Discount Building Products - Building Material Wholesalers

Window Treatments - The Finishing Touch to Your Home Remodel

Just finished, or planning to remodel your home or a room within your home? Don?t forget to choose the right window treatment. The right ones can add that finishing touch; the wrong ones can be a real detraction.

Sounds obvious enough, right? And, in a way it is. I have seen many beautiful examples and many not-so-beautiful examples. The trick is to match up the decorating themes of a given room with the appropriate window treatment. The other choices are color, insulating properties, light control and privacy. By the way, I take window treatments to mean almost any window covering: blinds, shades, shutters and drapes. There doesn?t seem to be much consensus on what a window treatment is so I am taking the broadest definition.

Choosing the right blinds and shades can get a little more complicated than these few choices. For example there are motorized blinds, cordless, valance options, wand control and more. But for the purposes of this article I will stick mostly to the major themes as mentioned above. Once you have chosen the appropriate blind, shade, shutter or drape, you can decide if you want to add any of the convenience options offered by the manufacturer.

First, let?s lay out the main choices. In the window blinds category you have mini blinds, plantation shutters, vertical blinds, wood and faux wood blinds and finally, panel track blinds. In the window shades category you have roller shades, sheer shades, pleated shades, woven wood shades (also known as bamboo shades), roman shades, cellular shades and solar shades (also called solar screens). Then there are drapes. The drapes category can be huge depending on how you choose to categorize them. But for the purposes of this article I will label them as custom and pre-made. Custom drapes are made-to-order drapes cut to the appropriate size of your window and usually with a built in 2 to 1 fullness. These are generally higher quality and made from a variety fabrics from silk to cotton. Made-to-order drapes are generally less expensive and can be picked up at many major retailers.

Segregating by room type, here are my recommendations. For kitchens, faux wood shutters and faux wood blinds are often an excellent choice. They often match up well with wood cabinets and can withstand the often hot and humid environments of kitchens. This is also true for bathrooms. But, other choices for bathrooms would be pleated shades, which you can think of as the non-insulating version of cellular shades. The nice thing about pleated shades for bathrooms is they pair well with the top down/bottom up feature which is excellent for privacy. Less expensive options for these kinds of rooms would be mini blinds, woven woods or roman shades. Mini blinds are a better choice for rooms with a more modern d?cor whereas wood finishes are best with wood-type decors. A simple rule of thumb is to match your window treatments with the overriding color and materials of the room: wood with wood, fabric with fabric, metal with metal and all in complimentary colors.

For living rooms and family rooms, the choices are pretty wide open. For large windows, like sliding doors, vertical blinds are an easy choice but don?t overlook panel track blinds. Don?t forget that vertical blinds come in more than just vinyl; they also come in faux wood, fabric, cellular and aluminum. Plantation shutters, though expensive, are a time-honored window covering choice. You almost can?t go wrong with these, unless your house is very modern and contemporary. In that case, I would recommend aluminum mini blinds or vertical blinds.

For bedrooms, privacy and light control are usually the big factor. So, I would look into roller shades, cellular or pleated shades with a blackout liner, or woven woods and roman shades, again with a liner. The one you choose will depend on the overall d?cor of your room. If you want more insulating properties from you shades, go with the cellular option.

For dining rooms, I would recommend drapes or maybe roman or woven wood shades. If you like the roman shades, consider the pleated or tear-drop option for a more luxurious appearance.

For rooms with views and lots of sunlight, consider solar shades. These come in various levels of opacity, i.e. how much light they block. The nice thing about solar screens is you can still see out of your windows with out as much solar heat build-up as well as a greater level of privacy from the street view.

There you have it, the non-definitive guide to window treatments. As a side note, consider checking out one of the how to measure for window blinds videos available on the internet, they can help. ? David Brooks

MORE ARTICLES:

Home Depot Home Improvement Stores
Information about different Home Depot home improvement ideas as well as equipment is readily available on the internet For example, there are many websites that list several Home Depot home improvement stores

Revolutionary Building Material -- Universal Foam Products Provides Consumers with New Options for Home Remodeling
Building a new home or remodeling an existing home can be very challenging, because different people enjoy different styles. Some of the popular designing styles are very difficult to create with conventional building materials; this is where Universal Foam Products comes into play.

Corrugated Metal Roofing, Residential, Design, Restoration, Contractors, Guide, Repairs
Corrugated metal roofing is rippled metal sheets used for roofing applications. It is commonly used in commercial, agricultural and industrial purposes though nowadays it is recognized as an excellent form of residential roofing. Corrugated metal roofing has been in use since the 1840s. Through technological developments, it is rust free and has other attributes that has enhanced its qualities.

Florida Custom Home Builders: How To Build Your Dream Home
Florida custom home builders offer many homeowners the chance of a lifetime: the opportunity to build their dream home Of course, like any investment on this large a scale, it is necessary to take certain steps to make sure you do it right, and to make sure the end result is really the dream home you set out to get

San Antonios Residential Green Building Program Receives a Boost from the Builders Association
Build San Antonio Green, San Antonios Residential Green Building Program, is getting a boost from the Greater San Antonio Builders Association.

New Construction Strategies Radio Network and the Contractors Side Launch New Channel for 75,000 Contractors
New Construction Strategies Radio Network (NCSR), a joint venture of Garrison Associates and Jackstreet Media, reached agreement with The Contractors Side to make NCSR programming available to its community of 75,000 construction contractors and subcontractors. The ContractorsSide.com is a popular resource to help contractors protect and defend themselves against some of the traditional risks in the construction business. The new channel will bring contractors the knowledge and insights they need anticipate and avoid many of the problems that often lead to large financial losses.

Free eBook Reveals Construction Loan Trade Secrets that Can Save New Home Owners-Builders Thousands
A construction loan industry veteran with decades of experience has published a free e-book entitled "15 Things You Should Know before You Even Think about Applying for a Construction Loan." The insightful report reveals construction loan inside secrets that can help people save thousands of dollars.

The Most Popular Contractors and Construction Supply Shops in the USA
There are many choices in purchasing the best construction supplies Choosing the best dealers or sellers is among the most important steps to acquire construction supplies with the highest quality

Cedar Log Home Builder in Texas: Building Your Dream Home the Way it Should be
Creating any house, much more someone else's dream house requires artistry, skills and craftsmanship. A cedar log custom home builder in Texas must possess these qualities and more: he must be a modern thinker. In this century wherein functionality and utility are considered traits of beauty, a cedar log home builder must be able to fuse artistry and science in building your dream home.

Electrical Innovations Receives Prestigious Construction Award from Associated Builders and Contractors of Iowa
Recognized as best-of-the-best with excellence in specialty construction.

Selecting A New Home Construction Builder Or A Remodeling Contractor
The whole point of having a new home construction builder or remodeling contractor is to ensure that you have a quality job done. To accomplish this, you need to know how to look for the right people. By knowing how to find the right people, you will have less problems and stress during the project.

Nationwide Custom Homes Designs and Builds Home for International Builders Show in Orlando
Designed specifically to meet the needs of the "Successful Baby Boomer", the Nationwide Custom Home impeccably blends traditional craftsman styling with the latest technological conveniences available from premier suppliers. The home is on display at the International Builders Show in Orlando, Fl. February 7th-10th Contact: Scott Rouleau for Photos and Information: 502-836-4513

Physically and Financially Survive DIY Home Renovation, Home Depot Discount Coupons Notwithstanding
Lest you think that home renovation will be as easy as pie, or at least easier than home building, it is actually harder than it looks The costs can be staggering, both financially and physically

Home Builders See Big Picture in Sustainable Building, Says February's BUILDER Magazine
The housing market's decline has not clouded the big picture for some home builders, February's BUILDER Magazine reveals in its coverage of sustainable building products and its Tradewinds show home at the International Builders' Show.

Leopardo Construction Highlights 10 Solutions for Building Smarter, Offsetting Rising Construction Material Prices
In a recent white paper titled "Smart Construction," Leopardo Construction, one of the nation's premier construction companies and a recognized leader in sustainable building practices, highlights 10 economical building solutions for offsetting the skyrocketing material prices and realigning construction budgets with original expectations.