Roller Window Shades: A Good Economical Alternative
Good old Roller Window Shades, remember them when you were a kid. Well now roller window shades can be custom made and look absolutely gorgeous. They can go with the most elegant of room décor these days. Roller Window Shades are also definitely good for those on a budget, even the custom made ones. Lets start with the basic simple roller window shades. Traditionally you got the spring-loaded mechanism or a continuous cord clutch. They are also called soft rise or spring lift roller window shades. You can get them in vinyl or other material options of your choice. When you start to explore custom options you can choose very plain to very fancy fabrics. You can choose how to control your lighting, by picking from sheer to total blackout materials. You can get light filtering material that filters UV rays, opaque filters and total blackout materials. These kinds of roller window shades are also energy efficient, helping to keep rooms warm in the winter and cool in the summer. When measuring for window size you must allow for a ¼ inch gap on either side of the window shade to the window frame. Reverse roll, which is now available, makes the roller pull up from the front of the shade instead of the traditional back. This is good if you customize your roller window shades with fancy trims. The bottom-weighted rod is now also covered with the same matching material. It is weight adjustable so the roller shades remain balanced. In the old days roller shades would sometimes raise and lower lop-sided. When going custom made with roller window shades you can choose from various hems, trims, decorative pulls and such. You can choose from good old vinyl that is treated for light and weather resistance, cellular or honeycomb shades, woven wooden shades, solar shades and sheer shades that have total light blocking characteristics. Roller window shades can also be lined. The lining can compliment the style of material you use for the roller window shade. You can match the material to the décor of your furniture, walls or curtains, drapes and valances. Sheer weave roller blinds allow sun in but not the UV rays. They are a coated fiberglass yarn that reduces the glare and heat but you still get the sunlight. It helps to protect your furniture and carpet from harmful sunrays. You don’t necessarily get privacy control alone with the sheer weave and may have a matching lining added for that purpose. Cellular or honeycomb rollup shades offer both privacy and light control as well as insulation. They are constructed with one to three cells shaped like honeycombs to trap the air for insulation. Bamboo shades are roller shades made with bamboo, grass or wooden fibers. They can be lined to add light control insulation and privacy. Finally a word on motorized roller window shades. Now days you can get your roller window shades totally automated. A small motor is fitted in the roller to lift and lower the blinds. You can control them with a battery-operated remote. I like these the best. All you have to do is push a button on your remote to control the roller shades up and down. |
