Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Blackout Blinds: Great For Allergies

I'm currently going through one of the worst allergy seasons of my life and now understand why my mother was so strict about NEVER having anything but window blinds in their home. Both my father and I suffer from severe allergies and are especially miserable in the spring and fall.

If you're looking for blackout window treatments, you probably first thought of blackout curtains or blackout shades. Both are really popular because they can block out 100% of the light while blackout blinds can't.

However, blackout blinds can block out MOST of that light and are more flexible than drapes or shades... so, there's one good reason to install them in your home. With both blackout drapes and blackout shades, you can only have them open or shut. Blackout blinds let you open, close, and tilt the slats.

Now, I personally LOVE the way drapes look. I've grown up with window blinds my entire life, so I think they're somewhat boring. And, most design shows show adding drapes or roman shades to a room - rarely do they add window blinds. However, the one thing most of them don't consider is that drapes collect EVERYTHING. Dust, pet dander, pet hair... everything gets caught in them and is extremely difficult to get out. Most drapes can only be dry cleaned, which makes it even more difficult and expensive to clean. With blackout blinds, all you need to do is dust!

Now, keep in mind, you should always only get routeless blackout blinds if you're worried about your allergies. There's no reason to make cleaning more difficult - or to give allergens another place to hang on to.