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What to Consider Before Choosing Blinds for Your Home

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Window blinds are a great option when curtains would be too big and billowy for a small space or for when you have lots of upholstered furniture in a room and need to tone down all that fabric. Blinds may also offer the most flexibility when it comes to controlling light in a room, as you can twist open the slats just slightly for a small bit of sunlight or fold open the blinds all the way for maximum brightness. When you are ready to shop for blinds, note a few details to consider so you know you are choosing the right style for your home.

Pets

If you have pets in the home, you'll want cordless blinds, as a pet can easily get tangled in a long cord, or chew on it and pull the blinds from the window frame. It's also good to consider thick wood blinds, as thin metal blinds are easy for pets to bend and even break when they try to slide through the slats.

Also, avoid fabric-covered blinds, as that fabric can easily trap and hold fur and be very difficult to clean. Solid wood or metal blinds won't hold fur against their surface and can be cleaned easily with a damp rag.

Insulation

If your home is a bit cold and draughty in wintertime or somewhat hot and stuffy during summer months, you might opt for fabric-covered blinds. The added fabric can help insulate the home's windows, blocking out more heat and cold air from outside, while keeping heating and air conditioning inside the home. Wood and metal blinds may not provide this same insulation, and may even conduct cold and heat so that they do little to help with the temperature inside the home.

Appearance

Your home's window treatments affect the interior appearance more than you realize, so be sure to consider the overall look of certain blind styles before purchasing. For example, wood blinds have a very traditional look and feel and can make a space more homey and cosy, but they might be a bit overwhelming if a room already has timber floors or wood window frames. Metal blinds are good for modern homes with lots of glass and metal accents, and you can find these in a variety of colours, but they might seem cold and impersonal in a traditional home. Be sure to consider these factors when shopping so you know your new blinds will fit into a room's overall decor and enhance the space.


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