..your windows! 😉
Its easy! Here is how you do it in “NKOTB meets Madonna meets Natasha Beddingfield” steps.
Step 1– Undress your existing window dressing. Take it away.. to a secret place….
Step 2 – Select dress – The Shade Store There’s so much you can do…
Step 3 – Dress them up in your love!
Step 4 – Start drooling
Even if you have fabulous floor to ceiling windows on the 30th floor with awesome views, you are going to need some sort of window treatment. I love the look of naked 15ft windows overlooking the city skyline, the river…… But I also need privacy. Blinds to keep the peeping Toms away but leave the view intact.
Most people I talk to when decorating, say they find selecting window treatments painful. I can see how selecting from the wide range of fabrics, drapery, blinds, shades and accessories can be overwhelming to some. I would advise if you feel shady about blinds, go with simple, clean treatments.
A few tips to keep in mind when selecting window treatments.
1. Purpose of the room. Busy and high traffic rooms, study, living and dining rooms work best with plenty of natural light and light blinds for privacy. Bedroom windows need heavy privacy and also treatments give you the option to block the weekend sun out :)For the study and library, the solar blinds are practical options.
2. Size of windows and number of windows in each room: Depending on the size of the window, there are so many options to chose from. Tiny windows look elegant in textured blinds or shades. Combination of blinds and drapes work best for large windows.
3. Distance between each window in the room: Think about the space between each window. If they are too close to each other you might not want to cover the entire all with drapes, blinds or shades might work best.
4. Overall deco theme of room: duh!
5. Ease in cleaning
6. And last but not least- you have to like them!!
I have been doing a lot of research on window treatments. When you have over 15 windows to cover in a house, doing your homework is pretty important. You will be surprised to see that sometimes it IS possible to get what you want in a tiny budget. Key is allocation of the budget (but you knew that).
I investigated the usual suspects – like Pottery Barn, West Elm, Ikea, Home Depot, Next Day Blinds, even treatments by Kravet and Schumacher (tongue in cheek). But I found a great source in The Shade Store. They have a much better selection than Ikea, HD and NDB and more affordable than Kravet and Schumacher.
The Shade Store also offers helpful tools to measure and install window treatments. Here’s some eye candy that you might think about introducing to your home.
While they have been online retailers for a while now, they are expanding beyond online stores. They just opened their second store in Manhattan – The Design Pod, 989 Third Avenue — between 58th & 59th St., next to the D&D Building.
The DESIGN POD is an efficient design center where shoppers and designers can get instant access to The Shade Store’s complete, exclusive window treatment collections including the latest designer introductions from Chilewich and DwellStudio. Wall-to-wall, ceiling-to-floor installations showcase custom window shades, blinds, drapery, panel systems and accessories. On-site design consultations, a full library of take-away fabric/material swatches, and order-ready computer stations carefully choreograph the modern consumer’s efficient, design-savvy shopping experience.
They also opened their first flagship store in San Francisco to cater to the prominent west coast market. The Shade Store San Francisco, is located at 1932 Fillmore Street.
Oh and here is the surprise. Mochatini readers get free shipping and 10% off the treatments at The Shade Store.
You can click on the link on the right or type in code mochatini when you check out. Now dress those windows up!! Repeat steps 1-4.
What kind of window treatments do you have? Do you prefer blinds over shades, shades over drapes, draper over both? How long have you had the same window treatments?
I’m off to the big bad Dubai for a week. I’m looking forward to spending much needed time with parents. Can’t promise to post while I’m there but certainly will bring tons to post about back with me.
images courtesy The Shade Store
That is so weird. I was just on their site about an hour ago looking for blinds for a client for Room in a Book. I have always like this company. So easy to create it and order. I wish they had more fabric selections but I noticed that have some maharam which is really cool.
How to convince dh that the gorgeous wood blinds in the living room should be replaced with solar shades? We have an amazing view that I’ve always regretted covering up with the blinds. The solar shades could stay down during the mornings and still give us a view. Thank you for sharing!