Home Makeover Diva

Home Design Makeover Ideas

Blackout Cellular Blinds

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Today Rick writes:

Diva, are blackout cellular blinds really worth the extra money?

Yes Rick, they are.  I know a lot of the blackout cellular blinds on the market don’t “feel” very substantial. Many of them have a “papery feel” to them. But in terms of light blocking and energy efficiency, you’ll get your money’s worth.

Blackout cellular blinds (aka blackout cellular shades) are the most room darkening cellular shade you can get.  Blackout cellulars will stop virtually all light from permeating through the shade itself.  Where light leaks will happen, is along the edge of the shade where it hits the casing, and on the bottom where the blackout cellular blind touches the sill.

Blackout Cellular Blinds

Now this is a good time to mention that you need to use a steel tape to measure the inside of your window from casing to casing to the nearest 1/8 of inch.  That or  have a professional measure your window for you if you’re not comfortable.  This way you can keep the light leaking in to a minimum.

On top of being the most room darkening, blackout cellular blinds also are the most energy efficient of the cellular blinds.  So if you are also trying to be eco friendly or keep the heat out during the summer and the cold our during the winter blackout cellular blinds will help with that too!

Blackout cellular blinds are made by all manufacturers of special order cellular shades.  However the color selection is still lacking from most manufacturers, so you may have to do some shopping around before you find the color or texture that is right for your space!  Even with the limitation in color blackout cellular blinds are worth every cent when you consider how much light they block and that they are energy efficient.

Do you have questions about the selecting or the installation of: tile, carpet or wall treatments (window blinds, etc)? Then email me your tale of woe (diva(at)homemakeoverdiva.com) and perhaps I will be able to answer your questions right here at the Home Makeover Diva Blog!

Deciding On Window Treatments For Bathrooms

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Today Cindy writes:

Help! Our old curtains are just not cutting it any longer and we need help deciding on window treatments for our bathroom. At this point we are open to any ideas you might have. Curtains, blinds, whatever. We just need something new and that works! Thanks!

Well Cindy, I am glad to hear you are open to what will be best suited for your bathroom And obviously, figuring out colors and styles will largely come down to individual preferences. That being said,  there are going to be some deciding factors you are going to want in choosing new window treatments for your bathroom. They are as follows.

– Moisture  control. Select window treatments that will not mildew. The last thing you want are bathroom moisture problems. While curtains can work to a degree, going with a synthetic window treatment like faux cordless wood blinds will provide you with a great look, in addition not falling prey to mildew or worse. Best of all, no cords to get tangled!

– Light control. You need to have something in place that provides you with great window light control. I again, point to going with faux wood blinds.

– Appearance and over all look. It’s a bathroom, so keeping things simple is where it’s at. I would go with a simple horizontal blind. And considering the color choices that come with faux wood blinds, I again come back to this suggestion.

Do you have questions about the selecting or the installation of: tile, carpet wall treatments (window blinds, etc)? Then email me your tale of woe and perhaps I will be able to answer your questions right here at the Home Makeover Diva Blog!

Keeping Children And Pets Safe With Blind Cords

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Small children and pets are both hazardous to our window treatments. But at the same time, window treatments are also hazardous to our kids and pets!  So it’s important to know which types of window treatments are best when keeping children safe with blind cords. The best styles of blinds that minimize the risk to our kids and furry kids are ones without cords.  And of these, the two most popular are Cordless Cellular shades and Cordless Roller Shades.

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Cordless Cellular shades are available in a wide array of colors and light blocking levels.  They can be bought in black out fabric or just light filtering sheers depending on which part of the house they are going in. Cellulars tend to be a more contemporary/casual design. You can also get them in a top down/bottom up design.  Which is great for areas where you want natural light but also need your privacy.

Cordless Roller Shades are also available in a wide array of colors, light blocking levels and fabric/vinyl styles.  They can be dressed up for more traditional styles or can blind in with a contemporary room with ease.  And unlike the vinyl roller shades of our past, they come in fabrics that look like real fabric, not just that plain white vinyl roll.  Roller shades are very popular for nurseries or kids rooms when a block out fabric is chosen.  The vinyl kind are also easy to clean in case little figures get to them.

There are more blind styles available in cordless as far as the control are concerned.  But some of these are just as dangerous.  For example roman cordless shades have exposed string on the back of the blind that can be just as dangerous.  They do eliminate the immediate threat the cord lift poses.  At the end of the day, there is no perfect answer as each situation and family is a little different. So you are beset off to just read the warnings on the individual blinds for making your final decision on which window treatment is the best match for your family’s needs.