With so many different options we have put together an extensive list of different Window Treatment options including the pros and the cons.
2 inch Horizontal Blind:
Pros: affordable, versatile, practical, provide a high level of light blockage and control, several different manufacturers to choose from.
Cons: Not a blind designed to be raised and lowered a lot. Best suited to turning the louvers, due to weight at larger sizes. Dust collector.
Vertical Blind:
Pros: affordable, versatile, practical, provide a high level of light blockage and control. Made in house, lifetime warranty on all tracks, 7 years on vanes. Over 500 different patterns and colors of PVC’s and fabrics. Can cover up to 16 feet of window with one unit.
Cons: A little old fashioned, has a large stack when opened
Honeycomb Blind:
Pros: #1 treatment for energy efficiency and sound absorption. Is the truest “blackout” shade, with the foil inside the cell, and it has the ability to get as close to the edge of the window as possible. Ideal bedroom shade, provides maximum privacy. Maximum heat control. Comes in a wide variety of light filtering fabric colors as well as blackouts. Different pleat sizes. Comes with several different lifting mechanisms, cord loop, cordless, ultraglide. Slim stacking at the top. With the top down bottom up feature it allows more versatility. Hunter Douglas products come with a lifetime warranty and has a repair center located in Naples.
Cons: Not as versatile as some other treatments. It’s either up or down, open or closed (on standard shades). Some feel it’s a bit boring.
Honeycomb Vertiglide:
Pros: It has replaced the vertical blind as the new go to product for sliding glass doors. It’s a giant honeycomb we tip on its side and goes side to side. It can go 13 feet one way and stacks into a 6 inch cassette. It’s the “view saver.” No other product eliminates the stack like the Vertiglide does. Energy efficient, since the slider is the biggest energy waster in the house. Wide variety of colors, fabrics, light filtering and blackout.
Solera Roman Shade:
Pros: Hunter Douglas’ newest addition to their Roman shade line. Very affordable compared to other hobbled roman shades such as the Vignette. An edgy, modern pleat with a traditional hobbled look. Comes cordless, cord loop, or ultra glide. It has a cellular construction, so it’s a very energy efficient shade. Comes in light filtering and room darkening fabrics. Can get as close to the edge of the window from as a honeycomb. Has a nice finished look when the blind is raised all the way. Hunter Douglas lifetime warranty.
Cons: There is no top down bottom up feature available, it’s open or closed, not as versatile.
HD Silhouette/Nantucket:
Pros: As beautiful a treatment as there is. Sheer fabric encases a fabric horizontal vanes, very soft elegant look that’s also versatile. Comes in 2, 3, and 4 inch vanes (Nantucket 3). Light filtering and room darkening fabrics. Cordless, cord loop, ultra glide, and ultra glide plus (Silhouette only). Newest Silhouette features a blackout roller shade to eliminate and light seepage between vanes for maximum light protection. It disappears into a classy fabric wrapped cassette. Hunter Douglas lifetime warranty on lifting mechanisms.
Cons: As expensive a treatment as there is. Nantucket is less though. Will catch bugs, which can easily be removed. Should be professionally cleaned, although they’re amazingly dirt repellant. In a standard configuration, not always an ideal bedroom shade for light sleepers due to a small amount of light seepage between the vanes, even with the room darkening fabrics. Not a good treatment if you have cats with claws, or kids with pudding fingers.
HD Luminette:
Pros: The Heavyweight champ of window treatments. As stunning and elegant a treatment as there is, it’s the Silhouette’s vertical brother. The look of a drapery, but with all the versatility of a vertical blind. The sewn in vanes are encased with sheer fabric. The “ribbon” at the top of the treatment really gives it a finished look. Hunter Douglas lifetime warranty on all hardware.
Cons: It has as large of a stack as most products of its type. No kids, no pets, with the Luminette. Should be professionally cleaned.
Plantation Shutters:
Pros: Lifetime warranty, from a local manufacturer, that actually means lifetime warranty. Only premium Poplar wood is used, kiln dried, and double coated in whichever quality paint you’d like, or stain. Split tilt feature gives nice versatility. Hidden tilt provides a cleaner look for $3 more per square foot. When you purchase a plantation shutter, you’re never going to have to fuss with a treatment ever again on that window. 2.5, 3.5, or 4.5 inch louver available for no extra cost. Beveled style classical frame or flat style frame option is free. Cutouts are a very nice feature for doors. Wood starts at $24 per square foot, Vinyl at $23. We prefer wood for two reasons, 1. We can paint it any color 2. We can go 36 inches per panel in wood vs only 30 in Vinyl. On a 36 inch window, that’s a big deal. We would however recommend the Vinyl in windows that are directly over the shower, or maybe in the garage, where there is an excessive amount of humidity. Nobody in their right mind has ever complained about buying a new house and it having premium shutters in it already, so they’re a good investment, it’s like furniture for your windows.
Cons: They do eat up a lot of your view, even when opened. The 4.5 inch vein is an option to maximize the view, but if you have a really pretty view of the beach, maybe a shutter wouldn’t be the best option. Plastic magnets will break after 5-8 years depending on how much sun and heat are hitting them, I always have magnets in the shop. Every panel has two tension screws, so if your louvers ever start to sag and not stay where they should, a half a crank with a Philips head screwdriver will fix them in a second. There’s nothing bad to say about shutters really, they’re a wonderful product.
Comfortex Overtones:
Pros: It’s my favorite treatment. It’s called a double roller shade by some companies. It’s versatile, and pretty. Has the Silhouette look with the sheer fabric but without that price. Typically 30-35% less than a Silhouette. A bit more versatile than a Silhouette in fact because of the way the panels bypass each other, you can have it opened or closed, while being at whatever desired height you’d like. Disappears into a classy fabric wrapped cassette. We carry several different companies’ version of it we like it so much, and there are some really amazing fabrics available.
Cons: Does not come in room darkening fabrics. Not ideal for bedrooms because of a lack of room darkening fabrics and the gap on the sides is more pronounced due to the fact that it is a roller shade design.
Comfortex Ballet:
Pros: Sheer fabric wraps around either light filtering or room darkening veins. A soft look, similar to that of the Luminette but for around 30-40% less. Very versatile, can easily control light. A good choice for those with pets, due to the individual panel construction. The fabric wrapped cassette valance looks really sharp. Also I like the fact that all the fabrics are the same price, even the very elegant fancy ones.
Cons: Has a large stack. Does not come with the finished looking ribbon that is on a Luminette. Over 60 inches in height, the treatment must have pvc vanes to ensure that the fabric closes properly.
Sun Screens/Roller shades:
Pros: Gives you a high degree of sun and heat protection while still allowing you the ability to see through the shade. Perfect for sunrooms, or lanai porches. Mostly made from Vinyl, so they’re tough as nails. Hundreds of colors, patterns, openness factors, and manufacturers. Comes in light filtering and blackout fabrics as well. It has the ability to be reverse rolled at no cost, to create its own valance. We can add spring assist power clutches on really big shades to help aid in lifting, as well as weather proof clutches. As reliable and durable a treatment as there is and overall a great value.
Cons: It has a pretty big gap on the sides, which makes it not ideal for bedrooms. When reverse rolled, that gap becomes even more pronounced. The cassette valance adds quite a bit to the cost, because it takes almost as much material to make as the blind itself.
Woven Woods:
Pros: As decorative and exotic a treatment as there is. Standard Roman shade design as well as the Averte Fold feature for sliding glass doors. Over 200 woods and reeds with all different densities and opacities. Light filtering and blackout lining can be added to any shade. Nice metal beaded chain cord loop style lifting mechanism is standard, but the cordless one feature is free as well.
Cons: Since the woods can be dense, it doesn’t stack as flat or tight as fabrics. This is true with the Averte as well, its stack is equal to that of the Luminette, Vertical Blind, ect. If you live in community where there are restrictions on colors facing the street, you’d have to add a liner or pick a painted wood. Shipping typically takes a few days longer than most products.
