You'll have a wide variety of fabrics to choose from. However, besides the fabrics that are too heavy to shirr, there are a few things to avoid.

Pure cotton fabrics are sensitive to the sun and fade rather quickly. If your curtains will catch any direct sunlight, cotton polyester blends will last longer. They have a crisper look as well. If you like the rustic look of cotton, choose linen or undyed muslin.

Also avoid prints that have any kind of noticeable horizontal design unless it is woven in. If a printed design is off grain, it will make your entire window treatment look crooked. And if you try to cut your curtain with the print rather than the grain, your curtains will never hang in straight folds.