ROMAN BLINDS - WHAT ARE THEY?
Roman blinds, crafted from soft furnishings, are designed in panel form and can be raised and lowered. They are mounted on a cassette system, enabling you to conveniently raise or lower the blind as required.
Roman blinds offer versatility and can be installed either inside or outside a recess.
LINING
On the back of the blind, you’ll find lining options. You can choose between standard lining, which allows light to pass through the material, or blackout lining, which blocks all light. Blackout lining is great for regulating heat, keeping it in during the winter and out during the summer.
Functionality of Roman Blinds
Daytime Privacy
Roman blinds are either up or in some way down. They are not effective at filtering your view out and offering daytime privacy.
Protect items against fading
With the blinds shut, your furniture will be protected from fading. However, this means covering your window during daylight hours. If this is a crucial requirement, you might want to consider alternative options.
Glare from the sun
The sun’s glare is usually confined to the upper part of any window, depending on the sun’s height. This allows you to cover the required area without completely closing off the window. These can be positioned anywhere to prevent harsh glare.
Nightime Privacy
These can be fully closed for night.
Thermal Gain (Heat)
With the correct lining, these can be highly effective blinds in reducing heat buildup in your home.
Thermal Loss (Heat loss from inside your house)
Just like curtains, Romans can be insulating against heat loss, whether in or outside the recess.
Blackout effect for bedrooms
Blackout Roman blinds offer an excellent blackout effect. For a comprehensive understanding of your options for blackout blinds, visit our Blackout Blinds product page.
Types of Windows & Doors Suitable for Roman Blinds
Most Standard Windows
Regardless of the depth of a window, Romans work well on most windows, fitted inside or outside the recess. They will occupy a lot of space if your windows are short in the drop.
Sliding Doors/French Doors/Bi Folding Doors
They do not work well with doors.
Bay Windows
Romans generally work well in any type of bay window.
WHY ARE ROMAN BLINDS SO THERMALLY EFFICIENT
They utilise soft furnishing material i.e. curtain fabric!
CAN WE MAKE A ROMAN OUT OF YOUR FABRIC?
In most cases, yes.
PRACTICAL PROS AND CONS
Stack
Roman blinds don’t fold up into a small stack when raised. Instead, they permanently occupy a portion of the window. For example, the upper one-third of your window can be permanently covered, even when the blinds are raised. This depends on the height of your window.
If you don’t have tall windows or ones that don’t receive enough natural light, you might want to consider alternative options or opt for the easier route of having the blinds fitted outside the recess, where some of the stack can sit higher.
Heavy to use
If your window is particularly wide, raising it can be heavy, as a Roman blind requires a significant amount of material for manufacturing.
Doors
They don’t work well on doors at all due to their stack and weight.
Narrow Width
If you have very narrow-width windows, as a soft furnishing fabric, they may not pull up nicely without some manual intervention from you “dressing" the fabric with your hands.