Seen any pretty shower curtains?

June 2, 2008 7:50 PM

Seen any pretty shower curtains? Bonus points for colorful, abstract designs. (Also, are there any tricks to keep mildew from savaging the part that drags against the tub?)
posted by lester the unlikely to Home & Garden (22 answers total)

I can't answer the pretty shower curtain part, but the trick to keep mildew off is to wash the shower curtain in your washing machine on HOT with no soap. I've had a shower curtain for 5 years with this technique. The soap scum and mold goes and the shower curtain is still 100% good to look at and functional.
posted by pokeedog at 8:16 PM on June 2, 2008

As far as pretty designs, I've always liked fish on my curtains, but that's hardly abstract. I'm pretty sure most shower curtains are printed these days and so you really can find ones with everything and anything on them.

For the mildew: I don't know any tricks; in my experience you just have to wash it with soap every so often. I've never tried pokeedog's method and I'm intrigued and wonder how HOT water wouldn't damage the plastic of the curtain...
posted by Deathalicious at 8:18 PM on June 2, 2008

I feel like half my answers here link to designsponge, but they have a pretty great shower curtain roundup.
posted by logic vs love at 8:20 PM on June 2, 2008 [2 favorites]

Wrapables has a few interesting ones.
posted by als129 at 8:20 PM on June 2, 2008

Here are some. And here are some more.
posted by phunniemee at 8:21 PM on June 2, 2008

I just bought one of these in green. I'm really loving it.
posted by kimdog at 8:27 PM on June 2, 2008

Oh, and I've heard from multiple sources that a preemptive coating of that Tilex mildew spray on the curtain will slow its curdling time. Or, if you do what pokeedog suggested above, extend the amount of time between washings.
posted by phunniemee at 8:27 PM on June 2, 2008

Most home stores have dozens of shower curtains to choose from, but to keep my shower clean I use a cloth curtain with a cheap, clear plastic lining and change the lining when it starts getting hard to clean off.
posted by frobozz at 8:36 PM on June 2, 2008

What I've done is just move the bar up as much as possible so that there's less danger area to begin with.
posted by tachikaze at 8:37 PM on June 2, 2008

I found I had to make a shower curtain last year because I couldn't find anything I liked. It's pretty easy — just hem on three sides and put in some grommets or tabs along the top - and your fabric store will be sure to have something you love. I do what frobozz does — the cloth curtain stays on the outside of the tub, and a $1 liner goes on the inside.
posted by orange swan at 8:43 PM on June 2, 2008

Here's one I like.
posted by Oriole Adams at 8:46 PM on June 2, 2008

I really like the selection Urban Outfitters offers.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 9:46 PM on June 2, 2008

I have this. The colors are a bit brighter in real life. (I also have 4 fabric storage cubes in complementary colors on shelves, so it repeats the colored square look.)
posted by Fuzzy Skinner at 10:03 PM on June 2, 2008

Seconding Wrapables' selection.
Yo-yo by Garnet Hill.
Anthropologie has ruffly and leafy things.
Catherine David.
Bowl and Board.
Textile Arts.
posted by the littlest brussels sprout at 10:17 PM on June 2, 2008

I don't know about fancy decorative curtains, but there are two ways to clean a clear vinyl shower curtain such that it is beautiful and perfect again: pokeedog's method works great, but if you are an apartment dweller and don't want to drag your filthy shower curtain into the laundry room, you can soak it in the tub in three inches of hot water and a few scoops of Oxiclean Outdoor. As a bonus, it will also whiten your filthy, filthy tub.
posted by Optimus Chyme at 11:05 PM on June 2, 2008 [3 favorites]

Additional advice on washing a shower curtain: hot water is important because it softens the plastic and keeps it from cracking as it gets agitated in the washing machine. I use chlorine bleach and a little detergent in my recipe.
posted by TedW at 5:33 AM on June 3, 2008

I've found some nice shower curtains at Target.

To get the mildew off of the shower curtain, wash it in hot with a little bleach. (Just hot water didn't work for mine, and I would worry that using strong tub & tile cleaners would eventually weaken the fabric.)
posted by desuetude at 6:25 AM on June 3, 2008

Don't know if this is your aesthetic, but I just buy the $2.50 clear vinyl shower curtains/liners from the drugstore and draw on them with Sharpies. (Dimensional fabric paint works too.) It takes a bit of time, but then I have a custom shower curtain with bathing robots or Piranha Plants or whatever I want.

I usually just throw them out when they get too gross or when I'm bored with them, because I am wasteful.
posted by Metroid Baby at 7:50 AM on June 3, 2008

I usually spray the bottom with clorox cleanup spray occasionally and just rinse it off. It keeps the mildew away, but is probably breaking down the plastic-y stuff in my curtains. I've never really noticed, as I get bored and chunk them out once a year or so anyway. As far as designs go...EVERYONE needs a meat shower curtain.
posted by PossumCupCake at 8:44 AM on June 3, 2008

I buy cloth shower curtains and mildew-resistant liners. About once a year I change out the liner. Just be careful when you're cleaning with bleach products that you don't get any on the cloth curtain.
posted by radioamy at 10:05 AM on June 3, 2008

You need to head over to Marimekko, the Finnish design firm. They have fantastic designs for all sorts of things, including shower curtains, towels, clothes and anything textile.

We were given a set of shower curtain and towels as a gift and I was surprised at how well the curtain stood up to mildew in our extremely humid and mildewey bathroom. Highly recommended.
posted by Cobalt at 3:00 PM on June 3, 2008 [1 favorite]

If you choose to wash with bleach and a detergent, make sure the detergent is ammonia free, otherwise you could release a bunch of chlorine gas and mess yourself up pretty good.
posted by hybridvigor at 12:13 PM on June 4, 2008