Here on of those questions that our clients really should ask of us: If I have the perfect fit pleated blinds on the roof what choice have I got for the sides?

Well this can be an interesting scenario as once the clip in blinds have been fitted on the roof the customer likes them so much they want to know the options for the sides. Admittedly you will normally see standard blinds like verticals, rollers and Venetians fitted in many conservatories however people tend to really like the idea of no holes being drilled. Of course traditional side blinds need holes!

Don’t forget either that clip in blinds move with the window so if you have ‘tilt and turn’ window openings this type may be your only option. This leads to more versatility and control of light in your conservatory too as now each pane of glass has its own blind.

One important point to bear in mind with perfect fit clip in side blind frames is that they are not the same section or clips as used in the roof. The clips don’t need to support the whole weight of the blind so they are not as big and hence easier to clip in to small top windows. But do bear in mind with any variety of Perfect Fit blind there is a frame around it and therefore the finished glass area you see through is slightly smaller.

So what are your choices?

Firstly of course you can have pleated blinds to match those in the roof (remember it is ONLY possible to get clip in roof blind in the pleated variety). So just match the fabric and have the same on the sides. Normally you don’t need a rod to operate the blind, as they are reachable of course, because of this the movable bottom bar on the blind is specially shaped to fit the hand.

Secondly you could have Venetians, the advantage being even better control of the light in your room. There is a massive choice of slats and colours available so you will be spoilt for choice too!

However there comes a couple of disadvantages also, one is cleaning (the perennial ‘moan’ about any type of Venetian blind) the other is controls.

Controls you have to have are a tilt and a raise on the blinds. So all of a sudden the sleek lines of the clip in blind may be ruined in your mind. Also if you have pets or children you may not want dangling drawstrings all over the place. Remember 2 controls for each blind and one blind for each pane of glass for example a conservatory with 20 blinds will now have 40 hanging controls!

There is a way of having one control per blind and that is to use the clever ‘Uniwand’ control. However this will probably be an add-on cost.

Lastly there is a way of having NO controls on the blind but this is to use another type of clip in blind called Intu. This variety has a clever slider on the top rail to adjust the tilt and the draw is done by hand.

Third is the roller blind type. Still housed within the frame but now the blind is adjusted by hand just by tilting the bottom bar and moving the height of the blind to where you want it. So, no controls and a virtually unlimited choice of fabrics.

Hope that helps should you need any further advise don’t hesitate to get hold of us though our website