When ordering made to measure Roman blinds from First Choice Blinds you simply have to choose the fabric and lining type, they can be controlled manual or motorised and they will be custom made to your requirements.

Can Roman Blinds be Made From Any Type of Fabric?

Roman blinds can be made from a wide choice of good quality fabrics. plain or patterned standard and blackout fabrics can be used to coordinate or contrast with the colour scheme of your room. Pictorial and patterned fabrics can also be used to add visual interest to a window and compliment a room’s theme, while plain blocks of colour can be used to add a splash of colour. It is also possible to use the same fabric as other soft furnishings in the room to create a totally coordinated and matched style.

First Choice Blinds Best Fabric Choices

As Roman blinds can be made from various weights and thickness of fabric they can be used to create different looks from crisp looking folds which shows off the smooth, lustrous sheen of the fabric beautifully. Medium weight cottons, polyester/cotton blends, linen, blended linen. All of these fabric choices are available in an extensive range of colours and patterns which not only looking stunning, will provide a durable Roman blind with longevity. Any non-stretch fabric will create crisp, sharp folds that remain straight and true, giving the blind a professional finish.

 

Heavy weight fabrics such as velvet, crushed velvet, chenille and pure wool fabrics can also be used for Roman blinds, as they are able to be raised to create soft, neat folds and pleats. However, these fabrics do not make sharp, crisp folds or lay as flat as medium weight cottons, but they will give a sumptuous, voluptuous look that will not have any detrimental effects on the operating mechanisms. Heavy weight fabrics are a good choice for ill-fitting and draughty windows as they’ll provide a layer of insulation to the windows.

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Linings for Roman Blinds

Good quality lining fabric needs to be used in order for a Roman blind to be made correctly. The lining not only hides the tape channels, dowels etc., it also gives the blind fabric stability and shape, enabling the skilled seamstresses to achieve accurate finished measurements. The lining also protects the face fabric from fading due to sunlight and helps prevent the face fabric from touching any moisture present at the window.

Why not to Choose Coloured Lining?

There are two main reasons for not choosing a coloured lining: (1). The sun can create a faded, striped effect on the back of the blinds. (2). White or cream tapes or stitch channels do not look attractive against dark or bright coloured fabrics when the blind is viewed from outside the window.

Dim-out and Shading Linings

The lining plays an important role in the type of shading the blind creates for your window. Polyester/cotton or standard cotton give what is known as ‘standard’ shading to a Roman blind. It will help protect the back of the face fabric from being damaged by the sun, but will not prevent light from filtering through the face fabric. The standard lining is useful if you want to lower the Roman blind during the daytime to prevent sun glare without completely darkening the room.

Blackout Linings

First Choice Blinds blackout or blockout linings do exactly as the name implies. They block out unwanted outside artificial or natural light from passing through the face fabric. Blackout linings are recommend for all bedroom Roman blinds and rooms which require good levels of sun blocking such as media rooms and home theatres. Blackout lining is also recommend on very lightweight fabrics such as lightweight cotton, faux silk and taffetas. These fabrics have a semi-transparent nature, particularly when daylight or bright sun are behind them, which means the dowel tapes, seams and operating cords may be visible when the Roman blind is lowered. This is not a very visually pleasing effect and the blackout lining will help prevent this for happening.

 

These lightweight fabrics are also subject to slubs, naturally occurring small lumps of tread trapped in the weave, which can look like slightly darker patches or plucks which can create tiny holes in the weave of the fabric through which strong daylight make visible. A blackout lining prevents either of these two issues from being barely noticeable. Today’s modern blackout linings aren’t bulky and thick, so don’t think that they will detract from the beauty of a lightweight face fabric. Quite the contrast in fact, they will give stability and sustenance to the overall look. Wide Roman blinds which have been made from more than one piece of fabric will also benefit from a blackout lining as the seams may be visible through the face fabric if only a ‘standard’ lining is used. As a blackout lining prevents light from penetrating through the blind it eliminates any shadow lines from the seams.

Recommended Linings

We offer a choice of three quality linings suitable for Roman blinds. 1. Standard – Polyester/cotton, available in cream only. 2. Luxury cotton sheen – Cotton, available in white or cream. 3. Supersoft blackout – Cotton, available in white or ivory. Simply make your selection from the drop menu as you go through the ordering system.

 

Choices in Fitting Roman Blinds Inside or Outside of the Window Recess

Once you have decided to use Roman blinds as your window dressing the next step is to decide whether you want them installed inside or outside the recess of your window. This decision is your choice, however, here are some points worth taking into consideration.

Small Windows and Windows With Low Level Light Sources

Rooms with small windows and a poor natural light source need a window dressing that maximises what little light you have to make the room look and feel lighter and more spacious. If wall space or other obstructions aren’t an issue Roman blinds fitted to the outside and above of the recess can help you achieve more light and the illusion of larger windows.

Mounting the blind above the window recess to accommodate the stack depth, the measurement of the Roman blind top to bottom when it is raised, means that it won’t sit next to the window pane and therefore not obstruct the light source as much as it will if the blind was installed inside the recess.

Architectural Window Details

When your window has architectural details, such as picture or dado rails that are inside the recess, you have to decide what width the Roman blind should be if you want to fit it inside the recess. If you decide to take the blind measurement between the width of the decorative feature there will be a gap both sides of the blind when it is fitted; alternatively you can fit the blind across the full width of the recess and accept that the blind may look slightly uncomfortable when it knocks against the mouldings. In this scenario it is worth considering fitting the Roman blind outside and above the recess to eliminate the issues.

Only Blinds or Curtains as Well?

When dressing windows in certain styles, such as ‘swags and tails’ there is a working blind fitted into the recess and curtains, swept open from the centre and draped down the sides to form the ‘swags and tails, which stay in place, and are never drawn closed. In this scenario you will be unable to mount the blinds outside the window recess as this is where the curtain track will be.

When Roman blinds are the only window dressing it is often a better option to fit them to the outside of the window recess. This style gives a classy, elegant look to the window, particularly in living rooms, dining rooms and bedrooms, as the bottom edge of the blind typically covers the top edge of the window recess, adding a subtle softness to the window and taking the bareness off the room.

Limited Wall Space

When you little or no flat wall space at either side of the window then it is worth considering fitting the Roman blind inside the recess. Ideally Roman blinds should be fitted to the outside of the recess, extending a bare minimum of 5cms (2 ½ ”) both sides of the window. Usually 7 – 10cms (3” – 4”) is the recommended amount of extension beyond the window frame required for the blind to look stylish, and to help prevent light from creeping around the sides. if you don’t have the bare minimum of 5cms the blind would probably look better fitted inside the window recess.

Can You Successfully Use First Choice Blinds Roman Blinds in Bay Windows?

Bay windows are notorious for being difficult to dress with any type of window dressing, however, by giving consideration to the options, some careful planning and using hints and tips from ‘the experts’, you can dress your bay windows stylishly with Roman blinds. Always give consideration to the corners and angles of your bay window, take time to get the measurements correct and follow the guide below to dress your bay window in elegant style.

Bay Window Types

Boxed

Boxed bay windows have three sides, with a wider central panel with much narrower panels each side. The two side windows are at a 90 degree angle to the main, central panel, which creates a boxed, or oblong shape window. Boxed bay windows are considered to be the hardest type to dress with any type of blinds, including Roman blinds, due to the 90 degree angles presenting not only measuring challenges but also require consideration on how and where the blinds should meet. As Roman blinds stack on top of each other when they are raised (open) they create a certain amount of volume or bulk at the top of the window. Accurate measuring is required otherwise there is a risk that the blinds will overlap which means that raising and lowering them can cause problems.

Curved

Curved bay windows have five or more sides which are joined at much shallower angles to create the curve. Planning and measuring involves measuring for an inside recess fit and calculating the finished blind size rather than supplying the recess size measurements. Again the measurements need to be correct to help avoid the blinds interfering with each other when being raised or lowered. The volume created at the top of the window also needs to be taken into consideration.

Splayed or Angled

Splayed or angled bay windows have three sides. The central panel is wider than the two side panels like a boxed bay, however, the two side angles on splayed bay windows are 45 degrees which creates the angled style without it looking like a box. Just like boxed and curved bay windows careful measurements are required to help prevent overlapping when the blinds are being operated. Also the volume created at the top of the window when the blinds are raised needs to be considered.

• Roman blinds which touch at the side edges look very neat and tidy and are better at blocking out the light, however, they can create a stacking issue when the blinds are raised (open) in the fully stacked position due to the volume of the fabric.
• Crushing issues can also be a problem in this scenario, as the stacks of folds on the centre panel will meet the stacks of folds on the side panels at the angled corners of the bay window. By choosing to have a slight gap between the side of the blinds can help alleviate the potential crushing issue.
• Alternatively you may like to consider having each blind raised, open, at a slightly different level to avoid the problem. This is created by having the central blind raised fully to the top of the window and having the side panels raised to sit just below the stack folds of the central blind. This method gives a symmetrical and balanced look to the window dressing which gives very acceptable modern styling.
• With either option the blind needs to be set forward in the recess so that the back of the blind doesn’t snag on the window’s handles or catches and stop it from being raised or lowered easily. Not only will the blinds look unsightly if the handles make bulges, there is also the risk of the fabric being damaged and ripped or the operating cords becoming snagged.
• If you want the side blinds to touch the sides of the central blind/s you need to take the measurements from the corner point to where you want the outer edge of the blind to finish.
• If you want the blinds to have slight gaps to alleviate the potential crushing issue, then you need to take off the allowance to suit the look you’re after. However, you need to ensure that each blind measurement has the same amount take off to obtain a balanced and even look. Also take into consideration that the more allowance you take off the more the chances are that you will see the glass window pane, which does not give a smart, professional look and of course, will allow light to be seen around the sides and not give total privacy.
• Consideration of the depth size, front to back, is required because this will determine the type of header rail the Roman blind is going to be fitted on. The front point of the header rail is where the fabric of the blind is fixed to and therefore the point at which you need to take the measurements from. For example, if the thickness of the header rail is 40mm (1 ½ ”) from front to back, then, even if it is flush against the window frame and it doesn’t need to be moved forward to clear handles and catches, then you need to take the blinds’ measurements 40mm (1 ½”) forward of the window frame.
• If you need to fix the blind forward to clear the handles and catches, for example another 10mm (½”) then the front of the Roman blind will need to be a total of 50mm (2 ½”) forward of the frame – 40mm + 10mm = 50mm. This will be the position from which you need to take your width measurements.

Why choose First Choice Blinds Roman blinds?