Living Room Window Treatment

10 years ago

I have a dilemma with my window treatments. I have a home with 2x4 construction which places a burden of finding the best and most versatile window treatments. The window is a triple double hung with a 2 inch depth to work with (unfortunately). I wanted to do the framed blinds but they all are too deep. Due to the limitation of space I also have to place a love seat sofa in front of the window so having a versatile treatment to allow me to open the window on the top instead of the bottom is necessary. I thought that the honeycomb blinds may be good for this but I don't want it to look dated. Any suggestions?

Comments (6)

WendyB 5A/MA
10 years ago
Top down and bottom up (TDBU) window shades are great, but I'm not sure why they are necessary just because of the loveseat. TDBU is typically for privacy purposes. And an outside mount is fine with 2x4 frames fine. People do it all the time.

What you need to figure out is where the cord(s) will be accessed from or if you can go cordless. Cordless blinds are typically raised and pulled down from the middle. So anything in front of the window will impede that, but it can be done. Honeycombs are lightweight so you can easily do a single width with a cord on one end. If you go TDBU, the TD cord will be on one end and the BU cord will be on the other end, so they should be accessible. However, if you go with roman shades or wood blinds, the weight will start to become an issue and you may be limited on various options. If you have to do three separate blinds, access will be a bigger problem with the loveseat in front of the blinds. access would be very tricky for the middle blind. Are you suggesting that you would keep them permanently open on the top because of the loveseat and lack of convenient access?

There is also remote controlled option for a price!

Hope I didn't confuse you, but I am facing these exact issues with my two sets of triple double-hungs. I have been here 6 months now and still no window treatments on them because of these choices. I have 2x6 construction, but that doesn't help me.

I am not a fan of honeycombs. Not sure if they are dated or not, but I have never cared for them. I got them for my old triple window at my old house and hated them for 10 years until I finally replaced them with cordless wood blinds.

However, last time I was at the paint store, I noticed at their Hunter Douglas display that the honeycombs came in more interesting colors and textures than they did 20 years ago. Maybe they are a better option now.

Can the loveseat float in front of the window?
Georgysmom
10 years ago
Have you considered plantation shutters?
Related Professionals
Rockland Interior Designers & Decorators · Atlanta Furniture & Accessories · Carlisle Furniture & Accessories · Chicago Furniture & Accessories · Memphis Furniture & Accessories · Milwaukee Furniture & Accessories · St. Louis Furniture & Accessories · Fargo Furniture & Accessories · Hampton Bays Furniture & Accessories · Jefferson Valley-Yorktown Lighting · Kendall Lighting · El Mirage Window Treatments · Hanover Park Window Treatments · Huntington Beach Window Treatments · Littleton Window Treatments
Annie Deighnaugh
10 years ago
I agree that an outside mount will look fine and work as well as an inside mount. Perhaps this thread will give you some ideas....

Here is a link that might be useful: window treatment ideas
graywings123
10 years ago
Is that a baseboard radiator? If so, you are not going to want to put a loveseat in front of it. You would do better to float the furniture more toward the center of the room and keep the radiators clear.
tibbrix
10 years ago
Plantation shutters, for top and bottom, so you can close the bottom ones and leave tops open if you want.

This post was edited by Tibbrix on Wed, Jan 29, 14 at 9:41
WendyB 5A/MA
10 years ago
Your post and my response prompted me to get off my butt and figure out what to do with my similar window treatment issue. I had to go to the paint store again today so I got into it to figure out my options with the HD rep.

Because I have 2 sets of triples, I do not want to deal with 6 cords (or 12 if I do TDBU). I also have cord access issues on one triple because of a piece of furniture with plants in front of it.

So I focused my inquiry on what can I get that is wide enough (100") so that I can just get one single shade with a cord on one end (or both ends if TDBU). I ruled out cordless because I know that needs to be raised and lowered from the middle. I know one answer is honeycombs, but I wanted to see if there are other options. There is!!!

Hunter Douglas came out with a new style last year called Solera that is part-honeycomb and part-roman. I liked it. It's got the honeycomb pleat, but it is about 4" long rather than 1". It stacks nicer too and has a nice looking headrail. It has maximum widths similar to honeycomb -- big. I forget what she said, but my 100" widths would be fine. It does not do cordless which is ok by me. I think it does TDBU. I took notes. Can't find them. :-( The color selection seemed adequate and there were several texture/pattern choices.

Also we found that with the regular hunter douglas roman tiered, some fabrics can be done in a max of 106". Most cannot.

She ruled out woven woods completely. That was too bad. I like those. But one of the "fabrics" that can go wide in the Tiered Roman Shade was a nice faux woven wood look.

Anyhow, thought that may help you.

I love HD, but now to find if there is a lower priced competitor doing something similar!!!