- Allowance: The amount deducted from a blind or shade that is being mounted as an inside mount. Average deduction is about 3/8” from the width. On vertical blinds approximately ½” is deducted from the length.
- Aluminum blinds: Also called mini blinds, 2” macro blinds, or ½” micro blinds. Horizontal aluminum blinds are made out of .6 to .9 gauge aluminum, with .9 being the most durable as well the most expensive. These blinds give a sleek, modern look to any room. They offer a great deal of light control options because the vanes can be tilted and the entire blind can be fully raised or lowered.
- American Hardwood: A combination of premium woods such as poplar, oak, ash and basswood, used to make wood blinds. Also commonly called “Basswood”.
- Bamboo shades: Also called woven woods. Shades are made combining reeds, sticks, bamboo, strings and jutes. Can be lined to provide privacy.
- Basswood: Wood that is widely regarded as the premium wood type for horizontal wood blinds because of its fine grain and lighter weight.
- Blackout: Refers to shades that block 99% of outside light. Blackout is often a good choice for bedrooms, nurseries, and media rooms.
- Blackout Liner: An optional white polyester backing available on woven wood shades and pleated shades that ensures 100% light blockage and privacy.
- Bottom-Up/Top-Down: A bottom-up shade combined with a standard top-down shade for maximum versatility. Uses two sets of lift cords to open either from the top down or from the bottom up, or both at the same time. Excellent option for protecting your privacy while still allowing light in.
- Bracket: Hardware used to support and hold a window covering in place. Brackets are mounted to the window frame or wall. Can be a box bracket or an “L” bracket.
- Café Curtain: A curtain that covers only the bottom half of the window. Frequently seen in kitchens.
- Café Shutter: A shutter that covers only the bottom half the window.
- Casement Window : A window that is hinged on the side and swings opens usually by the use of a crank.
- Ceiling Mount: An alternate mount for blinds in which the headrail is mounted to the ceiling of the window or ceiling of the room.
- Cellular Shades: Also referred to as "honeycomb shade". It is a fabric shade that combines two or more layers of pleated fabric . The two fabrics are connected to form air pockets called cells. As a result, cellular shades offer superior insulation. Available in a single and double or triple cell configuration.
- Chain Tilter: Metal link chain used to control the angle of the vanes on a vertical blind.
- Cleats: Cleats are small hooks to hang excess cording on to it. Keeps cord out of the way and off the floor. An effective way to protect children and pets from entanglement and strangulation.
- Cloth Tapes: Decorative option which replaces standard braided cord ladders on several horizontal style blinds. Can be used on 2” wood blinds, 2” aluminum blinds, and some 1” wood blinds. These wider tapes help hide rout holes allowing for more privacy and less light penetration. Available in various styles and colors.
- Composite Blind: Horizontal blind made from a very durable combination of American hardwoods and engineered thermal polymer materials.
- Concealed Bracket: Installation bracket which is not visible when the blind or shade is installed.
- Continuous Cord Loop: looped cord and tilt control mechanism that allows a shade to be raised and lowered easily without the use of a cord lock. This option is highly recommended on very large shades.
- Controls: Refers to the mechanisms that allow you to raise, lower, open, close, or tilt blinds and shades. Controls are cords, wand, and chains.
- Cordlock: mechanism in the headrail used to hold a horizontal blind at the desired height by locking the lift cord into position.
- Cord Tilter: Cord used to control the angle of a blind slat or vanes, commonly referred to as “opening and closing” the blind.
- Cordless: An option for horizontal shades. The blind is raised and lowered by hand by pushing or pulling on a bottom rail tab. There are no exposed lift controls.
- Cornice: A top treatment usually made from wood to fit over drapes, or blinds.
- Cut-Out: Procedure where a portion of a blind is cut more narrow than the rest. This might be needed where there is tile or molding that narrows a portion of the opening.
- Day-Night Shade: One blind that holds two fabrics atop each other and separated by a floating rail. The purpose is to have two types of fabric that offer different properties of color and or translucency. Generally one is room darkening and one is light filtering.
- Deduction: The amount automatically trimmed off a shade or blind by the factory to ensure the proper fit of an inside mount. The amount will vary depending on individual products. The average deduction is about 3/8” on the width.
- Depth: The space at the top of the window that is required for mounting an inside mount blind. The distance is measured from the front edge of a window opening to the back.
- Duo-fold: Also called a “top-down, bottom-up.” The blind can be raised from the bottom as well as lowered from the top with the use of two operating cords.
- Duo-Lite: Also known as “Day-Night” Shade.
- Easy-Rise/Easy-Lift: Same as Cord-loop.
- Extension Brackets: Optional bracket used with an outside mount to provide additional space between the shade and surface. Used to clear an obstacle such as a window crank or door handle.
- Deduction: The amount automatically trimmed off a shade or blind by the factory to ensure the proper fit of an inside mount. The amount will vary depending on individual products.
- Faux Wood: Simulated, man-made material that gives the appearance of wood. Material can be polymer or an engineered composite. Faux wood blinds are well suited for humid conditions.
- Flush Mount: An interior mount where the headrail is completely recessed within the opening.
- Free-Hanging: Refers to fabric vertical vanes that have a sewn-in weight at the bottom.
- Groover: PVC slat or vane with clear edges used as a fabric vertical blind option. Fabric vane slides into the groover to provide privacy, insulation and a uniform outside appearance. Available in white or ivory.
- Headrail: The top of a blind or shade that includes the working mechanisms. Head-rail configurations include 1 blind on 1 head-rail or 2 blinds on 1 head-rail, and 3 blinds on 1 head-rail.
- Height: The measurement of a window or shade from top to bottom.
- Hobbled: Option on fabric roman shades that adds horizontal pleats to the fabric.
- Hold-Down Brackets: Small brackets used to hold the bottomrail in place. Generally used on a door.
- Honeycomb Shades: See cellular shades.
- Horizontal Blind: A blind consisting of slats running horizontally that can be tilted and lifted. Products are wood blinds, faux blinds, PVC blinds, or mini blinds.
- Inserts: Inserts are PVC sleeves or groovers available with some fabric verticals and provide a solid backing for the fabric which results in a greater degree of privacy and insulation.
- Inside Mount: Installing a blind or shade inside the opening of the window frame.
- Ladder Cords: The vertical cords that support and control the individual slats of a horizontal blind.
- Ladder Spacing: The distance measured between ladder cords on horizontal blinds. Tighter spacing is more desirable on aluminum blinds.
- Lift Cord: A pull cord that raises and lowers a blind or shade.
- Light-Filtering: A shade that filters harsh rays, but allows light to enter the room.
- Louver: Usually refers to the individual vanes in a vertical blind or the individual slats in the shutter.
- Matchstick blinds: see woven wood shades
- Minimum Depth: minimum depth required to mount the treatment inside the window frame – typically, at this depth, the treatment will project slightly.
- Motorized Lift: Optional lift mechanism that raises and lowers a blind or shade with the use of a remote control.
- Motorized Tilter: Optional tilt mechanism that controls the angle of the slats or vanes with the use of a remote control.
- Mount Type: Refers to the way in which the blind will be hung, either inside or outside the window opening (frame). Inside mount blinds are mounted inside the opening of the window, usually on the ceiling or side walls. Outside mount blinds are hung outside the window opening on the wood trim, wall, or door.
- Multiple blinds (or shades) on one headrail: Two or three separate blinds mounted on a single headrail. Used to cover very wide windows to make operation easier and reduce strain on mechanisms. Also provides the flexibility of raising one blind while keeping the other lowered. Each blind has it’s own controls and operates independently. The headrail is covered with a continuous valance on horizontal blinds. On some products this option is required for guarantee and warranty.
- One-Way Stack: Refers to a vertical blind that opens or stacks to one side of the window. ie: Stack right with controls on the right.
- Opaque: Refers to a level of privacy and light transmission. The shade is not translucent, but not automatically black-out.
- Opposite Stack: Refers to a vertical blind that will stack on the opposite side of the controls. IE: Stack right with controls on the left.
- Outside Mount: Installing a blind or shade outside the window frame, usually to a wood frame, wall, or door.
- Plantation Shutters: see shutters
- Pleated Shades: Pleated shades are made from fabric with evenly spaced horizontal pleats. They are available with a variety of patterns and colors and have cords running vertically through the fabric. They can be lined for higher degree of privacy.
- Porch Roll-up: A casual fold-style of a Bamboo shade or Woven wood blind. The bottom of the shade forms a roll when raising the shade. Cannot be lined.
- Projection: The distance from the wall a window treatment extends into a room.
- PVC Backing: Option available on fabric vertical blinds which increases insulation and privacy and provides a uniform outside appearance. The standard backing is white PVC vane with clear plastic groovers which holds the fabric in place.
- R-Value: Numeric measurement of a material’s resistance to thermal transfer. The measurement represents the time it takes for one degree of Fahrenheit of heat to transfer through the material. The higher the number, the better the insulation provided by the material.
- Ramin Wood: A dense, imported hardwood used with many value-priced wood blinds. Ramin wood is approximately 10% heavier than basswood.
- Recommended Overlaps: The amount added to the window opening size to adequately cover the opening when an outside mount is desired.
- Remote Control: Battery-powered infrared remote control used to operate motorized blinds or shades.
- Reverse Roll: Option on roller shades where the fabric rolls off the headrail rather than the back. Standard shades roll off the back side closest to the window.
- Reverse Stack: Vertical blind stack option where blind stacks to the side opposite from where the controls are located.
- Roll-Ease: A clutch-driven shade lifting system consistent with a “continuous cord-loop”.
- Roller Shade: Flat panel of fabric or vinyl attached to a dowel with a roller spring or cord loop mechanism for lifting.
- Roman-Fold: The type of fold style (usually a tear-drop or cascade) that a Fabric or Bamboo shade will create when raised.
- Roman Shade: A shade that folds up from the bottom, usually operated by lift cord.
- Route-Holes: Refers to small holes in a standard blinds slats that the ladder cords run through.
- Routeless: Routeless blinds have small notches in the back of each slat instead of route holes and therefore offer better light control and privacy. In addition, the slats are removable for easy cleaning. Routeless blinds have ladder cords and are not available with cloth tapes.
- Semi-Opaque: Also called light-filtering. Refers to a window treatment that blocks harsh rays, but allows light to be transmitted in the room. Also provides privacy.
- Shutters: Hinged vinyl or wood panels that may be folded across a window. Shutters have adjustable louvers that function the same way as horizontal blinds in that they may be opened to admit light and allow a partial view outside while maintaining a fair amount of privacy inside. Shutters with louvers over two inches wide are sometimes referred to as Plantation Shutters.
- Side Returns: See Valance returns.
- Slat: The individual pieces of material in a horizontal blind.
- Soffit: The top inside surface of the window frame which is perpendicular to the window and window frame.
- Spacers: Used with mounting brackets to provide additional room between the mounting surface and the blind. A common use for spacers is for installing a blind over raised trim. Used with outside mounts only.
- Split Stack: Vertical blind stack option where blind opens in the middle of the window and stacks evenly on both sides.
- Split to Center Stack: Vertical blind stack option where the vanes will stack to the center of the window leaving the ends open.
- Spring Tension Roller: Standard lift mechanism on roller shades. Shades are raised and lowered by grasping fabric hem. There are no lift cords with the spring tension roller.
- Stack Position: The position that the slats of a blind “stack” when opened. For example, if you order a vertical blind with a left stack the vanes will stack on the left side of the window when fully opened. Another stack option is the split stack in which the blinds open from the middle and stack evenly on both the left and right sides.
- Stack Height: Refers to the amount of space at the top of the window that is taken up by the widow treatment when it is fully raised. The smaller the stack height, the greater the view you will have to the outside.
Tile/Molding Cut Out: A portion of a blind is cut more narrow than the rest. This might be needed where there is tile or molding that narrows a portion of a window opening.
- Tilter: Mechanism that controls the angle of the slats or vanes.
Top-Down/ Bottom-Up: Shade that lowers from the top down as well as from the bottom up. . Very good for protecting your privacy while still allowing light in.
- Two on One Headrail: Two separate blinds, including slats and operating mechanisms, placed into one headrail. Used in large windows and on sliding glass patio doors.
- Valance: A decorative treatment used to cover the face of a head rail.
- Valance Clip : Bracket used to hold the valance onto the treatment’s headrail.
- Valance Returns: Piece of valance that attaches to the front of the valance and forms a corner around the end bracket.
- Vane: The vertical louvers or slats of a vertical blind.
- Venetian Blinds: Refers to 2” Aluminum Blinds.
- Vertical Blinds: Window treatment featuring vertical vanes that can be swiveled open and closed in either a split or one-way stack.
- Wall Mount: Type of installation where the headrail is mounted on the wall or trim surrounding the door or window.
- Wand Tilter: Mechanism operated with a twisting motion and used to swivel vertical blinds or tilt horizontal blinds used to open or close the blind.
- Width: Window or blind measurement from the left to right.
- Wood Blinds: Horizontal window treatment available in 2” or 1” slats. They are also a natural insulator.
- Woven Wood Shades: Also called Bamboo or Matchstick Shades in which materials such as jute, bamboo, woods and other natural fibers are woven together. Available as a Roman fold or Porch roll-up in many patterns and colors. Most woven woods are not considered a privacy shade but can be lined
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