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General

The Lure of Allure

By Gina G.

Sliding glass doors and large windows are wonderful additions to any home.  They allow us beautiful natural light and outside scenery, and when weather appropriate, a nice breeze.  However, when we need privacy and light control, they can cause a dilemma on how to cover them.  Sure, you have your usual suspect in verticals.  Verticals are the classic solution to covering large windows and slider doors.  As they are the “go to” option, you have a choice between fabric or vinyl material accompanied by a host of other options such as style, valances, and opening types.  And although some may consider them dated, due the variety of style options, vertical blinds are still viable.  However, what if you want something different, something new?

There are some other options.  You could opt for panel tracks which are large panels of fabric that slide back and forth.  Unlike verticals that have a number of slats and can be challenging with pets and kids, panels are a bit more durable.  They present a great alternative to verticals and are offered in a variety of fabric choices including natural materials like bamboo.  Unfortunately, they do not tilt like verticals do and therefore decrease you ability to control the light and privacy in your room.  And, while they are a worthy alternative to verticals, some consider them bulky. They also can block a good portion of your view when stacked together.
If neither verticals nor panel tracks strike your fancy, you might’ve been left with choosing a large shade or curtains to cover your sliding door or large window.  Fortunately for you, there is another newer alternative, the Allure. 

The lure of the Allure is that it combines the benefits of the aforementioned treatments and offers a modern, soft, and beautiful option for larger windows and doors.  Like verticals, they maintain your tilt ability with soft curtain-like panels (no more noise from vinyl slats).  And, although they do have panels, unlike panel tracks, they are much smaller (more similar to the width of a vertical vane).  In addition to their small panel sizes, the Allure is offered with opening options (even center opening to resemble that of a curtain) and a valance to complete the look.  You can also use the Allure to accompany the sheer shades that cover your smaller windows.  So, while verticals are classics and panels are good options, the Allure with its combining of the softness of shades and curtains with the function of blinds, is certainly worth considering!

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General

No Money? No Problem! Here’s How to Decorate on a Budget!

Need new blinds but you’re on a budget? Don’t worry everything that looks nice does not mean you have to spend a lot of money. They’re some options that will make your home look like you just spent a million bucks. Whether you’re looking to purchase blinds and shades to simply eliminate outside light or your looking for window treatment that will complement your home décor, there’s a good chance you have a strict budget for this purchase. While most blinds and shades are relatively inexpensive, the cost of outfitting an entire home or several rooms with new window coverings can add up.  No matter what room you install them wood blinds always convey elegance and classic charm. They’re also highly versatile from a décor standpoint as they effortlessly complement almost any type of furniture, decorative color scheme, and window type. Wood blinds are among the best-selling window coverings due to their affordable price and their natural wood grain beauty.  In addition to the wood blinds they are highly effective at insulating your home during winter and summer.

Aluminum blinds are among the most commonly used window coverings in the world and for good reasons. They’re efficient at blocking out light and very affordable. 1-inch aluminum blinds feature a low profile, and available in many colors. Cellular shades would be a little step up in price, but it would make up for the cost in your energy bill. For insulation and energy efficiency cellular shades with their little pockets of cells keep your temperature serene. All those little pockets trap air and keep the summer and the warmth in during the winter. They are available in every color, they are ideal fit for most rooms and have many options that make them great for families with children.  If you have large windows or sliding doors you can’t beat vertical blinds. Vertical blinds are a much better fit as they are easily to open and closed and can cover even the widest window or doors. They are one of most inexpensive blinds to replace even if one slat brakes. The good news is that you don’t have to buy everything all over; just only the one or two slats that are broken.

The great thing about buying the simplest blinds or shades is that they can go with any décor that you decide to do.  Once you make this one-time investment in buying your blinds they are going to last for years just if you take good care of them. Remember you may have a beer budget but a champagne taste you are the only one who knows what you spent on blinds or shades. It is no need to go that expensive, just keep it simple.

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Products Shades Tips and Advice

How About Some Sheer Shades?

Simply put, sheer shades are an elegant combination of a blind and a shade. The soft inner vanes behave as a blind by tilting opened and closed as they are encased on the front and back by a soft, delicate layer of sheer fabric. To lift the shade, a continuous motion closes the vanes, just as a blind would operate, laying the two outer layers of sheer fabric flat against the vanes, then the shade rolls up, similar to a roller shade, into the top rail to clear the window. With the shade drawn and the vanes closed, privacy and light control are achieved. If the shade is down with the vanes in the open position, light filters in gently through the outer layers of sheer fabric.

A treatment sure to impress, sheer shades are a sophisticated and stylish step up from any basic blind. Their soft and delicate appearance gives off the impression of almost no window treatment at all yet are still very effective at light control. My favorite rooms for sheer shades are the dining room and bedroom. Their gracefulness lends them to fit right into a slightly more formal dining room. There is something about how these shades transform the light that creates an intimate and cozy environment, perfect for entertaining. Your guests won’t even realize why they feel so calm and content in the comforting atmosphere you can provide by installing sheer shades. Also available in light dimming fabric, these help darken a bedroom for a peaceful night’s sleep. The softness of the sheer fabric complements the tranquil and calming vibe so often desired when we retreat to slumber. Sheer shades are surely a striking window treatment.

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Products Tips and Advice

Oversized Windows

Large, wide and/or tall windows are things of beauty. They let in an awe-inspiring amount of light, allow amazing views of the outdoors, and can even make the room seem larger. We are excited to share some tips for how to choose a custom window treatments for your large or wide windows.
Our first recommendation is vertical blinds. This window treatment is perfect for windows that are wider than they are tall . They’re a durable alternative to drapes, and the PVC slats can hold up to elements such as sunlight or moisture; an important factor to consider if you are installing them over a large kitchen window or even a bathroom. The vinyl also helps to keep the light out when they are closed and will help with insulation as well. They also come in a variety of colors and styles, as well as fabric. Fabric vertical blinds are a great way to get that more “drapery” feel to your windows and a softer look in general.
Another option are Allure vertical sheers. These soft and elegant window treatments mimic a flowing drapery when open or closed. They are mainly light filtering but do allow for privacy when closed as well. They are a great option for someone who wants more of a fabric drapery look.
Roller shades and Solar shades are also great options for large windows. They can span wide widths and fit the decor of modern styled homes with large windows. Your home may have windows that are extremely tall or even out of reach. The solar shades also gives you a nice view outside when the shade is down and keeps the heat out.  selections blinds and shades will be the right solution for you, with the touch of a button, Motorization allows you to tilt your blinds, raise and lower your shades, even if they are out of reach.
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Faux wood blinds setup in this gorgeous bathroom. Blinds General Shades Tips and Advice

Restroom Window Coverings

People often have the question; What is the best window covering for restrooms? There are a lot of options and one is not limited to a certain kind when you are considering to cover your restroom window. Most of the time, people want to have privacy while still letting in the light.

Since you typically have moisture in this specific room in your house, we often tell everyone that you can use most of the blinds like the aluminum, vinyl, and faux wood, but not the real wood. Real wood naturally have cracks in the slats where moisture goes through and warps the material. It usually takes years but when it comes, all you can do is  replace the whole thing completely. The aluminum is an option but with the 1” slats you have to clean more slats compared to the vinyl and faux wood. The aluminum is also a thinner material than the vinyl and faux wood so it may bend and dent, you have to be careful when cleaning it. Blinds are a good option because you can control the amount of light coming in and the privacy by tilting the slats in an angle.

The other option, of course, are the shades. We typically recommend those materials that are waterproof or the lighter fabrics. Roller shades are the most common people use because you have the light filtering option, most materials are easy to clean, and it gives you the privacy. Another material that is gaining popularity are the Cascades, it is a shade but since it’s an alternate between solid bands and sheers, you can open and close it to your desired openness for light and privacy. There are also other shades that has the top down-bottom up option. You can open it up from the top to have lots of light coming in and keep the shades close at the bottom, some shades that offer this option is the pleated, roman, and cellular.

Curtains or drapes are usually not a practical option as those are heavier materials, it is not something you would want to touch with wet hands and layering of fabrics will look too heavy and excessive for a restroom window.

Either you prefer a blind or a shade, there are options that you can do for your washrooms to better suit your wants and needs but practicality is the key when it comes to this window in your home.

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Cascade Sheer Shade in a dining room setting. Shades Tips and Advice

Lighten Up Your Summer Decor

With summer here, I usually like to plan on making some changes to my decor to go along with the warmer weather. I’ve compiled some decorating ideas that can lighten your look and your mood for the summer months.
Take down those heavy drapes and let the light brighten up your room. Instead use a delicate sheer shade or sheer panels, they can still give some privacy while letting light filter through. It’s a great feeling both mentally and visually when you see sheer fabric blow in the breeze on a warm summer day. Sheer shades are ideal with gentle, filtering light through transparent panels to create a soft glow that lends itself well to soften a bedroom and creates an even more inviting space.
Personally, I am drawn to spa like bedrooms; fluffy white bed linens, a myriad of textures, multiple pillows and throws and a downy carpet underfoot. White or soft grey sheer shades, which you could purchase in either light filtering or room darkening, are just the treatment to flawlessly finish a getaway bedroom. It would be easy to eliminate these as an option based on the name alone, but don’t be misled. The functionality of these shades makes them an ideal candidate for living, dining and bedrooms.
Their ability to function as both a blind and a shade is useful for allowing just the perfect amount of light for varied environments and situations. Drop the shades and close the fabric to ensure a darkened room for movie night or bask in the distilled rays as the sun filters through the open sheer fabric. These shades are also lighter in weight and more pliable making them easier to tilt, raise, and lower. This also allows them to share the functionality of a roller shade, increasing ease of use of a roll up feature and decreasing the bulky stack that occurs with horizontal blinds.
Sheer shades are near perfection in their design which makes them an ideal choice for almost any room in the home. Whether you’re prone to home function or fashion (or maybe even both) sheer shades are designed to impress and are truly a show stopping, unique window treatment. Surely but sheerly wonderful.
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Products Shades Window Basics

Sheer Verticals

 

If you need to block glare and harmful UV rays coming in through your sliding glass door, traditional vertical blinds aren’t the only choice. The window covering market has developed many modern alternatives that will give you both style and function if vertical blinds aren’t exactly what “floats your boat”.

Sheer verticals give a more modern look to large windows or glass walls with sheer fabric panels. It also gives clean lines to smaller spaces like patio doors. The solar screen textile blocks glare and harmful UV rays without taking away from your view.

Sheer verticals are an elegant way to update your home’s look with all of the functionality of a traditional vertical shade, but a far more elegant feel.  These window coverings offer the soft look of sheer draperies with the added light control of blinds. The rigid, fabric-covered vanes are seamlessly integrated with the surrounding sheer fabric. The vanes can be opened to allow light in or closed to ensure privacy and give you the light filtering affect through the fabric.

The Allure vertical sheer shade is so elegant and simple that it could be the focal point in the room. Most people do use it for larger than normal sliding glass doors or French doors. The colors are neutral but you still have some options; White, Ivory, and Beige. This way you can add color to the room with throw pillows or other decor and not via something large like a window treatment. Some people do like it to open from the center so when it is stacked to either side it gives you the side panels in replace of just the regular old curtains that you’re used to. This has a more homey and elegant feel. If your door does only open to one side than it is better to have the track open one way.

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Inspiration Products Shades Tips and Advice

Keeping the View

    Most times when people are shopping for window treatments, they are looking for the treatment to look and do something specific for their window or room.  One of the most common functions for window treatments is to provide privacy.  Private treatments work both ways in that they block the view from the inside of the home, as well as from the outside looking in.  However, there are some windows and rooms where keeping the view may be more important.  Such spaces, can include kitchens, dens, and offices, where sheer or simple valance treatments may be a better fit.  Sometimes even bathrooms and bedrooms can allow for sheer treatments if the location of the window is on a higher story of the home or faces a remote area.  These are the best spaces to allow your home’s natural environment to be visible, which can do wonders for the ambiance of a room.

Keeping a natural view can be accomplished through pulling private window treatments up but in the aforementioned spaces, sheer or valance treatments can be so much more effective.  Often times in kitchens, which can have smaller windows, simple fabric valances are enough to add a little décor to the window while not blocking the view.  Wooden cornices or valances can also be utilized to accomplish this.

However, there are some cases where a sheer shade, instead of a valance might be more beneficial. For example if a kitchen window is located over a sink, a desk is positioned close to an office window, or a tv that is affected by glare in a family room.  In these situations where the natural view also comes with too much sunlight, sunweaves, or solar shades, are great options.  They are sheer, but are designed to block harmful UV rays so that you can keep your view of the outside world but also be productive.

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Tips and Advice

Sheer-Light filtering- Room Darkening- Blackout

By: Sai

These terms are so important in the blind world but how is the regular consumer supposed to know the difference. I know I sure didn’t until I went looking for blinds.  My goodness, I still have a headache!  Every room has some type of different requirement that I wanted follow. So guess what I am doing for this blog. I will teach everyone the difference between requirements, and how I used each throughout my house. This will be a long strenuous process. It will hurt your brain, but in the end you will enjoy it! Let’s begin!

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