Event Draping: Wall Draping, Backdrops and Ceiling Draping
Event draping is fabric hung to transform or hide part of a venue: draped walls, backdrops behind a stage or head table, and fabric swagged across a ceiling. Done well, it turns a bare ballroom, warehouse or gym into a finished room and hides everything the audience should not see. For most events the backbone is pipe and drape: freestanding uprights, base plates and crossbars carrying flame-retardant drape panels. This guide covers the main kinds of event draping, how each one is hung, how to choose fabric and colour, the fire rules venues enforce, and when it makes sense to own your draping instead of renting it.
The three kinds of event draping
- Wall draping — drape run along the walls of a room to cover old wallpaper, windows, doors, air walls or storage. It is the most common kind of event draping and the one that changes a room the most.
- Backdrops — a section of drape behind a stage, a head table, a step-and-repeat or a photo area. Backdrops give the audience and the camera a clean, even surface.
- Ceiling draping — fabric swagged or stretched overhead, hung from rigging points or truss. It lowers a tall ceiling visually and adds softness, but it is a rigging job, not a freestanding one.
Wall draping and backdrops are almost always built from pipe and drape, because it stands on its own and needs no fixings into the venue. Ceiling draping is covered separately below.
Event wall draping with pipe and drape
A pipe and drape wall is built in sections. Each section is two uprights standing in base plates, one crossbar (also called a drape support) spanning between them, and drape panels hung from the crossbar. Add sections in line to run the full length of a wall, sharing the upright between neighbouring sections.
Three choices decide how a draped wall looks:
- Height. Run the drape as close to the top of the wall as the venue allows, so no bare wall shows above it. WENTEX telescopic uprights cover walls up to 16 ft, and the drape panels come in heights to match. See pipe and drape uprights.
- Fullness. Pleated panels have their fullness sewn in at the top, so the drape hangs in even folds across the section. Flat (not pleated) panels give a tighter, more graphic look and suit short runs and table-height masking.
- Stability. The base plate has to suit the height. Use the 18″ × 18″ WENTEX base plate for walls up to 12 ft and the 24″ × 24″ base plate for walls from 14 to 16 ft, and add rubber base weights near doors, aisles and anywhere guests brush past. Shop base plates and floor supports.
WENTEX telescopic uprights lock at height with a compression brake and a tightening handle, so a crew can set a wall to height without tools. To work out how many sections, uprights and panels a room needs, use the pipe and drape calculator or read the pipe and drape sizing guide.
Choosing fabric and colour for event draping
Event draping fabric has to look good under light, hang well and pass the venue's fire rules. Velvet is the standard for professional event draping because it absorbs light evenly and hides seams and creases.
WENTEX Velvet Napoli is a 260 g/m² polyester velvet sold as pleated pipe and drape panels in black, white, red, burgundy red, royal blue, dark blue, light grey and dark grey, with a heavier 480 g/m² black option for a denser curtain. WENTEX MGS curtains are a black alternative for masking. Browse every size and colour in pipe and drape curtains.
How to pick a colour:
- Black — masking. It disappears under stage lighting and hides back-of-house, cabling and storage.
- White and light grey — the classic event-décor choice. Light colours take coloured uplighting, so one draped wall can change colour through an evening.
- Red, burgundy, royal blue and dark blue — brand or theme colours for galas, awards nights and corporate events.
- Dark grey — a softer neutral when black reads too heavy in a daylit room.
For hard masking where no light should pass, such as behind a projection screen or around a control position, a matte masking fabric like duvetyne is often used instead of velvet. Our guide to the best fabric for stage backdrops compares the options.
Ceiling draping
Ceiling draping hangs fabric overhead, either swagged between points or stretched in panels, and it is hung from the building or from truss, not from freestanding pipe and drape. That makes it a rigging job: the load points have to be approved by the venue, and the work should be done by a qualified rigger. Ask the venue for its rigging rules and approved points before you plan a ceiling treatment.
Where a venue wants a curtain that stays permanently overhead and can be opened and closed, such as a room-dividing curtain or a stage masking line, a ceiling-mounted curtain track is the better fit than temporary draping. See the Eurotrack curtain track guide and Eurotrack parts.
Fire rules for event draping
Fire marshals and venues require drape used in public spaces to be flame retardant, and many will ask to see the certificate before an event opens. Our drape fabrics are certified to NFPA 701 (USA) and CAN/ULC-S109 (Canada). Keep a copy of the certificate with the drape on every job, keep draping clear of exits, exit signs, sprinkler heads and fire equipment, and check the venue's own rules before load-in, since some venues add requirements of their own.
Own or rent your event draping?
Renting suits a one-off event. Owning suits anyone who drapes rooms regularly: production and AV companies, rental and staging houses, hotels and convention venues, and churches and schools that set up the same rooms again and again. When you own the draping you control the colour, condition and availability of every panel, and you can quote draping as part of your own production.
If you are building an in-house draping inventory, plan storage and transport as well as fabric. WENTEX Pipe and Drape XL Kits ship on a steel rolling trolley that holds the base plates, pins, uprights, drape supports and drapes for up to 90 continuous feet of pipe and drape, so a full wall travels and stores as one unit. Compare kits in the pipe and drape kits buying guide or shop pipe and drape kits.
Event draping checklist
- Measure: the length of every wall to drape and the height to cover.
- Look: pleated or flat panels, and the colour for each wall or backdrop.
- Hardware: uprights tall enough for the wall, base plates sized to the height, crossbars to suit the section widths.
- Stability: base weights at doors, aisles and high-traffic areas.
- Fire: flame-retardant fabric with the certificate on file, and exits and fire equipment kept clear.
- Ceiling: venue approval and a qualified rigger for anything hung overhead.
- Logistics: how the draping travels and where it is stored between events.
Planning a room divider rather than a draped wall? Read pipe and drape as a room divider. Draping a stage? See the stage curtains guide. Draping exhibit booths? See trade show drapes.
Spec your event draping
Send us the room dimensions, the walls and backdrops you want draped, the height, and the colours, and we will spec the uprights, base plates, crossbars, weights and drape. Request a quote, use the free pipe and drape calculator, or call (877) 371-3847, Mon–Fri 9–5 ET.
Frequently asked questions
What is event draping?
Event draping is fabric hung to transform or hide part of a venue for an event: draped walls, backdrops behind a stage or head table, and fabric hung across a ceiling. Wall draping and backdrops are usually built from freestanding pipe and drape.
What fabric is used for event draping?
Velvet is the standard for professional event draping because it absorbs light evenly and hides creases. WENTEX Velvet Napoli is a 260 g/m² polyester velvet in black, white, red, burgundy red, royal blue, dark blue, light grey and dark grey. Matte masking fabric such as duvetyne is used where no light should pass.
How do you drape the walls of a venue for an event?
Build a pipe and drape wall in sections along each wall: two uprights in base plates, a crossbar between them, and drape panels hung from the crossbar. Set the drape as high as the venue allows, size the base plates to the height, and add base weights near doors and aisles.
How is ceiling draping hung?
Ceiling draping is hung from approved rigging points or truss, not from freestanding pipe and drape. Get the venue's approval for the load points and have the work done by a qualified rigger.
Does event draping need to be fire retardant?
Yes. Venues and fire marshals require flame-retardant drape in public spaces and often ask for the certificate. Our drape fabrics are certified to NFPA 701 (USA) and CAN/ULC-S109 (Canada).
Should I rent or buy event draping?
Rent for a one-off event. Buy if you drape rooms regularly, such as a production company, rental house, hotel, venue, church or school, so you control the colour, condition and availability of every panel and can include draping in your own quotes.
