Whether to add color to the room with your draperies is a big decision.  It depends on the mood you want to set for the room.  When this client first starting considering draperies, she thought she wanted red.  Her home is a fabulous older home in Hyde Park with great architectural features.  We were looking at the living room and adjoining dining room.   They are not extremely large rooms and there are 5 windows and a door in those 2 rooms.

Technorati Tags: Decorating, draperies over shutters, energy efficient, Pleated Functional Draperies

Technorati Tags: arched windows, Faux Iron, Light Control, Roman Shade, Tableaux

A decorative fabric treatment with fabulous hardware brings all the windows together to give the homeowners the “WOW” factor they were looking for.

 Share your story of finding a 2 story

Window Treatment

that you think has the “WOW” factor.

Technorati Tags: 2 Story Window Treatments, Decorating, Decorative Hardware, Draperies, Duettes, Liberty Township OH, Vista, Window Tinting

Before

We have been designing a lot of window treatments for 2 story window walls lately.  They make such a statement in a room just because of their size.  Adding fabric to the wall in a grand scale helps to “humanize” the windows, visually bringing the top windows into the room and giving it a cohesiveness it may lack otherwise.  Over the next several weeks, I will share several photos of designs we have used in and around the greater Cincinnati area.

After

The photos today show the before and after of a challenging job.  I think you can see how the fabric treatments take away the empty feeling the room had.  These windows face west and the homeowners had a terrible sun issue in the afternoon.  Hunter Douglas Country Woods 2″ blinds were added to all the windows, with the top windows using the battery powered motorized PowerTilt with Platinum Technology remote control tilt system.  The top windows are arched, so we used standard rectangular blinds and covered the top with an arched cornice – a great little trick to know.

A new paint color in the room, selected specifically to match the fabrics, ties it all together.  The clients love their new look and the light control they now have.

After 15 years in the window coverings industry, I can tell you without a doubt that sliding glass doors pose the biggest dilemma for homeowners.  The love affair with vertical blinds has come and gone, but many people have no idea what else to do to cover a large area.  Sliding glass doors present big challenges with energy loss and light control.  They are usually in high traffic areas of the house – so very functional, energy efficient, and, at the same time, beautiful treatments are needed.  That is a lot to ask from a window treatment!

Here are three of my favorites.

• THE most exciting trend in window  fashions is the  Natural Woven Shade Vertical Drapery.  These are the ultimate blend of functionand fashion. The shade operates with a simple push on the guide rail, so there are no cords to tangle or break.  With so many natural woods, reeds, or grasses to choose from, ranging from sheer to opaque, there is a style for everyone!

• For a very sleek and contemporary look, Sliding Panels are one of the fastest growing new trends in window fashions.  Flat panels of fabric slide one in front of another as you open and close the shade using a wand.  Fabrics range from opaque shade cloth to natural woven wood materials, again offering much versatility.

• Vertical Cellular Shades offer great function and superior energy efficiency.  Available in many colors and fabrics, this shade coordinates with the other cellular shades in your home, but slides easily along a track with a push of the hand, providing a truly cordless option.

Vertical Cellular Shade

Technorati Tags: cellular shades, Cincinnati, Maineville OH, Mason Oh, sliding doors, sliding panels, Window Treatments, woven shades

This photo, taken from Elle Decor.com, shows a bold use of patterns in a room.  Some love this look and others would be very uncomfortable in this room.  I call this phenomenom “Understanding Your Pattern Tolerance”.  Everyone is different.  But even those with low pattern tolerance can enjoy adding more to a room if it is done properly.  Most people need the help of a professional to really pull off a heavily patterned room, so that it is tasteful and not tacky.

But here is a very simple formula that you can use anytime. When mixing patterns in a room, the following can all be used together successfully – a large scale print, a small scale print, a stripe, a geometric, and a solid.  Make sure they are all in the same colorway and you will be successful.

Happy decorating!

I LOVE Roman Shades.  They are such versatile treatments for a window.  They provide not only function of privacy, light control, and energy savings, but also add a softness to bring beauty, warmth and style to your room.  They truly provide the whole package.  Roman Shades can be made from any fabric you want that coordinates with your interior.  They can also me made from a more traditional shade cloth, or natural woven wood materials.  It all depends on what feeling and look you want to achieve at the window.

Recently, Roman Shades have undergone extreme scrutiny for child safety.  Our industry just adopted new guidelines for the manufacturing of products that have working cords, which includes roman shades.  It is important to purchase your Roman Shades from a company that strictly adheres to these new guidelines.  I am very proud to align myself with manufacturers that have undergone all the testing necessary to comply with the new guidelines.  You can be assured that our shades, when professionally installed,  meet the current industry standards for safety.

Roman Shades are  available in many different styles.  Enjoy these photos of several of my favorites.

Technorati Tags: roman shades, Window Covering Safety

Happy New Year!

I look forward to this time every year as we look at new beginnings and goals. It is with great satisfaction that I share with you that it was this time of year in 1996, when my ideas for a new business began to take form. 2011 is going to be a celebration year for 15 years in the window coverings industry. As a company, we have experienced much over the past 15 years. Changing our name to Exciting Windows! was a big one as we joined with a larger, national organization to help move us forward in growth. Even though changes have been made to the “exterior”, we never changed the “interior”. Our customers are still what drives us. Few problems have arisen over the years with the window treatments we have installed, but for those few, I can confidently say that we went above and beyond our customer’s expectations in solving the problem. I look over my list of customers through the years and smile fondly as I think of each one.  I have been blessed to meet and work with such great people! That must be why we enjoyed 70 % of our business last year coming from repeat customers and their referrals.

Be sure and check my website and blog regularly this year. I will be partnering with my vendors to bring you special “celebration savings” throughout the year. A different product will be highlighted each month so you can look forward to 12 sales this year!  The first one will be announced later this week!

I look forward to celebrating with you!

Technorati Tags: Savings, Window Treatments

Arched Valance and Custom Arched Rod

I love new things!  Especially design and hardware.  Arched windows always present problems for homeowners.  There are few “easy” ways to treat them, either for light control and privacy or for decoration.  Many of my vendors offer arched rodding like this one, but I had not yet found just the right client and window for their use.  Then Elinora found me and this is exactly what she wanted.   This is in a small office off the foyer.  It is a very tall window and she wanted it to be dramatic.  As you can see from the photo it was hard for me to capture the whole window in my photo (time to call in a professional photographer for this one!).  But I think you can get the idea.  We did a full arched design on the valance with straight, stationary panels underneath.  She didn’t want to lose any of the light in the room and we were able to completely accomplish that.  The goblet pleat valance hangs from rings that are set on the pole so that they do not slide.  This was a challenging job, but well worth the effort!

Technorati Tags: arched windows, blinds, drapery, Exciting Windows by Kim Lyon, Kim Lyon, Mason, Ohio, Shades, Shutters, specialty windows, Window Treatments

Often people wonder if they can add a fabric drapery treatment if they have plantation shutters on a window.  The answer is definitely “YES!”, but you have to be creative.  The problem arises because you still need to be able to open the shutter panel if you want access to the window.  Therefore, a drapery treatment needs to be designed that will allow for this flexibility.  Fabric adds so much to a room, and is often the finishing touch in the decorating process that ties everything else in the room together.  Shown here are two examples of adding drapery over shutters.  It requires special planning, creative hardware and extra “know how”.  This is definitely the time you want to call in a professional.

Technorati Tags: Custom Drapery, Shutters