Habitual curtains do not always fit into the interior. In some styles (minimalism, high-tech), blinds are more organic. Venetian blinds fit in the well-known classic interior, where they can be combined well with the usual curtains. In addition, blinds are functional and practical. With their help, you can easily change the amount of sunlight that falls into the room.
A bit of history
- Most likely, such “window clothes,” such as blinds, originates in countries with warm climates located in Asia, the Middle East, the Mediterranean and South America. They rarely used glass in window openings, replacing them with wooden planks, which were fixed at an angle in the window opening, horizontally or vertically, or used curtains from plant stems connected by ropes that could be rolled up, thereby regulating the illumination of the room. These devices were much more durable and practical than fabric curtains in conditions of high humidity, provided air circulation, controlled the lighting and heating of the room with sunlight, made it possible to quite freely see what was happening outside and at the same time saved outsiders from entering the house through window openings. Of course, they were not called “blinds” yet.
- Officially, the production of blinds was patented in 1841 by the American industrialist John Hampton.
- The word jalousie is of French origin and translated as “jealousy”. It is assumed that the history of this name has its roots in the traditions of the East, where such constructions were used on window openings, and the traditions of hiding women from prying eyes were strong. In Europe, blinds became very popular among courtesans, who intrigued men with the help of planks on the ropes, showing and hiding their body at the same time. Over time, the design of the blinds was improved, new materials and new features appeared that allowed to realize the most daring design ideas for the arrangement of the interior. In combination with the ease of care and use, in the end, blinds have become very popular all over the world.
The principle of operation and device blinds
- Classic blinds are made of lamellas – thin, narrow strips that can be made of metal, plastic, wood or fabric. Slats of vertical blinds are attached to the rail by means of sliders. In the horizontal models, the strips are connected by a cord, and only the upper blade is attached to the eaves.
- The eaves can be made of plastic or aluminum. On the side of the eaves are a chain and a cord for controlling the slats. The weighting is done in the lower part of the slats of vertical blinds, whereby the strips do not change their position with minimal draft.
- If you have all the casement windows open, then installing horizontal blinds at the site will not even require drilling. There are special hooks-brackets that allow you to fix the blinds on the sash. Installing the blinds in the window opening allows you to save space, but this solution justifies itself only with deep window openings, when there is enough space to open the window with the blinds closed without the risk of damage. Very often recently, such blinds are installed inside the glass of the window. This decision has a lot of positive aspects. Firstly, dust and dirt do not accumulate on the lamellas and do not need to be washed, since the double-glazed window is sealed. This is just the perfect solution for those who suffer from allergies. Secondly, it does not matter in what position the blinds will be, open, closed, lowered or raised, this will not become an obstacle to opening the window itself for airing the room. This design will not swing from the draft, annoying the inhabitants of the apartment with methodical noise, especially at night. Thin lamellas, being inside a double-glazed window are protected from accidental damage. The service life of windows with double-glazed windows with built-in blinds, according to manufacturers, can last up to 80 years, but this is the most expensive option for installing blinds.
Types of blinds for the apartment
Vertical
Due to the vertically arranged slats, which are fastened to the eaves with the help of special holders, the blinds of this type are similar to the usual curtains. They are perfectly combined with large windows and fit perfectly into the arches and bay windows. Attach vertical blinds to the ceiling or wall or place them in a window opening. The control mechanism allows you to turn the slats 180 ° around its axis. Change the angle of rotation of the slats and adjust the lighting level of the room. Similar to curtains, the slats of the blinds can be moved along the window opening and pushed, for this purpose, a special cord is used.
- The ability to create a single ensemble with curtains.
- Visually increase the height of the window and the room.
- To a lesser extent than horizontal models, they are deformed by wind and heat.
- The possibility to exchange individual structural elements.
- The noise effect that occurs when swiveling the blinds in the wind and their contact with the windowsill.
Horizontal
At small window openings, horizontal blinds are usually mounted while the structure is fixed to the surface of the window frame. Lower or raise the blinds as you pull on the rope. By changing the angle of inclination of the slats, they regulate the flow of light into the room.
- Low price.
- Extended scope of application (not only installed on windows, but also on doors with double glazed windows, openings and inside pavilions of double glazed windows).
- Easy adjustment of the intensity of the luminous flux.
- By attaching to the window frame, blinds can be used together with curtains and curtains (at the same time they fulfill a practical function and the curtains are a decorative element).
Rolled
The blinds use a polymer or fabric cloth instead of lamellae, which is rolled up at the top of the window thanks to a special mechanism. Roller blinds can have the following types of designs:
1. Mini – have the simplest device: an open box, without guides and weights. Open from bottom to top.
2. UNI-1 – Cassette Venetian blinds with the screen moving along the side guides open upwards.
3. UNI-2 – improved cassette blinds with the possibility of installation in the lower part of the window (at the same time they open from top to bottom). Made of two different density materials that allow you to adjust the lighting level in the room.
- In combination with curtains and curtains this is the "most domestic" version of blinds.
- The ability to fix the canvas at the correct height.
- Can be installed on all types of windows (with plastic, wooden frames).
- The possibility of photo printing on the canvas.
- At home, stain removal causes difficulties as they can not be scrubbed in the usual way and strong chemicals can damage the web. It is advisable to leave the stain removal for dry cleaning.
Pleated
Plissees – the most aesthetic way to design a window opening. They are perfectly combined with plastic windows. Often the window only pleats. If necessary, they can be supplemented with the usual curtains, with which they are perfectly combined (with correct color selection).
- Easy attachment (with double-sided adhesive tape).
- Designs can be for any type of window: vertical, horizontal, arched, as well as any non-standard shape, including skylights.
- No sagging, even after prolonged use due to the tension of special cables.
- The ability to press and press individual wrinkles.
- Due to the special material processing blinds do not attract dust.
- Compared to other types of blinds they have a relatively high price.
Options for the selection of blinds for the apartment.
Lamellar or web material
Aluminum
Such models are very practical, democratic in price and do not fade in the sun. The care is not particularly difficult – it is sufficient to wipe the surface of the slats regularly with a damp cloth or a special brush, but the slats can easily deform if they are treated carelessly.
Plastic
Plastic blinds are most commonly used in office space. Their practicality makes them popular for installation on kitchen windows, loggias and balconies. Plastic products can mimic wooden blinds.
Tree
Wooden blinds look the noblest. You will look good on windows whose frames are made of wood. Due to the thickness of the slats from 2 to 4 mm, they are made of different types of wood: cedar, linden, beech, larch, abachi and other types of wood.
Material
Fabric blinds are made of synthetic or natural fabrics impregnated with a special composition that impart dust and water repellency to the product and help to maintain a specific shape (eg wrinkling). If necessary, vertical fabric slats can be shortened themselves. To do this, remove the weighing medium from the groove in the lower part of the strip, cut the fabric and trim it.
Multi Factory
This is a kind of vertical blind that uses different types of fabric (from two to seven) that differ in tone, density and texture. The composition may include decorative elements of plastic or wood. In most cases, this type of blind exterior resembles a composition of curtains with lambrequins.
Blinds size
To install the blinds in the window opening, the height of the product must be a few inches below the height of the window. Otherwise, the blinds come into contact with the windowsill. If you place the product over the window, the eaves should be 20-30 cm wider than the window opening. Vertical blinds, which are to be installed from the ceiling to the floor, must not touch the ground. There should be a distance of approx. 5 cm between the floor and slat.
If you choose vertical blinds, you prefer plastic models. They are more practical and, unlike metal elements, leave no rusty stains after wet cleaning.
She holds the slats of the vertical blinds in a single canvas. The quality of the chain depends on the color of the plastic. Preferred are products with a whiter chain without yellowing.
It is advisable to choose Venetian blinds with aluminum cornice. It is more reliable, stronger, and has a longer life than the plastic cornice, which can deform over time, resulting in blockage of the control mechanism.
Before purchasing a boring control mechanism, all elements of the design should move smoothly and without difficulty, causing no creaking or other extraneous noise.
Which blinds to choose for the apartment
- For a bathroom, a kitchen, a balcony or a loggia, you can buy cheap plastic or aluminum blinds.
- Wooden blinds, tuned to the color of the furniture or combined with wooden window frames, would be located in each of the rooms.
- Fabric blinds can be installed in the bedroom, living room or children's room. At the same time they must harmonize with the upholstery of furniture, curtains and wallpaper.
- On a small window, horizontal and roller shutters look good.
- For skylights and non-standard windows, pleats can be installed.
- In a small room, blinds are made of light shades of narrow slats, which visually enlarges the space.
- Multi-effect models will look good in a spacious, wide room with a large window.
Customer questions & answers
- Are these blinds installed using box end brackets?
- NO they are not. They are some completely different mechanism to hang. You have to either mount them to the ceiling of your window frame, or to the wall on either side of the window frame!
- is it room darkening?
- No, they are not room darkening, but they keep the sun out.
- is there a way to shorten the length w/o ruining to blinds?
- There is it is not complicated I would look for a video on U-Tube to show you it involves cutting at right length and shortening them. Not hard but a video would help.
- Is there an odor that off gasses in the room after opening and hanging the blinds up?
- No, there is no odor.
- Do they have a bracket in the middle so they will not sag?
- Yes. Packet has everything you’ll need as to hanging the blinds.
- Do I need to buy additional adhesives?
- no additional adhesives are needed, these are really great, they roll up good, look good and the black really keep the sun out, I now have them on all the windows, good buy
- are these good for keeping sun/heat out from skylights temporary?
- Not so much. While they will reduce the amount of light/heat that gets through, they will not work as well as heavy blinds. For a temporary fix they may be ok.
- Will it work on a door?
- i don’t see why not as long as the shade is long and wide enough. They are cut down to fit if your door is smaller that the size of the shade. The only thing I will say about this fabric shade is they are very stiff, so if you wish to raise it, you will need a better clip than is provided. The clip that is provided isn’t big enough to accommodate the thickness of the shade when raised up.
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