What Is the Difference Between a Valance and a Cornice Board?
- In the 18th century, elaborate gilded or carved cornice boards topped fashionable windows. They were made of plaster or wood. Today, this style of top treatment is much simpler. Cornices of wood or plaster can be painted, stenciled or wallpapered. Wooden cornices can be padded and upholstered with fabric. They can be boxy, arched or shaped into scallops, squares or triangles at the bottom edge.
- Valances originally were hung from beneath a wooden cornice. They were designed to conceal window hardware, but are used today even when there is no hardware to hide. Valances are hung from exposed or concealed rods or mounted on a board attached to a wall with L-brackets. They are economical window treatments. Simple valances can be made with less than a yard of fabric.
- Valances and cornices come in many different styles. Some have graceful curves at the bottom for a more romantic look. The fabric of a cornice can be pulled taut, shirred or pleated. Valances can be flat, pleated, shirred or stuffed with tissue paper for a flouncy look. Some valances reveal part of a decorative rod if they are draped over or hanging from tab tops, grommets or rings.
- Whichever top treatment you choose, the valance or cornice should be in proportion to the size of the window and the draperies below, advises author and designer Caroline Clifton-Mogg. Short windows required only a flounce of fabric at the top. Tall windows need longer valances or cornices. If the top treatment is used with draperies, it should measure about one-sixth of the drapery length, Clifton-Mogg recommends.
- Because they are usually only 12 to 18 inches long, valances and upholstered cornices should use fabric with a print small enough to fit within their dimensions. The print, however, should not be so small that is indistinguishable from across the room. Because valances and cornices are purely decorative, pair them with blinds or shades for light control and privacy.
