Drapery Fabrics 101: Cotton, Linen, Blackout, and Sheer

Walk into our showroom and you'll find a wall of fabric swatches, and it's easy to see why people's eyes glaze over a little. So let's keep this simple — here's what the main drapery fabric categories actually do.

Cotton and Linen

Cotton and linen are the workhorses of everyday drapery — breathable, casual, and easy to live with. Linen especially has a relaxed, textured look that suits Hawaii's laid-back feel, though it wrinkles more easily and can fade faster in direct sun than heavier fabrics.

Blackout and Sheer

Blackout fabric uses a dense weave or lining to block light almost entirely — ideal for bedrooms or media rooms, and genuinely useful here given how strong Maui's morning light can be. Sheer fabric does the opposite: it lets soft, filtered light through while still offering a layer of privacy, which is why so many living rooms pair a sheer with a heavier drapery panel. There's no single "best" fabric — just the right one for what a room needs to do, and that's exactly the kind of thing we love talking through with folks who visit us.

Mahalo for reading. With pride, service, and aloha from our Maui crew — serving the island since 1973.