Living Room Window Treatment

10 years ago

I have a dilemma with my window treatments. I have a home with 2x4 construction which places a burden of finding the best and most versatile window treatments. The window is a triple double hung with a 2 inch depth to work with (unfortunately). I wanted to do the framed blinds but they all are too deep. Due to the limitation of space I also have to place a love seat sofa in front of the window so having a versatile treatment to allow me to open the window on the top instead of the bottom is necessary. I thought that the honeycomb blinds may be good for this but I don't want it to look dated. Any suggestions?

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Comments (6)

WendyB 5A/MA
10 years ago
Top down and bottom up (TDBU) window shades are great, but I'm not sure why they are necessary just because of the loveseat. TDBU is typically for privacy purposes. And an outside mount is fine with 2x4 frames fine. People do it all the time.

What you need to figure out is where the cord(s) will be accessed from or if you can go cordless. Cordless blinds are typically raised and pulled down from the middle. So anything in front of the window will impede that, but it can be done. Honeycombs are lightweight so you can easily do a single width with a cord on one end. If you go TDBU, the TD cord will be on one end and the BU cord will be on the other end, so they should be accessible. However, if you go with roman shades or wood blinds, the weight will start to become an issue and you may be limited on various options. If you have to do three separate blinds, access will be a bigger problem with the loveseat in front of the blinds. access would be very tricky for the middle blind. Are you suggesting that you would keep them permanently open on the top because of the loveseat and lack of convenient access?

There is also remote controlled option for a price!

Hope I didn't confuse you, but I am facing these exact issues with my two sets of triple double-hungs. I have been here 6 months now and still no window treatments on them because of these choices. I have 2x6 construction, but that doesn't help me.

I am not a fan of honeycombs. Not sure if they are dated or not, but I have never cared for them. I got them for my old triple window at my old house and hated them for 10 years until I finally replaced them with cordless wood blinds.

However, last time I was at the paint store, I noticed at their Hunter Douglas display that the honeycombs came in more interesting colors and textures than they did 20 years ago. Maybe they are a better option now.

Can the loveseat float in front of the window?
Georgysmom
10 years ago
Have you considered plantation shutters?
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And now onto living room window treatments...
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Comments (27)
justgotabme, thank you for those pics! I have looked at the various roman options but I lean towards the more tailored look of the flat. The waterfall is a close second but I showed DH examples from Houzz last night and he definitely wants flat. maryinthefalls, I love our pink living room!! It is Farrow & Ball Pink Ground. There are certain times of the day it is not as glowy and wonderful as I would like, but overall a wonderful choice. So glad you like yours too! I understand your point on fully compressing to get the most light. We have to do an outside mount anyway since we don't have enough depth for an inside mount, so I am going to have them hang high to allow for as much window showing as possible. mlweaving, thank you for that mock up. I did look at Smith & Noble. My choices were coming out to a lot more $. Go figure. I am trying to say away from any pattern as we have many different fabrics in that room already. We are also going to either recover or get new couches in 3-5 years. grandma, I can't do any sheers or panels on the front window as there is no place for a rod. I generally like uniformity but I have seen some nice examples on Houzz of romans on some windows and panels on another. Just has to be done right. sparkle, that window looks great! I will take a look at that type of option. francoise, thank you!! I appreciate your input. Definitely an excellent point to consider. So, a little update. I went to a local design store yesterday and they are having a window treatment sale. In less than 10 min. I picked out a great white herringbone fabric for roman shades, if we decide to go that route. DH is picking up the book today so we can see it at home. The pricing is in line with most online stores (except for the uber-budget ones) and I do like supporting local businesses when I can. We shall see if we like it. DH says the herringbone sounds interesting and that we should go with it if we like it. So, once again, the budget isn't the end all be all of choices! You guys are going to stop believing my posts when I say I want the cheapest option...
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Comments (11)
Thanks, everyone!! cyn, we bought that pheasant at an antique store that used to be local to us. Just called to get another one! It is so pretty. romy, not sure if you remember my garland dilemma. The lights on one I had and even a new one didn't match. So I ended up going fresh. I do love it, even though it is a bit messy. I mist it every morning but it is so dry! I also haven't accessorized as much as I would like but I am at a loss. Maybe next year! jjam, those shelves are going to be the death of me!! What you see now is finally fixed up! I agree they look pretty sparse. There are just so many shelves! I have left the top ones empty since I don't have enough to fill it. But something for the new year is to get more color up there. francoise, thank you so much! The "women in party dresses and smart looking men lounging" is the look I love! Very Dorothy Draper/Carlton Varney. Now, need to get on having that party!
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Living room window treatments?
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Comments (8)
Yes it will definitely soften up the room. Many companies call them different things but if you say sheer shades they will know what your are referring to. Some specific names are: Tenera shades for Lafyette Interior Window Fashions, Overture for Graber & the most know from Hunter Douglas is Nantucket or Silhouette. Nantucket tends to be cheaper then the Silhouette fabrics. Price and quality wise I prefer the Lafyette shade.
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Please Help: Suggestions on Living Room Window Treatment
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Comments (4)
I don't like the idea of a shade over the transom. it's a beautiful window. what about a type of glass inlay, stained glass or a leaded glass? they make it to fit those dimensions and you install it w/a special caulk to hold it in place. I did one w/our bathroom window. yours could look something like this you could have any design you want, just showing an example. I think it would look way better than covering it. if you want the name of someone, let me know, I have a girl on Etsy who makes custom stained glass/beveled glass. i've also seen these faux iron covers for transoms if you really don't like the transom, another option would be to have it removed and covered w/drywall. I like the idea of blinds. roman blinds, woven woods, silhouettes shades, etc. these are cellulars and come in a ton of colors/sizes (blinds.com) decide which look you like, and then go from there. beautiful room w/all of the light. I would do a nice potted plant in the corner of the two windows you could also do the plant, woven wood blinds, and some white drapes like so: I wouldn't bother w/shades on the door unless someone in the house behind you can see right in.
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Annie Deighnaugh
10 years ago
I agree that an outside mount will look fine and work as well as an inside mount. Perhaps this thread will give you some ideas....

Here is a link that might be useful: window treatment ideas
graywings123
10 years ago
Is that a baseboard radiator? If so, you are not going to want to put a loveseat in front of it. You would do better to float the furniture more toward the center of the room and keep the radiators clear.
User
10 years ago
Plantation shutters, for top and bottom, so you can close the bottom ones and leave tops open if you want.

This post was edited by Tibbrix on Wed, Jan 29, 14 at 9:41
WendyB 5A/MA
10 years ago
Your post and my response prompted me to get off my butt and figure out what to do with my similar window treatment issue. I had to go to the paint store again today so I got into it to figure out my options with the HD rep.

Because I have 2 sets of triples, I do not want to deal with 6 cords (or 12 if I do TDBU). I also have cord access issues on one triple because of a piece of furniture with plants in front of it.

So I focused my inquiry on what can I get that is wide enough (100") so that I can just get one single shade with a cord on one end (or both ends if TDBU). I ruled out cordless because I know that needs to be raised and lowered from the middle. I know one answer is honeycombs, but I wanted to see if there are other options. There is!!!

Hunter Douglas came out with a new style last year called Solera that is part-honeycomb and part-roman. I liked it. It's got the honeycomb pleat, but it is about 4" long rather than 1". It stacks nicer too and has a nice looking headrail. It has maximum widths similar to honeycomb -- big. I forget what she said, but my 100" widths would be fine. It does not do cordless which is ok by me. I think it does TDBU. I took notes. Can't find them. :-( The color selection seemed adequate and there were several texture/pattern choices.

Also we found that with the regular hunter douglas roman tiered, some fabrics can be done in a max of 106". Most cannot.

She ruled out woven woods completely. That was too bad. I like those. But one of the "fabrics" that can go wide in the Tiered Roman Shade was a nice faux woven wood look.

Anyhow, thought that may help you.

I love HD, but now to find if there is a lower priced competitor doing something similar!!!

Living Room Window Treatment

Comments (6)

WendyB 5A/MA

Georgysmom

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Annie Deighnaugh

graywings123

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