Blinds Jargon

Bamboo Blinds: A roman-styled shade made of reeds. Basswood: A premium wood with a smooth finish used for making wood blinds and shutters. Blackout Lining: A layer of opaque material is sandwiched between two layers of cotton fabric. In this way, all light is excluded. Some are heavy and difficult to penetrate with a needle, while others are softer. Both will add to the weight but will also improve the draping qualities. Usually in cream or white. Blind: A horizontal window treatment that is used both as a Décorative window cover and also provide privacy and protection from sunlight. Bottom Rail: Used to keep the blind hanging straight, the bottom rail is a heavier piece of hardware at the bottom of your treatment that is color matched to the rest of your blind. Brackets: Supports for either a rod, pole, shade, or valance shelf. Carriers: The small mechanisms which attach the vanes to the headrail track of a vertical blind. Controls: the mechanisms that allow you to lift the blinds up or tilt the slats. Cord: A string attached to the head-rail of the blind used to adjust the tilt or lift of the blind. Cornice: A decorative structure with a flat surface, mounted above a window to hide the curtain rod and the top of the curtain or drapery. Made from painted plywood or from plywood or buckram covered with fabric, it can have either a straight or a shaped edge. Unlike a valance, it is firm. Cutouts: Décorative silhouettes cut out of the panel of a shutter, offering the ability to further customize pair of shutters; usually crafted into the uppermost panel on each side. Outside: If you specify an outside measurement, we'll make your blind to those exact dimensions. This is normal when a blind is to be fitted outside a window recess or to cover the glass in a back door for instance. Fine Grain: A preferred quality of wood typically found in old growth timber, resulting in a stable construction with minimum contraction and expanding. Fixed Louver/Blade: Any louvered shutter in which the louvers are stationary and do not move/pivot. Louver/Blade Direction: The position of the louvers tilt; historically, louvers tilt toward the house when shutters are opened. Louver/Blade Pitch: The degree of the angle at which the louvers are positioned. Louvers/Blades: These are the vertical strips of fabric that make up a Vertical blind. Made-to-measure: This means that every one of our blinds is made to your own unique requirements. Mortise: A hole bored into the stile joint to accommodate the tenon. Overlap Rabbeting: A shutter that has the wood on the edge of the stile removed, blocking light when the closed shutters interlock; also referred to as "ship:lap". Recess/Inside Fit: This is the measurement to use if you want the blind to fit inside a window recess. If you specify a recess measurement, we'll make a tiny adjustment automatically to ensure that your blind fits perfectly. Slats: These are the horizontal strips of aluminium or wood that make up an aluminium, Wood Effect or Wooden Venetian blind. Stile: The vertical framing member of a shutter. Strap Hinge : A hinge typically secured to the top and bottom of the back of a shutter with a sleeve that fits over a pintel. Swatch: This is a small piece of fabric or slat used as a sample to determine the material/fabric for manufacture. Tannin: Natural resin present in cedar and other woods. Tenon: A projection on the end of a rail made to fit into a mortise, thereby creating a joint. Tilt-rod: A vertical piece of wood, secured to the louvers, traditionally used for operating louvers. Valance: A gathered or pleated panel that hangs above the curtain to hide the curtain rod. An attached valance is attached to the top of the curtain, but other types usually hang from the front edge of a valance shelf. Unlike a cornice, a valance is not rigid. Window Jamb: The wood that frames a window and is used to secure the window to the rough opening of the building. Window Seat: The area where the shutter rests in the closed position.