I use to install window coverings, the thing is when customers would have a blind only, even though the blind would knock out 99% of the light, they complained about light bleeding in from the top, bottom, and edges. So curtains block out the remaining light that gets through. These products are $$, I think that using the two products are kind of overkill, but hey we need our sleep.

We have the blackout cellular shades that run on a track so light is not supposed to bleed through, but it still does a little. So we also have blackout drapes. Maybe overkill but my truck driver needs to sleep during the day sometimes and is adamant....it must be black!

The best thing that worked for me was a blackout roller shade and then eclipse blackout curtains that covered. Total blackout and inexpensive (relatively speaking). Don’t get the ones with grommets because you’ll have light shining through the top

Kim Weaver my husband is a truck driver too and after working 14 hours, he is lucky if he sleeps for 6. I am considering the blinds and the blackout drapes over the top just to ensure he has complete darkness. Thanks!

Jmint I have the blackout drapes currently and they do have the grommets...I was hoping to reuse them do you notice a large amount of light coming from the top?

Deborah- Yes. Even though I had the curtains up against the ceiling and wider than the window, there was quite a bit of sun. It was frustrating. The rolling curtain that I bought from HD was a quick fix. I mounted it to the inside of the window frame. I did it this way because when I was looking for white blackout curtains, there were no real white curtains that were actually blackout except for one type that I found made by eclipse with grommets. I have since changed those out because I accidentally ruined them but I still use the roller shade underneath because I love my room dark!

Hunter-Douglas LightLock cellular shades promise full darkness by enclosing the ends of blackout cellular shades in dark, ridged tracks.

Lawrence provides a great suggestion as long as you can do an inside mount shade. Hunter Douglas offers the LightLock system, which is new to the market, and compensates for that tradition light gap that would create a halo effect around the shades. It is not currently offered in an outside mount version though so if your window do not have enough depth to do inside mount, your idea of blackout honeycomb shades with side panels usually works pretty well.

A cheap-o version of the Hunter-Douglas LightLock -- assuming you have an inside mounted cellular shade -- would be to simply paint the inside surfaces of the window matt black (or very dark). The light leakage around the shade is largely due to the sunlight reflected off those surfaces.

Hey There: As my fellow colleagues mentioned before, the challenge is the light leakage around the window shade. A fairly inexpensive solution are roller shades with theater settings. The roller shade is fully enclosed in tracks on the sides and bottom as well as the casing on top. If you motorize these blinds, your hubby can even open them before he leaves his bed....Happy Trucking!

My son works nights and sleeps during the day. He had one set of blackout curtains and it wasn't dark enough. I bought another rod and hung another set of blackout curtains over the first, so it has layered curtains. It worked really well for blocking out all the light.

Lawrence, I use to tell some customers to apply 1 " black masking to inside of the glass perimeter, it works, gotta be neat about it though.