While shopping for window treatments, it is easy to get confused because of the choice overload. Fabric window treatments generally top the list of all home owners for their aesthetic and acoustic benefits. While drapes are the traditional favorites and windows without drapes tend to seem incomplete to the mind, roman shades are gaining renewed fame. If you want a minimalistic, no-frill approach for window treatments, we suggest getting custom roman shades for your windows. In this article, we aim to apprise you of the seven factors to consider while shopping for roman shades to make your job easier.
Checklist for Shopping Roman Shades
The neat, uncluttered frontage of a roman shade is an asset to a modern house design that thrives on clean lines and crisp details. Unlike roller blinds, a close resembling product, roman shades offer immense potential for colors, designs, and textures, besides the covetable tailored look. And they almost sink into the architecture because of their flat frontages. When opened, they glide upward in accordion-style folds and get completely out of the way, so kids can’t swing on them as they do on drapes. If you like all these salient features of roman shades, shop them wise by paying attention to these details:
1. Type of fabric
Choosing the right fabric is an important decision for any room. For example, sheer shades filter and soften the sun rays instead of blocking them entirely. Blackout shades offer room darkening and noise insulation for bedrooms and nurseries. Silks and velvets are fitting for formal spaces while linens and cotton reign supreme in laid-back lounges with fancy cabinets. So choose your fabric composition wisely based on the purpose and aesthetic of the room.
2. Colors
If you want your shades to stand out, get them in the accent color of your room. Conversely, if you want them to softly fade away into the architecture choose the same color as your wall. Remember that light and bright colors allow more light to filter in and the darker color tones do just the opposite. Choose colors that best reflect your personality and the palette of your decor.
3. Patterns
If you like the enigmatic play of colors and form in elegant patterns, your choice must depend on the overall style of your room. Every pattern has a unique character and spirit to it. Stripes and plaids are structured patterns that highlight the box shape of the window. Stripes are simplistic, plaids lend groundedness and other bold geometric patterns reflect a modern approach to design. Curvy florals contrasting the straight lines of the architecture are a fabulous recipe for luring visual interest. Bold motifs like ikat, damask, and paisley get the apt platform to demonstrate their powerful impact to the fullest on the flat frontage of the roman shade. Let the scale of the pattern be in tandem with the size of the window and the impression you wish to make.
4. Mounting position
A roman shade can be mounted inside the window recess or outside, onto the wall above it. Both positions have advantages of their own. But the decision regarding the position will largely depend on the architectural features of the window. A flat upper frame, at least 2-4 inches deep is a minimum requirement for a window to host a roman shade. So, if you have round or piked windows or shallow windows, you cannot inside mount the shade. In such scenarios, outside mounting is the choice. While inside mount roman shades need the exact measurement of the frame-to-frame length and breadth, outside mounts should ideally extend to at least 6 inches beyond the frame to ensure total light blockage. Outside mounting offers you the benefit of clearing the shade entirely off the door when you open it while inside mounts let you show off the ornate window trims.
4. Type of fold
If your home’s architecture and interiors sport clean lines, your roman shades should ideally keep up the stand. Shades with front slats offer a tailored look while those with back slats offer an undisturbed surface and a clean finish. Both cater to a streamlined aesthetic vision and are more at home in modern design style. But if your design style is transitional or traditional and you want your shade to reflect its dressed-up looks, European relaxed roman shades with scalloped bottoms should cater to the aesthetic vision of opulence and curvy details.
5. Child safety anchor
If you have little tots or pets in the house, make sure your roman shades do not have dangling cords as they can be a safety hazard. When shopping for a children’s room, either opt for cordless shades or ensure that the product you order comes with a safety anchor for the cord. This simple add-on can not just protect the pulling mechanism from getting tampered by the innocent fidgeting while sitting on the floor but also save you from many an annoying moment.
On to the Task
It is rightly said that information is power. You know well now what to look for and what to avoid when shopping for roman shades. So, get on to the shopping spree, all wise, and get the right roman shade for your home.
