Roman Blinds and Other Window Blinds in Cornwall: A Helpful Guide
- Caroline Ingram
- Aug 11
- 5 min read
If you're choosing blinds for your Cornwall home, roman blinds are usually the first style people ask us about. They're soft, elegant, and suit almost any room, but they're not always the right fit for every window. Roller, vertical, Duette and shutters each solve different problems, from steamy bathrooms to floor to ceiling patio doors, so it's worth knowing what each one actually does before you decide.
This guide walks through the main types of blinds we fit across Cornwall, so you can go into your appointment already knowing roughly what you're after, or come away from this article knowing what to ask us about your project.
Roman Blinds: The Classic Choice
Roman blinds fold up into neat, soft horizontal pleats when raised, and sit flat when down. They're made from fabric, which makes them the most versatile blind for matching your existing curtains, cushions or wallpaper, and we can make them in virtually any suitable fabric from our range, including Sanderson, Harlequin, William Morris, Designers Guild and more.
They work particularly well in living rooms, bedrooms and dining rooms, anywhere you want a softer, more furnished look than a plain roller blind gives you. Roman blinds can also be made with a blackout lining for bedrooms, so don't rule them out just because a room gets a lot of sun. For an extra special finish, having roman blinds behind the curtains in the recess is a nice touch to pair contrasting yet complementary fabrics.
Roller Blinds: Simple and Practical
A roller blind is a single piece of fabric that rolls up around a tube at the top of the window. They're the simplest, most compact option, and a good choice where you want a clean, minimal look or where space is tight, for example on a small bathroom window or above a kitchen sink where there is moisture.
Roller blinds come in a huge range of fabrics, from sheer voiles that filter light to full blackout options. They're generally the most budget-friendly blind we make, without looking like a budget choice.
Vertical Blinds: Best for Large Windows and Patio Doors
Vertical blinds use hanging fabric slats that rotate to control light and can be drawn fully to one side or as a pair. They're the practical choice for wide windows, sliding doors and patio doors, situations where a roman or roller blind would either be impractical to operate or wouldn't sit well.
They're not the most decorative option on this list, but for a large, glazed area they're often the most functional. They're available in a wide enough range of fabrics that they don't have to look purely utilitarian.
Venetian Blinds: Privacy with Light Control
Venetian blinds use hanging horizontal slats that rotate to control light and can be drawn fully up at the top to stack the slats up. They're a good option for sunny windows and are great for the kitchen, front rooms where you need a bit of privacy, or for home offices where you want to control and angle the light coming in to stop screen glare.
Like verticals, they're also not the most decorative option but they are still available in a wide enough selection that you can match it to your interior. We find a lot of our clients go for a venetian blind in the recess and a roman or curtain on the face of the window for extra added blackout.
Duette (Honeycomb) Blinds: Extra Insulation
Duette blinds use a honeycomb-shaped cell structure that traps air, which can help a room feel warmer in winter and cooler in summer compared with a single layer of fabric.
They're a good option for a home that loses a lot of heat through the windows, for windows that have no space to stack back curtains or fit a blind at the top, or for anyone who wants a modern, streamlined look with no visible cords. They’re also good if you have a very hot room (for instance conservatories), as you can also choose to have a reflective backing to them, which helps to reflect the sunlight out, cooling the room. For a bedroom Duette blind, we recommend the 'perfect fit' option which creates a complete blackout environment.
They tend to sit at a higher price point than roller or vertical blinds, but for a north-facing room or an older Cornish cottage with draughty windows, the extra insulation can be worth it. Reflective backed options are also great for conservatories or sun rooms.
Shutters: A More Permanent Option
Shutters are a longer-term, built-in alternative to a fabric or slatted blind. They're fitted directly into the window recess or frame, and the angle of the louvres can be adjusted to control light and privacy without lowering or raising anything. Shutters are a great option for kitchens, living areas or downstairs areas to provide a bit of privacy, but somewhere that you don’t need full blackout.
Shutters suit period Cornish properties particularly well, and they add a genuine feature to a room rather than just covering the window. They're a bigger investment than some of the other options here. They also look particularly nice from the outside of a property looking in, as they create a softer look to the window. Many of our clients have also gone for shutters with curtains to have the option to angle the light and have the curtain providing a full blackout effect, as shutters are not blackout.
Don't Forget Roof Windows: Velux Blinds
If you've got a loft conversion or a cottage with roof lights, standard blinds won't fit. We also supply and fit Velux blinds, made specifically for roof windows, in blackout and light filtering options, so a converted attic room doesn't have to mean living with bright mornings or no privacy. Velux offer many different types of blinds, with patterned or plain fabrics and in honeycomb styles, roller or standard, and also solar battery operated.
Which Blind Suits Which Room?
Bathroom: roller blinds in a moisture-resistant fabric.
Kitchen: roman blinds or roller blinds (and dependant on proximity to the cooker, in a moisture resistant fabric).
Bedroom: roman or roller blinds with blackout lining, or Duette for extra insulation on a cold-facing wall or where fitting space is limited. We also recommend a voile roller blind for privacy in the recess, with a roman blind face fixed to add extra blackout and privacy in the room.
Front facing room or home office: venetian blinds
Living room or dining room: roman blinds for a softer, more furnished look
Patio doors or wide windows: vertical blinds
Loft or roof windows: Velux blinds
Period features or a longer-term investment: shutters
Blind Safety: What to Know
If you have children, grandchildren, or run a holiday let, blind cord safety matters. Modern blinds are fitted with a breakaway safety chain or cordless mechanism as standard, and it's worth checking yours regularly to make sure it's working correctly. We've written a separate guide on how to fix a blind breakaway safety chain if you'd like more detail. This applies to holiday lets and contract properties, where a working safety chain is a legal requirement.
How We Help You Choose
Photos and fabric swatches only tell you so much. With every blind we make, we start with a home visit, so you can see the fabric in your own home light, feel the weight and texture, and get a second opinion from someone who fits blinds across Cornwall every week. There's no pressure and no obligation, just an honest conversation about what will actually work for your window.
If you'd like to talk through which blind suits your home, book a free home visit or give us a call on 07912 280888.
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