We first brought home a pair of white faux wood blinds back when were decorating the nursery (since a nice dark room sounded like a good idea when it came to encouraging some serious pee-wee shut eye). The ironic thing is that literally for years we’ve been dying to bring them into our very own bedroom. See, the window above the bed was never covered, and although the sun doesn’t rise on that side of the house we knew it could definitely stand to get darker with the help of some sort of rolling or slatted blind. Plus the other window in the room had the original plastic roller shade that came with the house (it very well could have been 50+ years old- and it was yellowed and stained to prove it). Nasty.
But there was one great thing about the grody old roller shade: it tucked up under our more eye-pleasing white roman shade from Ikea, so we got the benefit of some light blockage and privacy when it was pulled down, and during the day it was up and 100% invisible. However, as we mentioned, we wanted to cover that small window above the bed- just for a darker night’s sleep. And we were also compelled to replace that crusty old roller shade on the other window while we were at it… which is where two more pairs of custom-cut-to-fit (it’s a free service!) white faux wood blinds from Home Depot came in:
But let’s rewind. Here’s that crusty old pull-down roller shade that we mentioned (after we removed the fabric roman shade in order to work some blind-switcheroo magic):
And here’s the window once we removed that nasty old shade and popped our new custom cut faux wood blind in its place:
But you might notice they’re a bit too long for the window, and any extra slats can make raising and lowering it a bit cumbersome since they add unnecessary weight and bulk. So John just followed the simple instructions that came with the blinds which indicated how to remove those extra slats for an even more custom fit:
And then he rehung our cheap-o Ikea roman shade back in place (so we can pull up the faux wood blinds to completely hide them during the day and lower them at night for privacy and a darker night’s sleep).
So that’s how we added a ton of very welcome darkness to our bedroom that can be pulled up (and totally hidden) so no one’s the wiser. It feels a whole lot more adult of us than the dirty old roller shade did, and we like bringing in common elements throughout our house (especially when it comes to the windows). So we love that we now have these babies in two out of three of our home’s bedrooms.
Oh and even though there’s nothing that we can tuck the blinds behind on the smaller window behind the bed, we’ve found that when they’re pulled up they’re virtually undetectable since they’re the same crisp white color as the molding around the window, so they really blend in. And of course we love how deliciously dark our bedroom is in the morning now. The difference really is night and day.
So that’s our latest tiny tweak in the bedroom. Have you guys been doing anything to block light, dress windows, or otherwise add function to your sleeping spaces? Any other window makeovers that you’re tackling around the house? Do tell.
Katelyn Likes This says
You’ve gotta love window treatments. I always say, two of the most important things that can really “make” a space are: window treatments, and light fixtures.
Cara @ Live the Home Life says
It’a amazing what adding white wood (or faux wood in our case) blinds can do to clean up a space. We found ours at Target and have been slowly adding them to each room. Yours look great!
-Cara
Elle Sees says
I put up a darkening curtain and put a prettier, lovelier curtain over it. No one but me knows it’s there and it keeps the sun out on those days when I wanna sleep in! And it muffles the Atl traffic below.
Aria says
I’ve used the similar blinds from Lowe’s with a lot of luck. We recently moved and were going for a different look in our new mid-century modern living room and needed a nice looking solution for both privacy & light (so the room can double as my husband’s “media room”). We opted for a more expensive version that combined bamboo shades with fabric roman shades… use one, both, or none.
http://www.blindschalet.com/window-shades/bambooshades.html
Now for the rest of the house, I’m open to other ideas since privacy isn’t the main concern for our bedrooms.
Great work!
Julie M. says
Nothing blocks out light better than a light-blocking roller shade, in my opinion. I need it dark, dark, dark! I don’t care how ugly it is, and like you said, it tucks up under the valance during the day, so no one sees it.
Gina A. says
What a coincidence, I just did the EXACT same thing. I just moved into my new apartment and they have industrial grade white metal blinds. While, doing a good job, they weren’t soft on the eyes, and its written into my lease that I can’t take them down. Bummer! So I transplanted my roman shades from my old living room over these new ones and you can’t see them at all! In fact that was going to be one of this week’s posts over at my blog http://www.temporarynest.com
:)
Linda says
We have the exact same blinds on every single window in our house and we LOVE them as much as you do! :)
Renee says
I have the same issue with vertical apartment blinds! And mine are kind of set off to the side, so I’m afraid that drapes will make the wall look offcentered (?).. plus Our sliding door looks out to a common area, so I tend to keep the blinds closed so as not to be visible to strangers…I wonder if curtains over closed blinds would just look like overkill… Mabye i’ll try a swag? Not sure yet….
dani says
I never thought I would love having blinds, but after we switched out our nasty aluminum ones, I really do. It has solved my need for privacy and my love of light airy curtains!
The faux blinds from HD are nice, especially if you need custom sizes, but they also have real wood blinds at IKEA for less. I also have found TONS of these blinds at the Habitat REstore, and most of them are still in the packaging. Cheap and supports a good cause…
Caitlin @ That House on the Corner says
I just recently raised our bedroom curtains and added in new sheers. It changed the look of the entire room into a more hotel-chic feel! It’s funny changing things as we go, but it is so much fun as well! Glad to see the blog still going strong after baby!
Thanks for sharing,
Caitlin @ That House on the Corner
Jon'el says
Funny post…I just started to look for window options since I am in the middle of doing my 3rd bedroom as nursery for my son. We also are in the middle of getting central air so without the baseboard heaters and radiators in the way my options are even broader than before.
I think I am gonna go with the faux wooden blinds and curtains. I have 24 windows in the house that I bought in October of last year and most still sport the roller windows (the sunroom have blue blinds) which are a major eye sore to say the least.
My plan is to tackle one room every 2 months or so not to overwhelm me with the money aspect.
Shelley says
We used these very same shades throughout our house when we bought it. The windows were completely naked so it was our first purchase. They are easy to clean and look great. I love them!
Kim at Yellow Brick Home says
We also love those white blinds. In the front half of our home, the wood is real, but in the back (where our bedroom is) we have faux. To be honest, you can’t tell a bit of difference in real vs. fake. And the provide a great deal of sun blockage on those lazy weekend mornings!
In addition, we just revamped our friend’s bedroom (http://www.yellowbrickhome.com/renees-bedroom-redo-reveal/) and while we didn’t have new blinds in the budget (rather, we kept the old ones in place), we DID add a ceiling-to-floor layered curtain using curtain tracks. During the day, She can keep the old blinds pulled up and pimp out those new curtains, and at night, she can bring them down for some good shut eye!
Sunny's Life in Rehab says
A couple of years ago, I did faux suede grommet drapes throughout the house. They look tailored, and they block all the light. And somehow, they ALL survived the fire! Yay!
Deborah says
Does anyone have a good use for all the extra slats you take off? We installed a bunch of blinds just like that in our house as well — and all of ours were waaaaay too long. We have tons of extra slats in our garage bc I have assured my husband there MUST be something we can do with them!!!! But, I haven’t actually figured that out yet.
YoungHouseLove says
Anyone have ideas for Deborah? We’re stumped.
xo,
s
lauren says
Deborah – Paint stirrers! I use lots of leftover “long skinny” things for this purpose.
Or plant stakes!
Melissa says
We just bought the same shades from Home Depot for our master bedroom & office. We love them! Glad to know that you like them too! I know that we are for sure styling now =)
Melissa says
I know that we are for sure styling now* =)
Sunny's Life in Rehab says
Deborah,
How about garden supports? Wind chimes? Drawer dividers? Cut two of them about 12 inches long and set them on a surface parallel and 12 inches apart, then take a few more and attach them across the expanse with brads or Gorilla Glue and make placemats or a stage for a centerpiece? I could come up with tons of things.
Amanda @geekdetails says
I love the new blinds. I’m rather partial to the roller blinds when they’re not all dingy but your white blinds look good too!
I’m currently stripping paint off 40+ windows. Then we’re removing the windows, putting in a vinyl jamb liner before putting the window back in. They’ll be weather proof and original to the house by the time we’re done.
Jordan Miller says
Hi Youngsters,
You are so inspiring! Did you ever consider putting up a roman shade on the bed wall? Just curious
YoungHouseLove says
Hi Jordan,
We did consider a roman shade there, but decided we liked the strip of blue above the window to balance the strip below it. We also thought with white curtains on either side it might be too much white fabric to add the roman shade. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Kate! says
I *just* bought blinds from JCPenney’s days ago. We have 2 large windows (one in family room, one in master bedroom)that need 3 blinds each (one large in the middle, 2 skinnies on either side). JCP was (is?) having a sale on their precut blinds – buy one, get one for .99! I also had an email coupon for an extra 20% off – so I got SIX blinds for $140! And they look fantastic, not cheap. So if you’re looking for blinds, check out JCP NOW to take advantage of the sale!
Deborah – maybe create a fake wainscoting or chair rail? Trim/molding around something? Cut them down and make custom frames?
Kate! says
PS – the JCP blinds are the 2″ white faux wood… forgot to mention that part :)
Lauren says
Love this idea! We actually used your roman shades w/panels idea from on our bedroom windows!
Keeley says
We kept dingy roller shades for 4 years after purchasing our home for the same reasons you did. They blocked light and were easily hidden behind our bedroom sheers and drapes.
When we repainted we tossed the old roller shades in the trash, but we’ll be heading to JC Penney to buy some room darkening shades to go behind our bedroom sheers.
I love sleeping in a cool, dark room, plus having extra window treatments saves energy.
Rachelle says
I just did this about two weeks ago! It’s saved my bedroom! Now it’s stylish and private. Love it! :) Here’s the link to mine :) http://lovinmylovebugs.blogspot.com/2010/05/bedroom-makever-windows.html
I also emailed you before about my kitchen reno and the magazine article for Kitchen+Bath makeovers.. It came out finally! :) Woohoo! Page 120 ;) That’s lil’ ol me!
Thanks for all the inspiration! :)
YoungHouseLove says
That’s awesome, Rachelle – can’t wait to snag a copy of Kitchen+Bath to check out your feature. Congrats!
-John
Alexa says
All the faux wood blinds I have ever seen were made of PVC. That is a material that we avoid. Did you find some that are not? Is it not a material you avoid? Just curious, as your household seems to be on the same page as mine with eco things and I always enjoy hearing how like minded people choose their products.
Congrats on Clara btw, she is a beauty!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Alexa,
We do believe ours have some PVC in them, which is a material we usually avoid too. We made an exception in these cases because we brought them into the house in a season where we could open the windows to help air them out. We also took them out of their boxes and left them in the sunlight to off-gas for a while before installing them (we do this in our sunroom, since it’s closed off from the rest of the house by an exterior door).
And thanks for the congrats – we think Clara’s a beauty too!
xo,
s
Callie says
I have been trying to figure out how to dress a bay window in our master bedroom. I can’t find hardware that will fit the angles and the windows are really close together. There are faux white wood blinds on the windows already, but they look really lonely and far from special with out curtains. Any ideas?
YoungHouseLove says
Hi Callie,
IKEA sells wire curtains system that you can mount to fit any angled wall. I believe they’re called AKTONEL or something like that. Using those to hang some curtains would certainly solve your lonely wood blind problem!
xo,
s
Alyzande says
Just glad you’re getting *some* sleep!
-hugs-
suzib says
ok I need your help we have the Home Depot blinds in most of the windows in our home but! have not been able to remove the slats easily at all! in fact we gave up! I would love to know your trick! they look so much better without the extra slats!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Suzib,
Sorry to hear you’ve been having a hard time with the extra slats. If you head over to our post about putting these up in the nursery you’ll see a bit more description about removing the extra slats, plus scroll through the comments to see even more instruction. Good luck – we know you can do it!
https://www.younghouselove.com/2010/02/nursery-progress-getting-the-hang-of-it/
-John
NikKidd says
Okay… now if I had posted this on my blog, I’d feel like you guys were finally copying me, instead of the other way around! ;) We just did this when we re-did our bedroom (photos are pending… I haven’t had a chance to get them up yet), and actually ended up putting them on every window in our house because they looked so much nicer than the cheap-o metal blinds that we had everywhere when we moved in. We love how ours came with a little valance/molding type thing for the top, too.
We removed a bunch of extra slats, too. basically you just have to untie at the bottom with those little caps, and then slide out the extra slats before re-stringing and tying at the bottom again. (and then cutting the extra string). Worked well for us.
Lauren says
Love it! That first photo really shows off the wall color! So serene!
Julie says
such a timely post- I have been struggling with what to do with an oversized kitchen window, I think it’s 52 X 64 and wantede to find a bamboo type shade for it..any suggestions? thanks- thinking that a darker master bedroom is a good thing with a newborn!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Julie,
This solution might work for you: https://www.younghouselove.com/2008/06/curtain-call-2/
Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Suzy says
It looks so pretty but don’t you worry about the outgassing from the PVC in the plastic?
YoungHouseLove says
Christina- The paint pros at Home Depot should be able to look up the formula on the computer for you… and if they can’t, here it is: 90GY63/047. Hope it helps!
Suzy- We do believe ours have some PVC in them, which is a material we usually try to avoid. We made an exception in these cases because we brought them into the house in a season where we could open the windows to help air them out. We also took them out of their boxes and left them in the sunlight to off-gas for a while before installing them (we do this in our sunroom, since it’s closed off from the rest of the house by an exterior door).
xo,
s
Cristina says
Sorry if this is OT but I have a question regarding the paint color in your bedroom. I’ve read online that the brand Glidden has recently discontinued the color Gentle Tide. Could you possibly recommend any colors that are being sold in Lowe’s or Home Depot that is a close enough match to yours?
Thanks so much!
kelsy says
whoa… wait a sec!!! you can remove the slats from the extra part on the bottom???? we moved into a new house about 6 months ago (new to us) and all the windows have slatted shades with a HUGE chunk of extra slats on the bottom. how easy was it to remove the extras? do you think it would be the same for mine?
YoungHouseLove says
If you scroll back through these comments you’ll see a link that we shared to another post with more slat removing details. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Elizabeth says
When we purchased our home in 2008, we did bamboo shade though out our living,dinette, and formal. We were going for a beach house look in the middle of the US, since the Cayman Islands are our favorite vacation spot. Anyways….we worked with Barbara at BlindsOnSale.com, and she really helped us acheive the look we were going for. She sent us Free Samples of the fabric/bamboo swatches, and was so patient with us. I highly recommend her!
kelsy says
thank you! i found the link. i will see if our blinds are similar :)
Kate says
I’m making my first roman shades tonight for our kitchen!!! Doing a YHL inspired make-over this weekend. Can’t wait! (Wish me luck w/the shades!!)
YoungHouseLove says
Lots of luck!
xo,
s
RLR says
I’ve got a suggestion for Deborah (May 26, 2010 @ 1:06 pm) – save those extra slats in case some break! We have little ones around the house, and the older our blinds get, the more brittle they have become. We are hoping to replace them SOON – but I sure wish we still have some spares in the meantime!
kelly Griffin says
j&S–
so my bf and I moved into our new house about ten days ago, and after rearranging our bedroom furniture 10 times (long, big ole’ bedroom)we finally found our peace. bed is nestled snuggly against a wall with a beautiful window above–looks fabo BUT morning sun rays right on my eyes is not what I call a good morning soooo yesterday we went and bought cheepo black out shades…..they were pretty long so we folded them in half and then hung them in the window–BEHIND the pretty wooden white blinds!! now i get some sleep and no one knows the differnece-it’s my hidden lil’ secret :)
julie says
Thanks S- that’s the look I’d like with my oversized kitchen window, but pretty sure i can’t add a long curtain panel as it’s a tight spot in my kitchen and our dog dines right under that spot, too messy…will think about it this weekend and hope to get it done soon! thanks for the help and congrats again on the beautiful baby!!
Kate says
We have these same blinds too and love them. Funny little story: When we bought them from Home Depot, the lady who was checking me out had to call back to someone in the window area to get a price check on them. She said, “I need to know how much the FOX wood blinds are.” I was thinking to myself “fox?” and then looked at the box to see if that was the brand. Instead I realize she is pronouncing FAUX as FOX. hehe.
Robyn says
Callie-
You may be interested in a flexible curtain track that can be ceiling mounted and easily bent by hand during installation to form the angles required to provide a “custom” fit for your bay window. It is a relatively simple installation.
I’ve provided a direct link below to product 6100 at Curtain-Tracks.com.
http://www.curtain-tracks.com/6100-flexible-curtain-track.html
Sherry-
Your curtains look great. The white wall panels are a great touch and highlight an opportunity a lot of designers overlook…using curtains beyond the bounds of windows.
Kim-
It’s great to see your latest project! You’ve done another terrific job…as usual. Thanks for sharing.
romeoandjewels says
We have those blinds too and they really spruced up the house. The windows look brand new with them! We renovated the whole house – but removing the old yellowed blinds and adding these made everything so clean and bright!
No one has mentioned the price yet – so I wanted to chime in about how affordable they are. Our windows are between 23 and 45 inches wide – and they ranged in price from $17 for the small windows, to about $28 for the medium 33 inch ones and $35-ish for the 45 inch one. Totally affordable, and they look like the much more expensive plantation type shutters.
Ashlee says
Just a few months ago my boyfriend and I purchased new blinds for the bathroom and downstairs windows…. My boyfriend since he used to work at HD thinks he knows absolutely everything about home remodeling etc.
I distinctly remember asking him and the lady cutting the blinds at HD if we could shorten the blinds so that theirs not sooo much excess on the bottom and they both told be it wasn’t possible.
I will be rubbing this in his face tonight…hahahaha!!!!
Lindsey says
In our bedroom we have four very long windows. Two face the east and the other two face the south, so we get a lot of early morning sunshine! For some reason when we moved into our house I thought it would be a good idea to have white curtains. Last month my very crafty sister put blackout fabric on the backs of the curtains for me. Well, instead of sewing the fabric she actually used snaps to hold the fabric in place so I can take the blackout fabric off and still wash my white curtains. I love it and it cuts out so much light and summer heat and it was just the cost of fabric and snaps!
Jo says
I have these blinds throughout my house and love them. They are so versatile. Some windows have only the blinds, some have curtains over them, some just draped fabric. They are great for privacy during the day too – I leave mine down and open slightly to let in the light but not the next door neighbour’s eyes!
Unfortunately, I have yet to be bothered to trim the bottoms to size. Maybe if you’re looking for somewhere to stay on a holiday down under I could put you up in return for John’s handyman skills :)
YoungHouseLove says
Deal!
xo,
s
shelia dulion says
Sherry,
Curtain dilemma- I have the waverly damask black and white curtains in my dining room and living. These rooms are one long room with a kitchen at the end. My kitchen is set up like the fisher redo you featured the other day. I love what she had in her kitchen- simple shade- but i have no idea what goes with a black damask curtain. PLEASE HELP!!!!!!!!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Shelia,
Since you have a strong high contrast pattern in the damask curtains you don’t want anything that will compete too much. One idea would be a nice bamboo blind or something super neutral (like a white roman shade) – or you could try to hunt down more of the black and white damask and DIY (or hire a seamstress to make) a great simple roman shade with the same fabric. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
becky says
so, we went and bought the thickest set of blackout shades from lowes that we could find and installed them in both of our kids rooms when they were teeny-tiny. we sleep trained our kids to sleep 12 hours a night from 12 weeks (still do at 3 and 5 – knock on wood) and needed something that completely block the light when the sun started coming up early or staying out later. they weren’t pretty, but they’ve been a lifesaver. and my 5 year old likes them still and pulls them down during the day to play in his “cave”.