When you are planning to cover your windows and want to give the best treatment to keep your home away from scorchy sunlight or harsh climates, then often it boils down to only two options – curtains vs blinds. Curtains are decorative materials, while blinds are sheath-like coverings with benefits and drawbacks. Installing curtains or blinds depends on what look you’re trying to achieve and what purpose. Then limit your search according to the treatment’s characteristics and functions.
While renovating the house, this area is often underrated, and sometimes it can be unclear to decide what to choose for your window coverings. For this purpose, we are listing some salient features to let you decide based on your decor style, budget, and needs. This comprehensive guide will enable you to pick the right option for your windows and help you decide.
- Space-centric
In matters of space, blinds fit perfectly well to the sizes of your windows and can even give an austere look. But they can’t cover your wall area and can be positioned within the window. At the same time, curtains have the flexibility to cover your floor and wall area and exhibit a layered appearance to your tiny rooms.
- Visual appeal
Curtains are known for their visual display, as you get some stylish choices that can give an aesthetic look to your windows. Varying in different sizes, shapes, and patterns, they can drape elegantly on the floor. Similarly, if you want a practical solution for your functionality preference, blinds are the best option as they help make a room feel neat and modern. In a cluttered room, vertical blinds can give an undeniable charm to your space.
- Variety
Without any confusion in terms of variety, curtains have a higher edge over blinds. Curtains have a beautiful advantage: they can easily differ in length and cover up your window and floor spaces. Besides that, curtains are available in a wide range of textures and colours, making them one of the best choices for any room. Moreover, the latest styles like vertical and French styles open a wide range of options for curtains. Compared to that, blinds have some typical styles that are often controlled by strings or a remote. This factor makes them turn on automatically or close partially as per your requirements.
- Cost comparison
In terms of cost-efficiency, curtains and blinds are cost-effective depending on the material used. It is difficult to get the exact price range as a single-blind may range slightly more than a modish curtain panel. But a simple sheer curtain can be more inexpensive than plastic or wood-based window treatments. Additionally, a window blind needs to be customized separately for each window size, requiring highly experienced skilled labour and extra costs.
- Installation
In the installation process, curtains’ installation cost and time can take less duration than installing a blind. Usually, a curtain needs to be installed tall with curtain rods above the window frame. But in blinds, you need to have the skills to install brackets above or on your window sill and cover the rail with a valance or the casing. Thus, you need to take an extra effort to install a blind, unlike curtains.
- Maintenance
Blinds need a comprehensive cleaning system, while curtains must be maintained regularly. You can dust your blinds, as cleaning every shade on an everyday basis can be tedious and might take a little more time than curtains. You need to have a special vacuum cleaner to have a routine cleaning system, and once in 6 months, you need to dismantle the blinds and wash them thoroughly with some detergent and then again reassemble it for daily use. Curtains are inconvenient to fix and wash, but they require very little maintenance. Mostly the materials are lightweight, and they can be easily washed in automatic washing machines, thus requiring little effort.
Conclusion
We hope you must have got a pretty good understanding of how to dress your bare windows. You can use them more than a decoration and ideally take help from important aspects like energy efficiency, cost, installation process, maintenance, etc., while you finalize your purchase. In today’s time, the blinds are now seeing a revival, but with the variety of materials, finishes, and colours around curtains, they suit some of the wide ranges of requirements. If possible, you can try to combine them as this can lead to a very practical and stylish decision. So, use this relevant information to decide what your room requires and give your space a refreshing and stylish look.
