Some manufacturers of wood and faux wood blinds offer customer's option of "notching" their blind to accommodate a door handle or other protrusion.  Now, to be sure most people do not desire a blind notch for their french door handle as it compromises privacy a bit.  And, it is possible to still use your door handle with a wood or faux wood blind installed which has no handle cut-out.

Additionally, from a technical perspective, measuring for a door handle cut-out requires a level of precision which requires knowing how your manufacturer uses the measures provided to fabricate the wood or faux wood blind.  This is due to the fact that measures must generally be provided from the bottom of the blind to the bottom and top of the cut-out.  Additionally, measures must be provided for how far in the cut-out must notch into the blind.  And, there is usually a size restriction on how big the cut-out can be - generally something like 5 1/2".  What makes this tricky is that different fabricators may calculate based on window size, outside frame to outside frame, or actual blind height.  If you don't know how they do it - and if you guess wrong - then your notch will miss the handle.  Oops - that is just annoying. 

Of course, there is also a surcharge for this cut - generally around $50 to $100 per blind depending on the fabricator, retailer, and installer.  However, with the right advise, knowledge, and application this can be a very convenient custom feature which makes your wood or faux wood project stand out.

​Of course, we would love to help you with your french door cut-out on your wood or faux wood blind.  Also, for a rough idea of what your project might cost, check out our online wood and faux wood blind calculator.  

As another summer approaches with its bright daytime sunlight, many people start to notice the wear and tear of their blinds, floors, walls, and finishings.  As such, we generally see an uptick in the sale of faux wood blinds during the summer as folks take on their indoor projects - painting, floors, kitchens, baths, and new window coverings.

The nice thing about replacing your blinds during your summertime renovations is that they will not break the bank.  This allows you to overspend a bit on your new counter tops and still have very nice looking clean new faux wood blinds.

One more thought, if you have some other type of window covering and are concerned about the replacement costs of cell shades, woven woods, roller shades, etc., then please know that you can safely choose faux wood blinds which will compliment your efforts while saving money.

Of course, we would love to help you with your summertime faux wood blind.  Also, for a rough idea of what your project might cost, check out our online wood and faux wood blind calculator.

Many corporate offices have sidelight windows next to their office doors.  These office windows are internal windows and as such generally have no sunlight control issues.  Of course, for office conference rooms the windows may have the need for light control for presentation purposes.  Additionally, executive, managerial and professional offices often have privacy needs.

What we have noticed as we have worked with multiple commercial clients is that these sidelight windows are either left uncovered or may receive an inexpensive mini blind for office privacy.  So, please kindly try to imagine a professional office nicely appointed with beautiful furnishings and well-appointed decor - and then there is a mini blind on the the sidelight next to the window because occasional privacy is required as a business need.  Can you see how this is counterproductive?  Can you see how this undoes a lot of thoughtful decor work which was designed to create a pleasant office environment which projects your corporate success and image?

We understand that mini blinds are chosen as a financial decision, however we believe that by spending just a little bit more you can maintain the look and feel of your office design plan.  This is easily accomplished by choosing a stained wood blind for your sidelight windows.  With this, you can actually keep the high end professional look of your office without breaking the bank.

Of course, we would love to help you with your office wood blind project.  Also, for a rough idea of what your project might cost, check out our online wood and faux wood blind calculator.

In today's marketplace, there are three primary options when ordering your wood or faux wood blind tilting feature.  They are motorized tilt, wand tilt, and cord tilt.  Let's take a quick look at each option.

Motorized Tilt
​
The least used and known tilt option is the motorized feature.  Motorized tilt is great for child safety and for hard to reach windows, but the cost of this option is often prohibitive, especially for consumers of wood and faux wood blinds which are looking for lower priced window covering options.

Wand Tilt

The wand tilt is the familiar "stick" which connects to the head rail of your wood or faux wood blind.  As you twist the stick, the blind will tilt open or closed.  The advantages of the wand tilt feature are that it eliminates cords, which is great for child safety, and if your lift feature and tilt feature are located on the same side of the blind, the wand won't tangle with your lift cords.  However, a significant downside of the wand tilt feature is that the mechanics of this type of mechanism make it far more likely to fail over time.

Cord Tilt

The cord tilt mechanism has become the standard wood and faux wood blind tilting feature over the past decade.  Cord tilts tend to allow you to close your blinds tighter without damaging the mechanism and they are easier to use.  A simple tug on one cord or the other easily tilts the blind, and tilt cords are less noticeable in your window then a wand.

Here is something else to consider.  Wood or faux wood blinds over 96" in length require a cord tilt - no wand option is available.  What does that tell you?  That a wand won't handle the weight and extra torque required to completely close longer blinds.

Just some tidbits for your consideration as you shop for your wood or faux wood blinds.  Of course, we would love to help you work through the tilt options on your faux wood blind project.  Also, for a rough idea of what your project might cost, check out our online wood and faux wood blind calculator.

Faux wood blinds are much heavier than real wood blinds.  As such, for larger windows the weight becomes more and more of an issue.

Consider this - faux wood blinds weigh approximately 2x's more than real wood blinds.  So, if a 36" x 48" wood blind weighs about 10 pounds, then the same size faux wood blind would be approximately 20 pounds. These weights are just rough estimates for the purposes of this blog article.

However, when we are talking about larger windows the weighs become more significant.  Please kindly follow the logic.  If a 96" x 60" wood blind weighs 25 pounds, then the same size faux wood blind could be 50 pounds. As you can see, we are now dealing with weight that would stress the cords, lock mechanisms and even your ability to lift it.  In fact, some of these larger faux wood blinds can be so heavy that they are impossible to lift with just the cord, and as such require a hand underneath the bottom rail to help carry some of the weight.

The industry deals with this weight issue by limiting the size of these blinds.  For instance, top line brands might be willing to make faux wood blinds as wide as 86" as long as the height of the blind does not exceed 48".  If a fabricator is willing to make a large faux wood blind, then they will advise NOT using the lift function of the blind and/or will require a warranty waiver.  For the mid-level or cut-down faux wood brands, the width of the blind generally will not exceed 72" with a maximum height of 96".

This is why larger windows are almost better handled with real wood blinds, whenever design parameters work with that choice.

Of course, we would love to help you work through the weight issues of your faux wood blind project.  Also, for a rough idea of what your project might cost, check out our online wood and faux wood blind calculator.

Perhaps you love the look of plantation shutters, but like many of us are living on a budget.  In this case, we have a suggestion - consider real wood stained blinds with a 2 1/2" slat.  The larger slat matches the view through provided by shutters with 2 1/2" louvers and the stain provides a higher end design look.

The larger view through, coupled with the rich look of stain, creates a look which rivals the elegance of shutters, except done on a budget.  Of course, plantation shutters are in a league of their own with thicker louvers and their panel door look.  However, when you consider that most people choose white shutters, the option to have a rich stained look in a 2 1/2" wood blind maximizes value toward a shutter-like look - but on a wood blind budget.

One last thing to remember, your design look will be stand alone - meaning that the stained wood blinds with the 2 1/2" louvers will be on display in your home and there will be no shutters in sight with which to compare. As such, the high-end elegance of your wood blind design choice will be seen for the exception look and beauty which it represents - and only you will know how much money your saved.

If you would like 2 1/2" stained wood blinds in your home, then we would love to help you.  Also, for a rough idea of what your project might cost, check out our online wood and faux wood blind calculator.

The motor systems on horizontal wood and faux wood blinds is designed to tilt your blind to any angle. The motorized system will not lift the blind - wood and faux wood blinds are just too heavy to work well with a motorized lift system.  As such, manufacturers do not currently offer motorized lift option for wood or faux wood blinds.

However, most people rarely if ever lift their wood or faux wood blinds, rather they tilt them for light control and privacy, as such motorized tilt can be a convenient feature.  The motor in these blinds is a 12 volt system delivered with either a battery tube which contains 8ea lithium batteries, or else a hard wire plug with a 12 volt transformer.  Obviously, the hardwire option provides a better more consistent power stream which does not require periodic battery replacement, but for the corded option you do have to deal with how best to run the cord form the top of the headrail to the nearest outlet location.

Are you looking for a motorized tilt system for your wood or faux wood blind?  If so, then we would love to help you.  Also, for a rough idea of what your project might cost, check out our online wood and faux wood blind calculator.

Do you have a narrow window or two that needs a wood or faux wood blind?  If your window that is least 12" wide, then no problem.  A standard wood or faux wood blind can be fabricated for your opening.  This means that the blind will have both a tilt mechanism and a lift function within the blind.

However, if your sidelight type windows are between 8"-12" wide, then special considerations must be made. These type windows are often next to an entry door.  For this application, a wood or faux wood blind can still be fabricated, but will only have a tilt mechanism mounted in the center of the blind with no lift function.  This solution works well as these long narrow windows generally do not open - and as such lifting the blind is something that is never done.  Actually, isn't this true for most of the wood and faux wood blinds in your space?

If you do need to access the window for cleaning, simply lift the blind from the bottom and let the slats gather, or just carefully remove the blind from the brackets and then replace when done.

If your window is narrower than 8", then a wood or faux wood blind option might be harder to find, however mounting something outside mount that is wide than 8" is often a possibility.

Are you looking for a wood or faux wood blind for your narrow windows?  If so, then we would love to help you.  Also, for a rough idea of what your project might cost, check out our online wood and faux wood blind calculator.

First, please kindly realize that wood and faux wood blinds are not the best choice for room darkening. Wood and faux wood blinds have lots of router holes to accommodate the cords necessary to tilt and lift your blinds. All these holes will allow for lots of light bleed while slightly reducing privacy.  Now to be sure, wood and faux wood blinds do provide decent privacy as someone would have to work at it to see in if your wood or faux blinds are closed, however this level of privacy would be unacceptable to most hotel chains.

So, what can you do to provide a little bit more light control and privacy on your wood or faux wood blind?  In short, the answer is either to choose a routerless option or else add tapes to your wood or faux wood blind.  The routerless option provides notches at the back of the slats, so there are no holes in the slats and the slats close tighter.  Fabric tapes are also an option, and can be matched or contrasted to your blinds.  By covering the route holes and the cords that extend down the length of the blind, cloth tapes improve privacy and light control, making them both functional and stylish.

Are you looking for an increased privacy and light control for your wood or faux wood blinds?  If so, then we would love to help you.  Also, for a rough idea of what your project might cost, check out our online wood and faux wood blind calculator.

Many homes contain arched windows.  These windows are either stand-alone or can be included on the top portion of a standard rectangular window.  For those folks which want wood or faux wood blinds throughout their house but are unsure how to deal with the arch portion of their window, we have good news for you.

Many fabricators, including our local fabricator, can provide a matching arch blind which compliments the rest of the wood blinds in your house.  Here are a few of the options available which include:

• Having the same colors available as you do for your wood or faux wood blinds.
• Providing a stationary fan arch which is made with matching 2" basswood or engineered faux wood slat.
• Providing the option for a movable fan arch at a surcharge.
• Producing frames which are made of Basswood with a routed trim inside and out.
• Offering the option for a matching 2.5" slats, if needed.
• Engineering the blind so that the frame of the arch overlaps the window sill to reduce light seepage.
• Generous designer dimensions, such that the frame of the arch blind extends over the edge of the window sill 1 ½ to 2” in width and 2 ½ to 3” in height.

As you can see from the picture above, these wood and faux wood blind arches provide a great option and even compliment plantation shutters - and will coordinate perfectly with your wood or faux wood blinds throughout your space.

Would you like to incorporate the value and beauty of arched wood or faux wood blinds into your decor?  If so, then we would love to help you.  Also, for a rough idea of what your project might cost, check out our online wood and faux wood blind calculator.