A new look for your windows

This neat and unobtrusive blackout blind is motorised so can be controlled by remote, app or smart home – no dangling cords for little fingers to fiddle with. Custom-made standard roller blind in Regal Natural, £136.13, 247 Blinds.

Not just for privacy, blocking light or keeping in the warmth, your choice of window treatment can complement a room’s architecture, disguise a poor view, link the inside to the outside and add gorgeous texture, colour and pattern.

Curtain poles can be specially made to fit bay windows, and while fulllength curtains are not the cheapest option, they do eminently suit a period property. Made to measure William Morris Compton Midnight curtains, with light filtering lining as standard, plus optional blackout and thermal upgrades, price according to size, Blinds2Go.

Why not have a roller blind printed in a unique design and made to your specifications? World map blind, £105, Artylicious Home & Gifts. A series of roller blinds is a sleek option when a minimal look works best with the décor. Made to measure roller blinds, from £35.94, English Blinds. Please mention The Villager and Town Life when responding to adverts

Venetian blinds offer the option of tilting the slats to filter light as well as raising or lowering as you wish. Made-to-measure 50mm textured wooden blinds, from £22.50, English Blinds.

Make a conservatory feel like a fully decorated room with the addition of patterned Roman blinds. Blinds in Frond Fennel fabric from the Observatory Collection, from £67 per metre, ILIV.

Stained glass designs are printed onto frosted or clear film that is easily attached to any type of window for an interesting effect. Period stained glass effect design, made to your size, £65 per square metre, Purlfrost Window Film. Add a pom-pom trim to the bottom of a pretty Roman blind and you have a lovely, decorative window treatment. Custom-made Hardwick Apple Green roman blinds, from £65.75, English Blinds.

Full-length curtains with a large eyelet heading are elegant and modern. Curtains and Roman blind in Observatory Seaspray 05, from £25 per metre, ILIV.

Solid-wood shutters keep out the light and noise while aiding your security and looking smart. From £66 per square metre, California Shutters.

Curtains, blinds, shutters and more

• Usually considered the luxurious choice, curtains can be made in a range of styles, from minimal to ornate. Its heading determines how a curtain hangs, usually in the form of a tape sewn onto the back of the curtain and pulled to form pleats (pencil pleats is the simplest and most popular style), gathers, ‘goblets’ or other shapes. • For a less formal look, tap-tops, tietops, deep hems and eyelets simply slide onto a curtain pole. They are often found on ready-made curtains – great for an inexpensive update. • The clean-lined look of made-tomeasure blinds is no longer the poor relation to curtains. And while they are usually cheaper (since they use less fabric) they can still be luxurious. Roller blinds are the most utilitarian, and very practical in bathrooms, kitchens, conservatories and perhaps even children’s rooms, while Roman blinds, featuring softly draped folds, suit many types of room. Interesting borders, hems and trims all add to the effect.

Venetian (or slatted) blinds are another option, available in natural wood or an array of eye-catching colours. • Good-looking but unfussy, shutters are great for privacy, blocking out sound and light, and also add an extra layer of security. Shaker-style shutters have a timber frame and solid centre panel, can be natural or painted, and are ideal for a Georgian or Victorian home.

American shutters, with tilting louvres for letting in the light, look upmarket and work virtually anywhere. • Used on its own or as an addition to conventional window treatments, window film can be an inexpensive option for a variety of situations.

Where a room is overlooked, for example, the window can be covered (wholly or partially) in opaque or patterned film which still allows in a great deal of light.

STOCKISTS Artylicious Home & Gifts: 01274 421 410; artylicious.co.uk English Blinds: 0121 439 6770; englishblinds.co.uk Purlfrost Window Film: 020 8992 4024; purlfrost.com 247 Blinds: 01484 443 790; 247blinds.co.uk Blinds: 2go 0800 862 0464; blinds-2go.co.uk ILIV: 01772 65 11 99; i-liv.co.uk California Shutters: 0800 195 0196; californiashutters.co.uk

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