What can be said about window decoration, when it comes to designing your home, windows will sometimes have a big impact on the look and feel of a house. From cheap wood blinds, roller shades, elegant drapes, fancy valances, simple curtains, and the curtain rods they hang on, styles, designs, the choices to choose from are amazing and scary at the same time. Before you think about buying blinds you need to inspect your needs, wants, and tastes.
- Needs: These can be anything from privacy, child and/or pet proof, lighting requirements.
- Wants: These can be things like types of blinds or drapes that are energy efficient, economic in cost.
- Tastes: Lets face it, the decorations you pick need to look good as well as preform, else you may want to change them again sooner then your budget will allow, and that is no fun.
Window Blinds
Some say a window is not complete without some curtains or blinds, well it is true a window will seem bare without any sort of decoration or covering. Blinds are a great way to go about covering a window. For many years, blinds had been the top choice of window covering in most homes.
- Mini Blinds: The most common choice in blinds is the cheap, plastic, easy to be broken blinds. It’s great popularity comes from a need for blinds, with a low budget to fill that need. Of course, using window decorations can make these blinds more elegant if the window is not left with just mini blinds.
- Wood Blinds: These are a more expensive choice, and well reasoned as well, the light weight and durability of wood blinds is unmatched, and will make any home look that much better. The one draw back besides price is the fact water warps if it becomes moist. For this reason, dry dust only when cleaning wood blinds.
- Faux Wood Blinds: Translation: “Fake Wood Blinds”, they are cheaper then Wood blinds, but are heavy, and that is a drawback due to how weak they are, it’s own weight works against it. If you must have the look of wood blinds, without the cost, this is the way to go, just be careful.
Horizontal And Vertical Blinds
Blinds come in two different orientations, these are “vertical” and “horizontal.” Each is used in different situations to fit the needs of the home, office, apartment, etc.
- Horizontal Blinds: These blinds have slates that go left to right, and are good for standard types of windows.
- Vertical Blinds: These blinds, have slates that hang up to down, and can reach the floor, making them great for sliding glass doors.
Window Blinds and Durability
Window blinds very in durability, from strong metals and woods, to weaker faux woods and plastics. For this reason, you should always inquire as to the strength of any blinds you buy, to make sure they can handle the needs you may have, such as children, pets, etc.
Window Shades
Window Shades are made of a single fabric or material, or many fabrics or materials put together, that when collapsed, fold in on itself to let light in a window, and when let down, unfold to cover a window to seal out light and give privacy.
- Honeycomb Shades: These shades get the name from the pattern of “honeycombs” that is made from the many pieces of material that are put together to make the shades, each of these collapse when drawn up to let light in. This style is very popular, since many shades of this type give energy savings, by helping keep heat in during the winter and heat out during the summer.
- Bamboo Shades: These shades as the name states, are made of wood, that has been woven together in a way that lets is collapse on itself just like other fabric shades. Due to the way these shades are made, they are harder to maintain then other types of shades.
Roller Window Shades
Roller window shades are now becoming very popular in homes and apartments. They control lighting and privacy very well. Depending on the style of roller shades, you can get many different results.
- Solar Window Shades: These shades, as the name suggests help keep the sun’s effects to a minimum, and yet still gives a view outside of the window. These shades are made to keep the heat out and the suns rays, for this reason, they get used commonly in the office setting.
- Blackout Shades: Again, as the name states, does a total blackout of all light. This type of shade is used a lot in Audio/Video rooms and in rooms where movies and games are played, keeping glare down to zero, even during the day.
Shades And Roller Shades Durability
These types of blinds last a long time, some seem to last forever, depending on the materials used. Making shades or roller shades a good choice for long lasting window coverings.
Shades And Roller Shades Pricing
Though prices change over time, both shades and roller shades seem to stay in a good range when compared to some other types of window treatments.
Curtains
The curtains used on a window can have many affects, and change the theme of a room, for this reason curtains are looked at as something that must be planned out when the rest of the room is in the planning stages.
- Panel Curtains: A very basic type of curtain, these can be made of just about any type of fabric there is. They are made by used multiple strips, or “panels” that have a loop at the top for the rod. They are common enough to be found in any store that sells in this department.
- Cafe Curtains: These curtains are “Panel” curtains, only they have been made shorter, to adjust to a lower hanging curtain rod, this lets light in at the very top of the window, while still giving privacy. They are found a lot in places that need light all the time, like cafe’s, thus being called ‘cafe curtains’
- Tiered Curtains: These are curtains made in a traditional sense, but are made to go with a valance or a second curtain of the same length to create layers. These curtains can be used in many different ways and can have many unique effects.
Curtain Rods
The curtain rod is what holds up curtains, a bare curtain rod can have a huge effect on the window and that means that the curtain rod will effect the feel of the room as well. For this reason curtain rods come in many styles and materials. From plastic, wood, and metals, and plain, elegant, and unique.
Valances
For those who would rather not mess with “hardware” to make it stylish, you can use a valance to cover up a curtain rod. Valances are primarily used for looks but depending on the valance and how low it hangs, it can effect lighting as well. As you would expect, these have many styles and fabrics to choose from.
Drapes
Ah, yes, drapes the formal version of curtains. Drapes are just curtains to every other person in the world, and many things that are true for drapes are true for curtains. Drapes are however, more about looks then actually doing anything more then that. They tend to touch the floor and hang across the window covering a small part of the windows corner. For this reason, drapes are considered formal. Physical differences in curtains and drapes would be drapes are lined, and curtains are not.
Conclusion on Window Decoration
When it comes down to window decorations from cheap blinds to expensive drapes, there are many choices, most not even mentioned above, and when you look hard enough, the right covering, decorations, and personal style will come to you.