Living in a fish bowl

Moving to a new home has challenges. Whether it is new or used the window coverings are always a challenge. They also need to be addressed immediately to keep your privacy and dignity.

A couple questions need to be answered before moving to a home

1. what is the status of the window covering? 2. Are they leaving the window covering? 3. If it is a new home did you purchase window coverings as part of the sales price? 4. If not then what do you do?

5.What are your choices?

No matter if you buy a New or used home you will inevitably have to deal with window coverings.

Our first house was used and was supposed to included window covering. While moving into the to the home, we noticed all fabric drapes were gone and the blind for the large breakfast nook/dining area window was missing. We spent one night without a blind. We replaced it the next day. We slowly replaced the curtains as they were more for aesthetics and not privacy.

My Point is to always budget a little money for necessities as you move. Whether you budget is $100 or $10,000 only you can determine. Know what you want and like, but be realistic. Look at home improvement stores to get basic numbers on items.

Now on to coverings. There are tons of options and only you can know what fits your needs and tastes best. Here are a list of the most popular options and my thoughts.

Blinds - lots of colors, sizes, price ranges, and can be found everywhere. Great option. Downside is that they can be difficult to clean and after repeated use of 10 years or more most need to be replaced.

Roll Shades - come in various sizes, design, wide price range, and can be automated. Good option, but I am not a fan. I get frustrated with the manual roller shades. Automated rollers are outside my budget.

Shutters - can be made in various sizes and colors. They are a design element or statement. You can pick different molding around the window Which helps to customize to you house and taste. They can last a lifetime. Caution the ones that have an exterior wand to move the blades can break off with repeated use. Shutters come with hidden or exposed tilt. When you buy shutters expect them to last a lifetime. This can be a rather large expense but can be budget friendly also. Curtain - Curtains are great in many areas. They can be a design element to make a statement or tie a room together. They come in various sizes, shapes, colors, hardware styles, and fabric types. The fabric range from sheer coverings to black out. Sheer curtains along with light and medium eight curtain are a good way to filter light with out oppressing it from you home. Other heavy fabrics like canvas, velvet, etc can be used to block all light for people who prefer to block all light. They are great for people who work the night shifts or live in places such as Alaska. Beads - These type of window treatments are decorative and are making a come back. They should be used sparingl. they are noisy when disturbed.

Vertical blinds- nope need I say more.

Tint- If you don’t want window coverings or have direct sunlight coming through you windows tint may be an option. However remember that come tint becomes Translucent when back lite.

Before putting any window coverings in your home assess them for translucency in different light conditions especially back lighting.

Roman shade - come in various color and styles. They are a design element. They can be manual or automated. They can be expensive so use to accent a area or give you a punch of color.

Our new home has no window covering. I set up appointments with two window coverings companies and met with them as we moved. Both companies came and measured all the windows, gave us options on product, recommended products, and gave us an estimate.

The one I gave my business to was the company which provided all the products I wanted. I wanted shutters on the upstairs, blinds in the basement, and a Roman shade over the sink. Funny but the deal breaker was the Roman shade. One company didn’t carry them and tried to tell me what a bad idea they are and the other provided options.

Now they are ordered. We still need some privacy. There are a couple options for privacy.

Blankets or Sheets on the window. We have all seen these or used these for privacy. We opted for craft paper and blue tape. This gives us coverage with ease of transport and placement.

Again I will repeat this because this is important. It is your home you decide which window coverings fit your taste and life style and budget the best.