Tinsel Curtain
brush aside a shimmering wall of tinsel

What you see on every new tab

Tinsel Curtain fills the screen with tinsel fringe, the kind hung behind a party stage. Rows of red, magenta, pink, gold, aqua and iridescent white hang one over the other like shingles, each with a ragged lower edge. Every strand hangs from the top of the screen: the lower colours are simply longer strands that run up behind the ones above, so each strand swings as one long piece. A slow breeze keeps the whole wall stirring even when you leave it alone, and the foil catches the light as it moves.

• Eight layers deep: behind the front fringe hang seven more layers, each a different colour from the ones next to it. The deeper layers sit a little in shadow, and even the very back is tinsel, so you never reach a bare wall.
• The shine: each strand has crinkled facets, glints that run along it when it moves, and the odd twinkle.
• The swing: pushed strands spring back on their own and settle after a few swings. Long strands swing slower and heavier than short ones, and the deeper layers are heavier still.

Nothing is a video. Every strand is drawn by your graphics card on every frame, and each one has its own little spring that decides how it swings.

What it reacts to

• Mouse: the pointer works like a hand brushing through fringe. Strands at its height are pushed aside; the front layers part the widest, so a brush drags a thick bundle of mixed colours with it, and the deeper layers part less. A fast brush opens a wider path. Push a strand too far and it slips off and swings back through.
• Click: nothing extra; just brush.
• Music: with music sync on, bass strengthens the breeze, a strong kick sends a shiver through every strand, and treble adds sparkle.
• Sound: none. Tinsel Curtain is silent.
• Night: the page dims after dusk.

Free or Pro?Pro

Ambient New Tab is free to install, with five free themes. Tinsel Curtain is a Pro theme. Pro is $5.99 a month or $39.99 a year, cancel anytime, or $59 once for Pro Forever, and it unlocks every Pro theme, music sync, and every new theme as we release it. You can preview Tinsel Curtain full screen before you buy: open the Themes panel and rest your mouse on it. Changed your mind? 14-day refund, no questions.

How to get it

1. Add Ambient New Tab to Chrome.
2. Open a new tab and click the Themes pill in the bottom-right corner.
3. Pick Tinsel Curtain. Done.

Questions

Will it slow my computer down?

It is one of the busier themes, with tens of thousands of strands, but it runs on your graphics card and pauses whenever the New Tab is hidden. On a slower computer Ambient New Tab thins the strands first, then lowers the resolution, then the frame rate, so the wall keeps moving smoothly.

Is Tinsel Curtain free?

It is a Pro theme. Pro is $5.99 a month or $39.99 a year, cancel anytime, or $59 once for Pro Forever. It unlocks every Pro theme, music sync, and every new theme as it is released.

Does it have a sound?

No. Tinsel Curtain is silent. Turn on music sync if you want it to move to whatever is playing in another tab.

Does it work on my phone?

No. It's a desktop browser extension for Chrome on Windows, macOS, Linux and ChromeOS. If you're reading this on a phone, send yourself the link.

More themes

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