts each part on its own line and holds for 30 days.

Is there an easy way to shorten curtains without sewing?

Moving the hooks can lift a curtain a few centimetres without sewing. A gathered heading tape often carries its hook pockets in two or three rows, and hooks set lower on the tape raise the curtain, lined or not. Iron-on hemming tape holds light, unlined fabric but may loosen in the wash.

Will the new hem show from the room?

A blind-hem stitch keeps a new hem hard to spot from the room: each stitch picks up only one or two threads of the front fabric. On a sheer, daylight turns a deep hem into a darker stripe, so a sheer with a weighted hem is often shortened at the top.

Where can I get curtains shortened in Dubai?

A tailor's shop or a home service can shorten curtains in Dubai. Ask who marks the length: where you mark it yourself, a wrong length is usually yours to fix. With us, a length we measured is altered again at no charge if it comes out wrong; one you gave us is changed at your cost.

Do you clean curtains while they're being altered?

The Curtains Dubai doesn't clean curtains. Follow the care label and wash or dry-clean them before the new length is marked. Real linen can shrink on its first wash, and a hem set before then can end up too short.

Curtain alterations in Dubai, from the hem to the heading