natural wood

Selecting the Best Kitchen Window Treatments: Over the Sink

/ Larry Walker

By SelectBlinds

The kitchen and dining room are the heart of any home. Holidays, laughter, Sunday dinners, cooking, homework, late night chats, etc. That’s why so many of your best family stories start in the kitchen.

Custom window treatments provide a fashionable finishing touch that accents and complements the way you design your own interior spaces. Lots of opportunities to highlight with colors, patterns, and texture. Window coverings provide light control, privacy, and peace of mind.

A kitchen is a unique space, and you may have different considerations for how you decorate the windows, based on where each window is located. Your choice of window treatments offer additional opportunities for touches of softness and style in the middle of bulky, metallic appliances and smooth, hard surfaces.

Select Blinds bamboo / woven wood shades for the kitchen window
Select Blinds bamboo / woven wood shades look great in your kitchen sink window,
but be careful about water and moisture in the area.

Maybe you want kitchen window curtains. If you only have one window in your kitchen, you’ll want window coverings that let as much light as possible filter in, while still being able to maintain privacy. You may consider sheer shades. If you have a kitchen window that faces the street, privacy might be a primary concern, with incoming light also being important, but perhaps slightly less so. You may want window coverings that offer a unique view, like Top-down Bottom-up shades. Then there are those windows immediately over the sink. What looks best over them? Time to get cooking. Read on as we serve up a deeper dive into kitchen window ideas and considerations as you find what fits best with your personal style and sense of décor.

Decorative Window Coverings

If you’re thinking about a covering for a kitchen window over the sink, be extra careful that you keep the right kind of materials in mind. You can still go with stylish bamboo/woven wood shades or Roman shades, but be aware that because this area over the sink often involves water splashing, spills, etc., you might have to be extra careful to avoid water damage. Wood blinds are also at risk for getting wet and possibly warping or discoloring, but you might just love the way they look in that window over your sink. It’s always up to you, just be aware of the risks that are involved if you decide on a material that doesn’t take well to water.

Select Blinds light filtering roller shades for the kitchen window
Select Blinds light filtering roller shades allow just the right amount of light
and view into your kitchen, without compromising your privacy.

Privacy

As mentioned, privacy may be a concern if your kitchen sink window faces the street or a neighbor’s home. Roller shades may be what you’re comfortable with in terms of providing privacy, and perhaps with some light filtering functionality.

Light Control

If your kitchen sink window faces the east or west, you’ll especially want to take account of direct incoming sunlight. Direct UV rays can be harsh on your eyes, your skin, your furniture, and they can definitely crank up the heat in a room. A stylish, but heavy-duty solar shade may be what you want to employ over your sink to protect yourself and your interior while you’re doing dishes after evening summer cookouts. Solars are typically constructed of durable PVC materials, so they’ll look great and maintain that “brand new” look for a long time to come. You can also custom order them with the degree of UV blockage of your choice.

Also, consider aluminum mini blinds for your kitchen sink window. Aluminum shades built to last, with plenty of light and privacy settings.

Select Blinds Solar screens for the kitchen window
Select Blinds Solar screens help block out harsh UV rays,
while keeping your kitchen cool. They look great, too!

Functionality and Longevity

In addition to durable solar shades and aluminum blinds for your kitchen sink window, there is another excellent option for a food-prep, dishwashing area. If you love the look of real wood blinds and shutters, but can’t bear the thought of them getting wet and warped, faux wood blinds and shutters might be just the perfect find.  

Not only do they perform amazingly at maintaining light and privacy, they also look great, they’re also super easy to care for, and they’ll last forever. You can clean them with little more than soap and water as needed. Many faux wood slat constructions also feature insulation against heat and cold. The lush look and feel of real wood in your home, and their resilience ensures they’ll never warp, crack, chip, or discolor when exposed to water, food stains, or steam. And much less expensive than real wood. Low-maintenance, and no worry.

Select Blinds Faux Wood Blinds for the kitchen window
Faux wood blinds give any kitchen window a crisp look and feel,
along with privacy and light adjustments.

SelectBlinds’ Staff Recommends:

Here are some of our favorite suggestions for the window above your kitchen sink.

Remember, kitchen window treatments can serve a design/decorative function to go with your kitchen’s décor, but especially for the window over the sink, it should also be durable, provide privacy, and block out harsh UV rays. Choose whatever kind of blinds work best for you, but remember that the most functional ones for that particular window are moisture- and mold-resistant. Happy decorating!

#BlindsWeLove     #kitchenblinds

Bamboo and Woven Wood Shades Bring More “Japandi” Into Your Life

/ Larry Walker

by SelectBlinds

What to do with your outdoor patio design. You want to block the harsh rays of the sun, but you want your outdoor blinds to offer a warm, simple, and natural look to your patio or indoor space. You need some custom outdoor blinds, like bamboo/woven wood shades to get that perfect touch. You need some “Japandi!”

What is Japandi Design?

Welcome to an up-and-coming minimalist design aesthetic known as Japandi. Pinterest Business has deemed this design sensibility as one of the top home trends for 2021.

The concept of Japandi combines the simplicity and flair of Scandinavian/Nordic design with the connected-to-nature and minimalist sense of spacing and warmth from Japan. The result is peaceful, practical, and polished.

This alluring, hybrid, East-meets-West look and feel pulls together natural materials, like wood, bamboo, and warm colors, into a vibrant space where occupants feel more deeply enveloped in the environment. Why not experiment? Convert your indoor/outdoor space into your own engawa (a Japanese-style covered indoor/outdoor porch), or blend the earthy, natural Japandi design feel with your own unique sense of style to create an inviting, simple, and elegant space for yourself and guests.

Japandi design combines earthy, natural Japanese design with simple Nordic aesthetics.
The result is practical, functional, and pleasing to the senses.

Minimalist Style Can Offer More Clarity and Peace

Perhaps you’ve experimented with minimalist design in your home, and found them to be practical and functional, as well as aesthetically pleasing. It can also bring you freedom and quiet from the modern hustle of day-to-day life. When you’re relaxing at home or on your outdoor patio, there’s nothing better than the calm of being surrounded by clutter-free, natural-looking materials and colors.

Let’s start with some sensible light blocking to keep the glare out.

Sarah Joy Blog Uses Select Blinds Window Treatments
Indoors or outdoors, Japandi minimalist design brings clarity and peace to a space.
Image courtesy of Sarah Joy.

What Makes Bamboo Shades a Good Choice?

Bamboo/woven wood shades are a great way to help you infuse a natural feel into your home or patio.

Bamboo shades are:

  • Versatile
  • Durable
  • Eco-friendly
  • Fade-resistant

You can’t beat the earthy look and feel of bamboo shades!

Did you know? Cascading “Roman-style” shades made of bamboo/woven wood are increasingly referred to as simply, “Roman shades.”
But they’ll always function and feel like bamboos!

Top down, Bottom up style bamboo shades are also a popular option.

Protect Your Bamboos!

One thing about blinds and shades made with natural materials like bamboo or wood: they may look and feel marvelous, they may be durable, but they are NOT impervious to rain, moisture, or harsh, direct sunlight.

Bamboos/woven woods are best for (and last the longest) indoors, or at least in covered outdoor patio areas, where they won’t be exposed to the outdoor elements.

If you know your shades are going to get wet, you’ll want to opt for something like exterior solar shades, that are better constructed using PVC to withstand the heat, UV rays, rain, and other outdoor weather for years without rusting, molding, or fading.

Keep your bamboos dry and out of the sun’s harsh rays to help them last longer and looking new.

Some Insider Tips on Selecting Bamboo Shades

As you’ve probably guessed, the point of Japandi design is to help you feel more at home and in touch with your environment. The natural colors and textures of bamboo/woven wood shades help with this natural feel.

Start with samples! Never trust the color settings on your computer or device when ordering your custom bamboos online. Always start with product samples so you can see for yourself exactly how your favorite color choices are going to look in your space. Be sure to experiment with lighting to experience a wide range of effects.

Consider lining options. Make your woven woods all your own with lined options for more light control. Unlined bamboo shades will darken your space somewhat, but will let some light filter in. A solid blackout privacy lining helps block out the light entirely to help create a nice, dark, shady space. 

Go cordless! Cordless options are best with kids and pets. Though they sometimes add to the price tag, cordless options are always a safe bet when you have little ones and furry ones running around your home.

Bamboo shades can offer adequate privacy and light control,
while still letting some light into your space.

Our Suggestions

Let us recommend the following to help you “Japandize” your outdoor patio or indoor space:

Get in touch with nature, invite more peace and simplicity into your life, and make your home or relaxation space more “Pinterest-perfect” with some budget-friendly and natural-looking bamboo/woven wood shades to keep out the noise and harsh sunlight from your solace.