Roman Blinds, Made to Measure
with Folds Set Out to the
Height of Your Window

Linen and linen blends give the softest fold and a relaxed finish. Cottons and cotton satins hold a crisper fold and take printed pattern well. Wool blends add weight and are quiet and warm at the glass. Sheers and voiles are used unlined where the point is filtered daylight rather than privacy.

Standard cotton sateen lining protects the face fabric and evens out the light. Interlining adds body, insulation and a deeper, softer fold, and is what gives a Roman blind its tailored weight. Blackout lining is specified for bedrooms and nurseries; dim-out is the middle option for sitting rooms.

Room conditions narrow the choice. Above a hob or in a bathroom, tighter weaves and washable or moisture-tolerant fabrics hold up better; a large-repeat delicate weave belongs on a bedroom window instead.

Fold depth is chosen so the number of folds divides evenly into the drop. A tall window can take deeper folds and read generously; a short window needs shallower folds or it looks heavy and loses too much glass to the stack.

Inside-recess fitting gives a neat, contained look and keeps the sill clear, which suits deep Victorian reveals. Outside-recess fitting, mounted above the opening on the face of the wall, hides the stack above the glass, closes side light gaps and makes a small window look taller.

Where two or more windows sit side by side, blinds are set out as a group so fold lines align across the wall. Getting that right is why blinds on a run of windows are specified together rather than one at a time.

Chain-operated sidewinder mechanisms are the standard for regular use, with a child-safety device fitted so no loop is left hanging free. Corded systems suit lighter blinds. Motorised operation is the answer for tall, wide or out-of-reach windows and removes the cord entirely, see our automated blinds service.

Variations include the flat-fronted London blind for a softer, less structured look, cascade or waterfall styles that keep a fold visible when the blind is fully lowered, and Roman blinds with contrast borders, leading-edge trims or fabric-covered battens to pick up another colour in the room.

Blinds can also be made to a shaped or arched head, and for very wide windows split into two or three blinds on a single headrail so each panel stays operable.

In houses the emphasis is on fabric character, fold proportion and how the blind sits with the curtains and cushions in the same room.

For apartments, show homes and rental portfolios the emphasis moves to consistency and cleaning: repeatable fold set-outs across identical windows, robust mechanisms, and blackout or dim-out linings specified for turnover. That work is handled through contract curtains and voiles.

Deep Victorian reveals are common in Pinner, Northwood and Rickmansworth, and they suit inside-recess fitting where the blind sits neatly within the opening and leaves the sill usable. Kitchen extensions in Chalfont often have windows tight against a worktop or wall unit, which usually calls for an outside-recess fit above the opening so the blind clears the run and the stack is not squeezed.

Tall sash windows in Kensington, Chelsea and Belgravia take Roman blinds well, either alone for a tailored finish or behind curtains as a working light-control layer. In those rooms the fold depth is usually set deeper, because a tall window can carry it and shallow folds on a long drop read mean. Bedrooms in Hampstead and Primrose Hill facing garden light are where oversized outside-recess blackout blinds earn their place, as they close the light gaps a recessed blind cannot.

Keeping a Roman blind looking right is mostly about the first few weeks and then very little. Raise and lower it fully a few times after fitting so the folds set along the rod lines, and dress the folds by hand once so each one takes its shape. After that, occasional light vacuuming with a soft brush keeps dust off the top edges of the folds, where it collects first. Lined and interlined blinds are specialist dry-cleaned rather than washed, since washing shrinks the layers at different rates and the fold set-out never recovers.