Thermatec Tuscan Stripe Thermal Backed Pole Top Panel, 52-Inch by 84-Inch, Sage

Based on some of the reviews I expected more than what they are. They are fine; considering the price - I got the Mocha; the blue line is negligible and, since a couple of walls in the room are roughly the same shade of blue, I was hoping it would pop at least a little. If you are looking for the blue to help tie the room together, keep looking.1) They keep the sun out of my eyes, but they are not blackout.2) They are not nearly as elegant as I had hoped- the jacquard is almost invisible on the tan color though visible on the brown- the hang of the material is stiff, I suppose because of the backing, but this makes them look rather cheap3) there's plenty of extra room around the poll, but pulling the curtains is very hard - so I leave them mostly closed so I don't have to fight when the sun comes in, but it also rather defeats the purpose of having a windowBottom line, they are ok for now, but I'll upgrade these curtains in another year or so.

First off, let me say that I waited a while before leaving a review on the Tuscan Stripe Panel so that I could leave an honest opinion.I ordered 2 of these (1 panel per pkg.) for my living room windows and was pleasantly surprised when they arrived. A bit wrinkled out of the pkg. as you expect, but with a quick steam iron, (cool setting) the problem was fixed.These panels are very rich looking and the colors are just as pictured, a gold colored drape with deep but muted burgundy and hunter green stripes, with a type of Fleur-De-Lis design throughout. They hang nicely and the colors compliment our decor beautifully as I am sure they would most. There are no tie-backs included, but I purchased burgundy colored tassel tie-backs at our local big chain store that work great and dress them up even more.These are not overly heavy panels, and have a white thermal black out lining on the back. They do block much of the sunlight, I would estimate approximately 60% - 70% so you can call them room darkening, but if you are looking for black-out these are not it. As far as cold and noise reduction, even after giving it some time for an honest review I cannot attest to that statement. I haven't noticed that it has helped in either of these areas.I have now washed and dried these panels 2 times, and they continue to hold up well. I washed them in cold water on gentle cycle and machine dried one time on low heat and one time air only no heat, and took them out when they were barely damp to 'hang out' any remaining wrinkles. Both ways produced the same outcome and I've had no problems.Overall I am very pleased. These panels are beautiful, they compliment our home, they're made well, have held up nicely, and I've had numerous compliments on them. I think the price is a little on the high side for one panel, but the longer they last, the more worth it they are.

I received 4 of these curtain panels this afternoon and had them hung within an hour. There's no way they block out 99% of the light as advertised on the package. I'd guess maybe 50 to 60% at best with a lot of folds over the window. The curtains do darken the room a lot but nothing like black-out fabric.My slider windows are 50" wide so I used two 52" wide panels per window to have a lot of folds. They look very nice despite the creases from being folded to fit inside the package. I like the muted colors and sturdy feel to the fabric. I'm going to let them hang a few weeks and see if the wrinkles drop out with time since they are already looking better after just a few hours in sun warmed windows. They smell a bit like the plastic bags they were packaged in at the moment but it's not an awful scent. It was so hot today that the bags were a bit sticky feeling when I received the package. At least the bags didn't stick to the curtains.The label on the cardboard insert in each bag has this text: THERMATEC (a brand of Lees Curtain Company, a division of ARLEE Home Fashions), Blackout/Energy Saving Curtains, Save Energy - Lowers home heating and cooling costs by up to 25%, Block Light, Blocks out over 99% of the outside light, Reduce Noise, Blocks up to 40% more noise than regular curtains.They refer to the curtains as faux suede. The fabric contents are listed this way: Face: 70% Polyester/30% Cotton, Back: 70% Acrylic Ester, Titanium (IV) Oxide 25%, Rayon 5%Care Instructions: Machine wash cold separately. Gentle cycle. Use mild detergent. Do not bleach. Line dry. Cool iron if needed. Do not iron on reverse side.September 28, 2012 UpdateThe smell is gone in the curtains but the creases have not changed much in 3 weeks after hanging so I'll just have to live with them. These are disposable curtains to me as I wouldn't dare wash them or steam clean them. I must qualify my 4 star review for the curtains is for a panel (they are sold one panel per package) for which I paid five and a quarter dollars. The current price is nearing four times my cost per panel for which I'd give them a one star and would not buy them. I'm waiting for the price to drop again to buy six more, but I'm limited to four at a time. My review is not just how they look and perform but the value for the dollar.