Your kitchen. If you’re like most people, it’s the center of your home. Your family gathers here. Every guest at a dinner party ends up in here. It truly is the heart of a home, and many people spend more time deciding on kitchen window treatments than those in other rooms.

Your window treatments should reflect the time and care you put into your space and that makes a careful choice in the world of kitchen window coverings absolutely essential. Not sure which way to go? These five choices are some of the best in kitchens across the Scottsdale area.

1. Roman Shades: Many people love the fabric in draperies, but they don’t typically work well in a kitchen. Roman shades give you access to the softness that drapes offer with a cleaner appearance. You can choose the fabric, so no matter what you get, it will look great in your kitchen. They’re easy to operate, too, so you’ll never have an issue making sure the right amount of light comes into your kitchen.
2. Faux Wood Blinds: Wood always looks elegant and amazing, no matter where you put it, but in the kitchen, you’re at a disadvantage. The constant heat and humidity would quickly ruin wood blinds. Faux wood, though, offers you the fantastic look of wood without the potential for damage. Easy to clean and easy to maintain, this is a fantastic choice. Paired with a custom kitchen valance, these will make a great addition to your home.
3. Woven Wood Shades: There are many types of kitchen shades available, but these have a particular advantage. They offer the same look of a natural material that faux wood blinds do. You can choose from bamboo, grasses, or even a material like jute. They’re durable and they offer a nice light diffusion. Hoping for a little room darkening action? That’s an option too. Just add a room darkening liner to them, and you’ll have complete privacy in your kitchen.
4. Cellular Shades: If light diffusion and energy efficiency are the name of the game, cellular shades is the way to go. They can help keep you warm or cool thanks to their layered technology, and they always look great when you raise or lower them. They also work well with a variety of décor choices, so you’re never going to not love this option.
5. Shutters: There’s something incredibly luxurious about shutters, and faux wood shutters work really well in the kitchen. They’re incredibly stylish, and they’re designed specifically to fit your windows. If you’re going for a classic look with your white kitchen and stainless steel appliances, you won’t do better than this option.

Still not sure? Contact us today for a free in-home design consultation that will help you see those kitchen windows in a completely new light.

Trying to decide what are the best blinds for your home? You’re not alone. Whether this is your first home or you just have a new place that you want to give a very different feel, choosing window coverings can be the toughest part of the entire decorating job. For many, the choice comes down to two main options and if you’re in that situation, understanding the difference between vertical and horizontal blinds is key to making the right choice for your home.

The Difference Between Vertical and Horizontal Blinds

The difference between these two window coverings is a fairly obvious one. Vertical blinds have slats that run up and down. Horizontal blinds have slats that run left to right in your windows or doors. Vertical blind slats tend to be larger than those of horizontal blinds, but that’s not always the case, as many horizontal blind manufacturers have gotten creative over the past few years and come up with some fairly wide slats.

Making the Choice

The difference may be obvious, but both have advantages and disadvantages, and the type that works best for you depends entirely on your home and your situation.

Horizontal Blinds: These tend to work best in smaller windows or those that are tall and narrow. They’re also usually a good choice if the top and/or bottom sash move up and down in the window frame. They allow better access to that movement. They’re easy to control, and they open and close quickly (in a matter of seconds typically). They come in a variety of colors and styles, and they’re also available in a number of different materials like wood and fabric. With the right choice, you can get a blackout level of light protection, so they’re perfect for any room in your home. They’re incredibly quiet when you use them, and they can last for many years without the need for any type of replacement.

Vertical Blinds: This type tends to work best in large windows or on sliding glass doors. In fact, they’re designed to cover a variety of incredibly wide spaces. They’re a great choice in a casement window that opens out, as they fit the architecture of the window well. They, too, are easy to open and close, but they often don’t close quite as quickly as horizontal blinds do, as they usually have quite a bit of space to cover. They tend to be a little more energy-efficient than their horizontal counterparts, which means your heat will stay in your home in the winter, and out of your home in the summer.

Vertical blinds are available in lots of different colors and styles. These days, they’re available in many different materials, too. They offer quite a bit of privacy protection and light control. They are easier to clean than horizontal blinds are too. The slats are wider, and that makes wiping them down a fairly simple task. Unlike horizontal blinds, though, they require a bit of maintenance. Vertical blinds run on a track that sits across the top of the window or door space you’re covering. When you pull the cord or push the button on the remote, the slats all follow that track. Because of the back and forth movement that’s required, track maintenance is a must. You’ll need to clean the headrail to keep dust out of the mechanism and lubricate the blinds at least once each year. If they get noisy when you close them, you may need to lubricate them more frequently. That need for maintenance can mean these will need to be replaced more quickly than horizontal blinds might.

Still not sure which is going to be the right choice to meet your needs? There’s much to consider, but Gallery of Shades can help. Reach out to us today at 480.643.0014. We offer free in-home consultations and a great showroom that will help you decide on which type of blinds might be perfect in your space.

Protection from the heat of the sun. A respite from the wind. A chance to keep the warmth in your home. These are some of the earliest reasons window coverings existed, and as far back as ancient cultures, they were part of many homes. At that time, though, they only existed in a few forms, and grass weave shades was one of them. Because it was abundant, tall grasses and bamboo often graced the windows of people in ancient cultures. Whether as a nod to these original window coverings or just a stylish rediscovery, many of today’s top window shades and blinds echo these materials, and there are lots of reasons to consider window coverings like bamboo shades or other natural woods for your home today.

The Green Choice

One of the most important reasons people choose options like bamboo shades, or those made from other natural fibers, is that they’re eco-friendly. These kinds of window coverings are all made from sustainable materials that are extensively available. They’re a safe option when you’re trying to make your entire life a little greener.

Great Textures

Natural fibers tend to have a unique texture that just can’t be matched by artificial options on the market today. That texture can do so much for any room in your house. It can work with a number of different décor styles, and the colors tend to be neutral enough to work with the other elements in a room. They’re often lightweight, too, which makes them easy to install and easy to balance with the heavier items in a room.

Privacy and Protection

You want to keep prying eyes out of your home, and natural fiber shades and blinds can do just that. They can help you maintain your privacy while still allowing the right amount of light in. What’s more, though, is that they’ll do exactly what ancient cultures hoped they would – keep the outside air out and keep the warmth (or cool) inside your home.

Ready to consider stylish, natural woven shades for your home? We have a complete selection of window coverings designed from natural materials from bamboo blinds to natural wood shades.

Learn more when you contact us today at 480.643.0014.

You may have heard quite a bit about smart homes recently without really understanding what they are. The idea of a smart home means that you’ve connected a number of different devices to help automate everyday tasks.  Things like coffee makers, thermostats, and even your lighting can be connected to a centralized hub that you can control from any internet-connected device. Smart homes don’t just stop at appliances and lighting, though. Smart blinds and smart shades can all be connected, too, giving you control of your window coverings no matter where you might be.

Motorized Window Treatments Give You So Much More Control

Wondering why you might want motorized window blinds or motorized window shades? It’s complete home control at your fingertips from anywhere in the world. Imagine a lazy Sunday morning where you’re in bed. You’d like a little of that gorgeous morning sun to come in and some light music to play. You can play the light music from the smart home app on your phone, but without smart blinds or shades, you won’t be able to let that sunshine in. If you have smart window coverings, though, that lazy Sunday morning just got a whole lot better.

Enjoying the morning sun, though, isn’t the only reason you might want more control over your window coverings. Imagine you have to travel on business, but you want to make certain your house plants get the light they need. When the morning sun hits, you can automatically raise your smart shades from thousands of miles away, then close them as evening sets in.

Smart homes are a lot smarter with the right motorized window treatments, and we can help you find the right choice to best meet your needs (and those of your windows).

To learn more about smart blinds or shades for your home, contact us today at 480.643.0014.

Few window coverings make quite the statement that plantation shutters do. That doesn’t mean keeping shutters clean, though, is an easy task. Whether you’re looking for day to day maintenance help or you want to know how to deep clean before holiday guests, these tips can help.

1. Schedule it each week. The slats need regular attention to keep them as clean as possible. Plan to dust them on a weekly basis. Use a clean, dry cloth, or even a sock, then work from the middle of the slats to the outside and from top to bottom to keep them looking their best. While a microfiber cloth tends to work best, you can use whatever you have on hand.
2. For the occasional deep clean, you may need a bit more power, and a paintbrush, some oil soap, and some water can give it to you. Dip your paintbrush in the soapy water, then “paint” across your blinds. When you get done, run a dry cloth to remove any excess cleaner you find. As you work, clean your brush regularly, as if you don’t, you could actually spread added dirt around. If you have faux wood shutters, you don’t even need the oil soap. Some standard dish soap will do.
3. The nooks can be easier to hit with a soft toothbrush. As you do a deeper cleaning of your shutters, just get a soft toothbrush from the store, then use it to eliminate dust from the corners of your shutters. It will be gentle enough not to scratch your shutters, but tough enough to get rid of the dust buildup.

Shutters are a nice touch for any home but keeping shutters clean intimidates many people. Luckily, with these quick, easy shutter cleaning tips, it’s a task you can handle quickly and efficiently.

If you are interested in finding the right shutters for your home, contact us today to set-up a free in-home design consultation with a Gallery of Shades professional.

Recent studies have shown one in three adults do not get the sleep they need. Often that’s due to a variety of reasons, but one main culprit behind sleep problems is that there’s simply too much light in people’s bedrooms. Whether that’s because you’re a shift worker who has to sleep odd hours or you just have a pesky streetlight shining into your room, the right bedroom shades or blinds can help eliminate the problem entirely.

Window Blinds vs. Bedroom Blinds

Aren’t all blinds created equally? Can’t you simply use what you have in the living room? While you can absolutely use the same blinds in all of your spaces, the truth is that if you’re looking for the best window coverings available, you have to look on a room by room basis. It may not matter to you if the dining room is absolutely dark at night. Choosing blinds that allow ambient light into the bedroom, though, could make it difficult for you to sleep. Light suggests to your body that it shouldn’t be sleeping too deeply, and as a result, selecting blinds or shades that allow any light at all may mean you don’t sleep as well. Selecting blackout shades or curtains, though, can help put an end to the light sources that may be disrupting your sleep cycle.

Which Choice is Best?

Not quite sure which option is the best one to meet your needs? Feel free to shop around. Of course, you want a window treatment that looks great, but you also want one that has the ability to completely block the light. If you’re looking for a heavy drapery, blackout curtains should be a good bet, and they come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. If, however, you prefer something like roman shades, cellular shades, or even blinds, all of those come in blackout varieties designed specifically for your bedroom.

Whether you already have something in mind or you need some help selecting the right bedroom window treatments to meet your needs, we’re here to help. Contact us today at 480.643.0014 for a free in-home design consultation!

There’s quite a bit of research around the power of light. A healthy dose of natural light can help increase vitamins B and D in your body. It’s been known to improve circulation, boost your immune system, and even increase your endorphins to help you feel better from day-to-day. Getting enough light during the day may even help you sleep better at night. Sound too good to be true? It’s not, but the tough part is making sure you get the natural light you need, and often that means letting the light into your house. Fortunately, there are many ways to ensure your home is as light and airy as possible. Color choices and light window treatments are a great way to let in more natural light.

Start with the Colors

One of the first places you’ll want to start is with your color scheme. Wherever you can, go with lightly colored furniture and accents. White bookcases, a cream-colored couch, even a white table can help brighten your space a bit. Have a dark wood floor? Update it with white rugs. You’ll want to extend this new color scheme to your walls as well. Sure, there are millions of paint colors to choose from, and the lighter ones may seem a bit boring, but nothing will do the trick of lightening your home quite like a fresh coat of paint.

Think About Your Windows

If you’re going to let the light in, you need to think about how much natural light can come into any given space. Your windows are key to that equation. Begin with a bit of rearranging. Create a new room layout that helps to focus on your windows. You’re going to get lots of natural light from that space, so you’ll want to keep the area around it as open and airy as possible. You’ll want to head outside to take a closer look at your windows too. If you have trees or bushes blocking the flow of natural light, trim them back as much as possible. If the light can’t get in, it’s not going to help brighten your room. While you’re outside, clean the window. You’ll want to do the same thing inside.

Finally, think about the window treatments you already have installed. Heavy drapes aren’t going to help make your room any lighter. Instead, go with light window treatments. There are lots of great window treatment options on the market today that allow you to protect your privacy while still ensuring light flows throughout the home. Sheers are a natural choice, but there are so many other options that you’ll certainly want to sit down with a window treatment expert to consider custom window treatments and make a decision that’s right for every single room in your house.

Add Some Accents

What you hang on your walls really does matter if you’re trying to give your home a lighter feel. You’ll want to eliminate many other choices here in favor of mirrors. Adding mirrors to your décor allows the natural light coming from the windows to bounce off and spread around the room. Consider hanging those mirrors across from the largest windows. You can even hang several smaller mirrors to create the same effect.

Think Light Fixtures

Your lamps may be giving off a yellow tint that just isn’t working for your space. You can change that with your bulb choice. Bright white LED bulbs will help to ensure the brightness shines through your house. If you don’t have enough lighting, you may want to consider adding a few more lamps and light fixtures to help brighten things up even when the sun isn’t shining.

Light, particularly natural light, can do amazing things for your space. Let the light shine through your home with simple changes like these. 

Uniquely shaped windows are an architectural feature in your home you may absolutely love until you try to find the right window covering ideas to fit. Privacy and light control are key with any window shape, but it doesn’t come easy when you have arches, angles, circles, skylights, bay windows, and more. Where do you even begin to decide how to cover these types of windows? Do they even make specialty window treatments for all of these? Actually, shaped windows are not as much of a challenge as you think.

Diagnose Your Shape

The key to finding the right window treatment is to first make sure you understand its shape. Perfect arches mean your window’s height is exactly half of its width. Imperfect arches, though, mean that you don’t have that ideal window measurement ratio. Understanding what you have on your hands will help you find the right window treatment to meet your needs.

Go Custom

One of the single best things you can do to end the endless internet search for the right window treatments for your shaped windows is to select a provider who can offer custom window treatments based on the unique sizes and shapes in your home. These windows look gorgeous, but grabbing an off-the-shelf solution that wasn’t really designed for them isn’t going to highlight that cute shape. Instead, it’s going to cover it up, which is the last thing you want to do. At Gallery of Shades, we carry an entire line of specialty window treatments designed for arches, curves, skylights, bay windows, and more, and we have the selection on hand ready for you to choose. We’ll even help you decide what shape you’re dealing with and what might look best in that space.

Ready for a free consultation? Learn more about how powerful custom window treatments can be in your space when you contact us today.

How would you like to save 25% on your next energy bill? It sounds like a dream come true right, especially with Arizona’s summer heat and the bills to cool your home in the summer. Believe it or not, window coverings can make it possible. A U.S. Department of Energy study found that on average, homeowners can save up to 25% thanks to the right window covering choices, and that could not only mean a lower energy bill, but also a cooler home. Wondering what defines energy-efficient window coverings? This quick guide can help.

Window Blinds

These are a good choice. The horizontal slats mean some of the heat can get into your home, but choosing a highly reflective choice can help to reduce that heat. What’s more, though, is that they offer some measure of flexibility. You can adjust those slats as the temps cool off at night to control ventilation and let some of that cooler air in.

Cellular Shades

These are one of the easiest ways to save energy, but to do so, you’ll need to make sure that they’re drawn all day while you’re trying to keep your home cool. The cellular shades should be mounted close to the glass to help seal up any space where the heat might come into your home. Their layers help to act as an air barrier, which makes them a pretty effective choice.

Blackout Curtains

This type of curtain offers you a dual benefit. Many people are familiar with the primary benefit – they help keep the light out. That can be an amazing help for night shift workers who need to sleep during the day or those who struggle to sleep at night. They also help save energy, though. Keeping that light out means keeping the heat out, which can help keep your home much cooler. The key, though, is to ensure they’re closed well before the heat starts each day.

Automated Window Treatments

This is one of the newest ways to keep your home cooler. It’s derived from the smart home trend, and the idea here is that you program these to open and close on a set schedule. That helps to not only make your home safer (it eliminates the cords that can harm kids and pets), but it also keeps your home much cooler, as you can decide just how much light and heat you want in the room, even when you’re away.

Not sure which one is best for your home? Let Gallery of Shades help you find the right window treatment to keep that heat outside and your energy bill lower!