If you really want to add some classical style to your home, I cannot recommend Roman Blinds highly enough. These are the kind of blinds that are made of a single piece of material that is rolled into pleats.
Roman blinds were first invented in (can you guess from the name) ancient Rome. Or at least, that’s what the myth is. In reality, they were probably invented somewhere in the Mediterranean (where they are still hugely popular, by the way), and were later popularized by the Romans. They were then brought back into the world of Western windows by the Victorians, who loved their neo-classical decorations.
The real beauty of roman blinds is that you can really make them out of whatever you want. Thick material or thin material, they’ll all work as Roman blinds. And you can also make them out of just about any kind of fabric, from finely spun silk to less impressive, but more durable, plastic. Linen and cotton are the most popular materials that people make these blinds from today, although paper based blinds are also becoming more and more popular.
Obviously, you can buy roman blinds ready made and ready to hang. Either as a standard, off the shelf model or, if you’re feeling more flush with cash, as a bespoke blind. But increasing numbers of people are beginning to make their own DIY Roman blinds at home.
How you go about this really depends on your level of DIY skill. If you’re up for a real challenge, you can make them from scratch, by buying your material (both for the blind and a separate lining), cutting all the material to size and then attaching it to a dowel before hanging it in your window. For the less adventurous, or less skilled, though, the option of buying a DIY Roman Blind kit exists. Basically, you get a box filled with all the materials you will need to construct your blinds – all you really need to do is provide the screwdrivers, scissors, etc, then put it all together and hang it in your window frame.
Roman blinds, by the way, aren’t just a great option for house windows. They are also a great choice for covering conservatories, which have great swathes of glass, just begging to be covered. If you want to cover a whole conservatory or sun room however, please make sure that you get some reasonably high quality reflective blinds and use these to back your roman blinds, as this will do a great deal to keep out the sunlight, and to keep you cool.