Following on from my last Blog on Curtain Tracks and Poles I'd like to cover the use of Blinds throughout your home. Roller Blinds or Holland Blinds are available in a great range of stylish fabrics in varying degrees of light control, block out, translucent and screen fabrics. These can be mixed and matched to suit your home decor and control the amount of light you wish to filter.

Block out roller blinds can be used effectively to control heat and glare whilst adding a stylish and sleek appearance to your home. Whilst Translucent or Light Filtering Fabrics as the name suggests, are fabrics used to achieve some degree of light filtration or translucency.

Sun Screen fabric

Made from Screen fabrics which are created or woven differently than either block out or translucent blinds. They enable you to see through the blind during the day to the view outside, whilst cutting the glare and providing light filtering at the same time.

During the daytime you cannot see through them from outside to inside - therefore creating privacy.

Screen fabrics come in a huge range of colours and textures - and can be used very effectively when used in conjunction with a block out blind - creating dual blinds.

The picture below has motorised screen fabric  blinds – many blinds in one room can be tedious to operate if not motorised, and several blinds in the one room looks messy with individual control chains.

Advantages of roller blinds

• Economical 
• Good for wet/damp areas (kitchen, bathroom, laundry as fabric can be wiped down easily)
• Healthy option for allergy sufferers (asthma)
• Contemporary streamlined look, minimalist
  

If many blinds in one area then motorisation is a good option as the blinds can opened and closed easily

Disadvantages of roller blinds

• Strips of light either side if reveal fitted inside window frame
  
• Width restraints – most fabrics are only 3 mts wide (don’t let anybody mislead you into turning the fabric sideways to create a wide blind, as some fabrics will “cup” and warp – ask to check the fabric manufacturers guarantee)
  
• Not good on long skinny windows as the fabric tends to ‘roll off”.
  
• Be aware when comparing prices! Roller blinds can vary greatly in price so it’s important that you understand why.
  
• Wide blinds need heavy duty 45mm or 60mm tube & spring assist controls – this is more expensive but if not used then the tube will bow. The blind pictured below uses heavy duty 60mm tube.
  
• Fabric should not be turned on its side in order to make a wide blind as it will “cup”. If you have a wide space to cover then use more than one blind and consider “linking” them.
• Always specify stainless steel control chain in coastal salt water areas to avoid corrosion Stainless steel is more expensive than other metal chains, and plastic chains look cheap and break easily.
• Many blinds in the one room can be tedious to operate if not motorised. 
• Several blinds at one big window will look messy with all those individual control chains – consider linking blinds together that operate together, or motorise.
  

Great ideas to consider when using roller blinds:

Good option for behind a curtain. Mount the blind in the window reveal for a neat look that hides the controls. In the picture below the screen fabric roller blind provides soft filtered light and daytime privacy. At night time the curtains provide block out from the city lights.Dual rollers option – one blind is block out, the other screen or translucent.

In the picture below the dual blinds are used with great effect – the sunscreen allows the room to be filled with light, does not block the view and gives privacy at the same time (from the outside you cannot see into the room through the sunscreen roller blind during the day). At night, the block out roller blind provides privacy.

Some fabric manufacturers offer roller blind fabrics in same patterns and colours as drapery fabrics – so can marry blinds and curtains in same room for a coordinated look.

Fabric covered base bars look good when the fabric used is the same fabric as the curtains in the same room.

For more information go to our Contact Us form to email your enquiry and register to download our free ebook   “All About Choosing Window Coverings and Soft Furnishings”

By Coleen Radford

Choosing Tracks, Poles, Rods etc is slightly daunting - there's just so many options available to you. There are many different options – from plain simple tracks to fancy metal poles and custom painted wooden poles.

Like pleating styles, the track the curtains hang from often comes down to personal choice – what do you like the look of best?

If you are having a pelmet, the track will be hidden so a plain track is the most economical option. Some people like a decorator track to be the hero of the window, with decorative finials. The look of the pole or tracks should be decided in conjunction with the fabric used for the curtain. There is nothing wrong with having different pleating styles and tracks / poles in the same house – just keep it the same in the one room. There are many visual tricks I use to “link” rooms that use different fabrics and tracks / poles throughout the house.

Points to consider with tracks and poles:

If the track needs to be joined, ensure you select a system that uses good quality glides that will glide smoothly over the joins. The track may need to be joined if very long, or if limited to the size of the elevator in a high rise building…..

It is important to get good “fixing” – you don’t want the track falling out of the wall or ceiling from the weight of the curtains! It is critical to use the correct type of screws for timber / plaster / masonry. Spring Crest Curtains and Blinds only use expert installers who take the extra time to get a perfect installation.

All about Pelmets

Pelmets are an over treatment that can be used very effectively over the top of your curtains as an alternative to decorative tracks. Pelmets are also fantastic for insulation. They provide a “cap” over the top of the curtain or blind that will provide an effective insulation seal preventing heat gain in summer and heat loss in winter.

A slimline pelmet over a blind looks very smart – and is a good way to co-ordinate the pelmet fabric back to the décor.

Swags and tails, like pelmets are an effective way to finish your window treatment to give a luxurious opulent look. Swags and tails are a more traditional window over treatment that relies on symmetry and neat pleating to give a look of opulence. Fabric choice is critical – as the swag fabric is cut on the bias stripes do not work, and the feel of the fabric must be very soft for it to drape beautifully.

To read the next instalment to my blog 'All About Roller Blinds' - CLICK HERE

By Coleen Radford

Are you wanting to create that special look for your Lounge or Living Room? Our window decor ideas can help you to incorporate your window dressings with the style you've created within your furnishings and colours. 

Curtain Pleating can help to bring out the best in your new curtains and that's where Spring Crest Curtains and Blinds can help. We're specialists in all types of curtain designs and curtain pleating and can help you to achieve the 'look' for your Curtains to co-ordinate your total home decor.  

Before you even start you'll need to consider carefully what type of pleating to have. It may come down to personal choice – what do you like the look of best?

Often the style of the décor can determine the pleating style. A sloped or raked ceiling can determine the curtain pleating style. Some fabrics and patterns (particularly stripes) lend themselves better to one style than another. Double curtain tracks or poles can determine best pleating style for both the front and rear tracks. Some pleating styles “stack back” more than others – important consideration if you want to get as much curtain off the window as possible. 

Here we've listed some popular curtain pleating options for you to consider:

Ripple or S Fold Curtain Pleating is sleek and suits a modern décor – it looks particularly stunning when the track is fixed to the ceiling and extends wall to wall – perfect for large expanses of glass and will visually make a room look bigger if fitted in this way.

Metallic Eyelets are usually teamed with a metal rod lending a modern, minimalistic look to your curtains. The window coverage on this type of pleating is minimal, so best not used where light control is important. This treatment works best for dressing a window with “side drapes”, and is especially effective where other fixtures in the room are metallic.

French or Triple Pinch Curtain Pleats are groups of triple pleats, spaced evenly along the curtain which creates a formal heading, with the benefit of very neat stacking to the side. 

Double Pinch Curtain Pleats: Similar to the French style but with double pleats, this treatment has the benefits of French pleating but creates a style which balances casual with traditional, perfect for any room setting. 

This style works well with uneven or wide stripes of different colours but ensure the curtains are made so that the stripes fall in even patterns.

This style is ideal for a formal dining room or can be used for practical reasons where there is not much wall space beside the window.

Knife Curtain Pleating: These are sharply pressed slim, closely spaced pleats which are all facing the same way. (A bit like the pleating in a kilt) This is the best way to treat a sloped or raked ceiling that is to have curtains. Knife pleating is also best used on the back track of a double track as the pleat sits flat, and allows the curtain on the front track to move freely.

For more information Contact us today to register and download our free ebook 
“All About Choosing Window Coverings and Soft Furnishings”

To read the next instalment to my blog 'All About Tracks, Poles, Rods, Finials & Pelmets' CLICK HERE


By Coleen Radford