When choosing new window shades and blinds, you may need more time to decide.
While deciding and waiting for your order, you still need something to cover up your windows, especially the ones where privacy is a major concern rather than light control.
More on Window Shades And Blinds-A Temp Inexpensive Solution
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Did you know there is a huge difference between cheap and discount window blinds?
Here are a few tips to consider if you are looking for a bargain on window blinds or shades.
When choosing new window blinds or window shades, you may have only a few needs on you mind. Those, however, may be unique, and they will affect your final decision about the choice of your new window coverings.
In these quick-tips notes, let’s take a look at a few common questions customers have when “deeply mulling over” which blinds or shades to get.
Q:
If I want easy-to-care-of window blinds or shades, what are my choices?
If I want easy-to-care-of window blinds or shades, what are my choices?
A:
Take a look at this summary about cleaning blinds and shades.
Vacuuming (once in a while):
Vertical Blinds
Pleated Shades
Roman Shades
Woven Wood Shades (Matchstick or Bamboo Shades)
Dusting:
Mini Blinds (Aluminum)
Water And Mild Detergent:
Vertical Blinds (PVC)
Mini Blinds (Aluminum, PVC)
Faux Wood Blinds
Cellular Shades
Roman Shades
Note:
Always check your cleaning agent first on a not-easily seen area of the blind or shade.
If in doubt, check with the manufacturer.
Always check your cleaning agent first on a not-easily seen area of the blind or shade.
If in doubt, check with the manufacturer.
The rule of thumb is to pick the window blinds or shades that will take the least amount of your time and effort taking care of them.
As fabric window shades and fabric blinds (verticals) are the most difficult to clean (if they get soiled), choose them only for areas where soiling them will be unlikely.
More on Choosing Window Blinds And Shades Quick Tips Based On Cleaning Requirements
Let’s go over several suggestions for you to think about when choosing your new window blinds, window shades, or wood shutters for your home.
Kitchen Windows
The kitchen window is often right above the sink. Any window blinds or shades will do, but think about spills, splatters and sprays in the area. Therefore the easiest-to-clean blind is the worry-free way to go. Take a closer look at faux wood blinds. Another choice is to pick 1-2” slat aluminum mini blinds, which are easy to take care of. Both resist moisture as well.
Bathroom Windows
You privacy is number one. Bathrooms, of course, are places of high humidity. Bathroom windows are often in direct contact with water. You best bet are products that resist moisture, like faux wood blinds (PVC), aluminum blinds, and vertical blinds with PVC (vinyl) vanes. We’ve put up a good number of excellent quality wood blinds in bathrooms without adverse effects. They weren’t in a direct contact with water, though.
Bedroom Windows
Here, your privacy and light control are both number one. Cellular shades with a light blocking feature are popular. Many customers choose the top down-bottom up alternative even for bedrooms. This way, they can control the view during the day. Light-blocking roller shades and classic wood blinds make an excellent choice. Of the two, wood blinds allow you to control the view during daytime.
Bay Windows
Bay windows are usually a bit more demanding to measure for an outside mount (or a ceiling mount). If there is some space between the windows, the blinds or shades fit fine. If the space between them is small, or the windows are side-by-side, gaps may appear from top to bottom. Why? It’s because the headrails meet at the top of the bay at an angle.
The more space between the windows, the better coverage you get. As far as suggested choices go, customers typically choose pleated shades, cellular shades, or fabric vertical blinds.
Front Room (Living Room) Windows
Here, your décor will influence your choice. Fabric vertical blinds, sheer vertical blinds and top-down bottom up cellular shades make a good choice. But so do wood shutters, real wood blinds, or the economical faux wood blinds. We’ve put up some gorgeous woven wood shades in customers’ front room windows. They fit their home décor perfectly.
Sliding Doors
That’s a busy doorway. Most popular are vertical blinds with fabric vanes mounted as an outside mount. Sewn-in weights at the bottom of each vane make a better choice than the easy-to-break weight inserts with chains do. More delicate vertical honeycomb shades are a trendy choice as well. Vertical blinds allow for a view control, while vertical honeycomb shades filter light.
Regular Deck Doors
Any window blinds or window shades will do. They usually mount on as an “outside mount” and need hold down brackets. The valance choices that come with specific products need left and right sidepieces called “returns”. The returns cover the ends of the headrail and give it a finished look.
Arched Windows
So far, we’ve installed only a handful of these. All of them were inside mounts. The versatile products that can cover arched windows are pleated shades or cellular shades specially made to open into a fan. An exact template is usually needed when placing the order.
Angle-top Windows
You have a choice here. To fit an angle-top window, mini blinds, pleated shades, cellular shades, wood blinds, faux wood blinds and vertical blinds can do the job. There may be a surcharge for such a special order. If you can leave the angled part of the window open, choose a blind or shade that goes straight across the window, leaving the formed triangle open. You’ll save some money this way, too.
Skylight Windows
They always look like something you want to have, until the sun beams down on ya. The bigger the skylight, the more heat and light gets in, of course. The most effective are cellular shades (honeycomb), which filter light and insulate well. They can open and close. The upper, movable headrail travels in tracks, or on tension guide wires. Track tension wires or magnets hold the movable rail up in the closed position.
Extra-large Windows
Window blinds, window shades and wood shutters have manufacturing limits on the sizes. The headrail rigidity, the weight, the pull force on the lift cords, they all play a role in setting the limits on what’s currently possible to make, and have it properly functioning for years to come.
For an extra-large window, you can consider two-on-one headrail, three-on-one headrail arrangements of blinds. But what if what your needs exceed the limits for #-on-one-headrail choices?
A simple way around it is to order two, three, or more separate blinds or shades mounted right beside each other in the extra-large window. To give them a unified look, order a continuous valance to cover the individual headrails (if valances are available for that product).
Hard-to-reach Windows
Here, you have a few choices …
Remote Control – battery powered (when available)
Remote Control – hard wired (when available)
Extra-long tilt wands or cords
Extra-long pull cords
Extra-long tilt chains (vertical blinds)
Extra-long “endless” loop cords (pleated shades and cellular shades)
Extra-long control bead chains (roller shades)
Extendible pole – skylight windows
Control Placement – left or right
Control Placement – left or right
HINT: By the way, customers often forget to think about “extra length and control placement” details when ordering. But, you won’t forget now, will you? 
More on How To Choose Window Blinds Or Window Shades For A Room Window Or Door
Or so we still think …
Last week was extra busy on the crazy-hectic scale. As well as other duties, we had over 100 different kinds of window blinds to install, including an over $ 20 K order of cellular shades for a new, mountain house with a breathtaking alpine view.
Besides the usual windows around the whole house, the most stunning views reveal themselves though the 8 large windows in the living room, which faces southeast.
There are 4, about 70” wide, angle-top windows roughly 20 feet off the ground.
Below the top windows, there are 4 rectangular ones, about 70” wide. The average height for cellular shades going into the rectangular windows was slightly above 100” (except one that was shorter). You can see it on your left, bottom row.
Click To Get Blinds Prices LOWER Than
Home Improvement Stores Offer
Privacy
It’s no secret that everybody wants to feel secure and safe in their home. Window blinds and shades influence that feeling directly by providing an extra “privacy blanket” over the windowpanes. Bedrooms and bathrooms call naturally for the most privacy.
More on How To Pick Window Blinds And Window Shades Based On Your Practical Needs
There are many choices when it comes to choosing your new window blinds or window shades. In fact, there are too many of them. And that makes searching for and choosing the right ones a little difficult. The search is especially hard if you’ve just started to look with no idea yet.
To make your “exploration” a bit easier, glance at several matching-blinds-to-your-home-decor suggestions that follow.
What blinds to consider if your home décor is …
Informal – Relaxed Style
If you are in this category, you are in luck. You can pick from all available kinds of blinds or shades while keeping your budget in line.
Homestead Décor – Country Style
Pleated Shades and Cellular (Honeycomb) Shades
Wood Blinds or More Economical Faux Wood Blinds
Woven Wood Shades (worth your consideration)
Traditional – Formal Décor
Roman Shades
Cellular (Honeycomb) Shades
Faux Wood Blinds
Woven Wood Shades
Modern Décor
Roman Shades
Pleated Shades and Cellular (Honeycomb) Shades
Wood Blinds
Faux Wood Blinds
Vertical Blinds (fabric-wood-faux wood-vinyl)
Fabric Blinds and Shades can harmonize your existing decorating style with the following choices:
Pleated Shades
Cellular (Honeycomb) Shades
Fabric Vertical Blinds
If you are after a large Color Selection, then consider …
Pleated Shades and Cellular Shades
Neutral Earth Colors with Natural Materials is the most popular choice because of its flexibility.
Here again, you can pick from all kinds of blinds or shades. Mix the materials you like with the colors that will match your home décor color scheme.
More on How To Choose Window Blinds To Match Your Decorating Style
A Quick Guide To Shopping For Window Blinds And Shades Online
It’s become an everyday practice for many people to do their shopping online from their home. Even though it’s still crawling before it can walk and run, the sheer convenience of buying products and services online helps us out a bit from the time-cruncher of everyday hypertasking.
Many industries are coming online daily to offer the marketplace their products.
The window coverings industry with blinds and shades is one of the smart pioneers. Their online presence translates into more choices, more knowledge, easier shopping and savings for you.
Traditionally, custom-made window blinds, shades and other window coverings have been available from specialized, home-decor showrooms. You had to arrange for an appointment and set aside time to be home when the consultant arrives. When buying window coverings through many “middlemen”, the prices for such services and products have been at their high premium.
With buying window coverings online, are you beginning to see how you can save money and time just by ordering direct?
Now, shopping online for custom blinds and shades for the first time may feel a bit intimidating. It may feel like walking into an off-line store you’ve never been to before. Bet you’ve done that a few times, right?
Therefore here's a quick guide for you to know what to look for. It's a short orientation guide, or a checklist, to help you navigate towards the best choices and complete satisfaction while getting the window coverings you like online.
Therefore here's a quick guide for you to know what to look for. It's a short orientation guide, or a checklist, to help you navigate towards the best choices and complete satisfaction while getting the window coverings you like online.
First Glance At An E-Commerce Site: Things To Notice (Should have most or all of the following)
Click To Get Blinds Prices LOWER
Than Home Improvement Stores Offer
3 Key Starting Points When Choosing Window Blinds, Shades Or Any Window Coverings
Functionality – the specific service you want the product to do for you
