Every Shimmerchains curtain hangs from a bar, and the bar you choose decides how the curtain looks, whether it can move, and how it fixes to the building. There are four bar types and five ways to fix them. This guide compares them so you can pick the right combination before you ask for a quote. For the full fitting process, see our installation guide.
The four bar types at a glance
- Straight Bar: our standard fixed bar for straight runs. Simple, clean and the most economical choice.
- Curved Bar: bent in the factory to your setting-out drawing, for circles, waves and serpentine screens.
- Straight Plus: the Straight Bar inside a metal casing that hides the bar and its fixings, for a cleaner, more permanent finish.
- Curtain Plus: hooks running in a track, so the curtain can be drawn open and closed like a fabric curtain.
All four come in 915 mm (3 ft) modules that join end to end, so any width is built from standard parts.
Straight or Curved?
Choose a Straight Bar when the curtain follows a straight line: a room divider, a wall covering or a shop-window backdrop. Choose a Curved Bar when the curtain itself is the shape: a ring above a reception desk, a serpentine screen through a restaurant or a curved wall. Curved bars are made to your drawing, so send us the radius or a plan view when you ask for a quote.
Do you need a Plus bar?
The Plus versions add a finish or a function to the standard bars:
- Straight Plus suits lobbies, bars and entrances where the top edge is on show and a visible bar would look unfinished.
- Curtain Plus suits spaces that change use: dressing rooms, hotel lounges, meeting rooms and any opening that sometimes needs to be clear.
When working with clients, we always upgrade to our premium Plus versions at no additional cost.
Choosing a fixing
Once you have chosen a bar, choose how it fixes to the building:
- Wall: the bar fixed flush to the wall, so the chain sits close against it. Best for feature walls and display backdrops.
- Wall spacer: the bar held 32 mm off the wall, adding depth and room for LED strip lighting behind the chain.
- Ceiling: the bar fixed flush to the ceiling, for dividers, entrance screens and overhead partitions.
- Ceiling spacer: the bar dropped 102 mm below the ceiling to clear bulkheads, lighting or services.
- Hanging: the bar suspended on steel cables at any height, for floating canopies and layered zones in tall spaces.
Quick guide by project
- Room divider in an office or restaurant: Straight Plus, ceiling fixed.
- Feature wall with backlighting: Straight Bar on a 32 mm wall spacer.
- Ceiling canopy or ring: Curved Bar, ceiling or cable hung.
- Opening that sometimes needs to be clear: Curtain Plus.
Still not sure?
Send us a width, a drop and a photo of the space and we will recommend a bar and fixing with your quote. We don't install, but we can recommend installers in most major cities. For step-by-step fitting, weights and trimming to length, read the installation guide.
