All you need to know about Venetian Blinds

Posted on February 18, 2013 by Juliette

All you need to know about Venetian Blinds

Venetian blinds are a hassle free way of covering your windows. They are a classy option that comes in a wide diversity of materials and colours so there is a blind to suit all styles of décor.

Dark Wood Venetian Blinds

Venetian blinds are one of the simplest blinds to fit and maintain making it a popular choice for many people. The blinds are made up of slats of horizontal overlapping material. They are simple to alter so you can quickly decrease the amount of light coming into your home, some blinds can even block all light from coming in.

Wooden Venetian Blind

Wooden venetian blinds offer a natural look and can co ordinate with any interior décor. They give a modern look to your room and are available in many different kinds of wood.

Wooden Blinds

Metal venetian blinds look great in home environments and commercial environments, they are easy to maintain as they are made out of durable material. Venetian blinds can complete any room to turn your house into a home.

Cream Wooden Venetian Blind

How to Make the Perfect Voile Curtains

Posted on January 28, 2013 by Juliette

How to Make the Perfect Voile Curtains

Match and join fabric widths by over locking or French seam
Make sure the top is level especially if patterned and sew in with buckram using a foot’s width allowance
Trim off any excess fabric
Lockstitch down sides double 1 inch (Blind hem if requested)
Turn the buckram down onto the wrong side of the fabric and sew the buckram down on the edges
Pin all the way along the bottom of the buckram to hold it in place for measuring
Measure curtains leaving enough fabric for hem which is double 2 inches
Cut off excess fabric
Measure and turn up the hem 4 inches then fold down 2 inches and either blind hem or lockstitch down
Thread in chain weight through hem and pin in both ends and sew onto hem lockstitch down both ends
For the heading use the same make up as lined curtains

How to make a pair of Pinch Pleat Curtains

Posted on January 22, 2013 by Juliette

How to make a pair of Pinch Pleat Curtains

Cut to the drop + 20cm cutting to the pattern repeat
Join widths pattern match where possible
Blind hem the face cloth with double 7cm hems
Join widths and lockstitch hem on to lining double 5cm hems
Place lining on top of the face cloth and measure 6 inches from the outer edge of the face inwards and trim off. This will give you your turnings either side of 1.5 inches.
Pin in the lining 1.5 inches up from the bottom of the blind hem on the face cloth
Over lock in the sides adding a weigh to the bottom hem. If there are any join you will need a weight there too
Making sure you have equal turnings either side lockstitch 5 inch buckram to the top using 3cm allowance of fabric
Turn the curtains through and poke out the corners at the top and press
Fold curtain in half and measure x by 2 – Gather size divide by the amount of pinches (usually 5 per width this will give you the size of your pinches. This should fall between 16 – 18cm)
To get the size of your spaces take gather size and divide by the amount of space you need and this will give you your space size. Please look at the formula below

Formula for working out pinches and spaces

Width of curtain Gather Amount of pinches Size of pinches

210 - 80 divide 7 = 18.6

Gather Spaces Size of Spaces

80 divide 8 = 10

Lockstitch in the pleats to the size of the buckram
Press sides and mitre the corners then slip stitch
Press curtains and joins
Pinch up the pleats either two pleats or three and hand sew in the pleats at the bottom
Measure down the pleat 4cm and put in pin hook
Cut off all ends
Examine curtains

Patterned Curtains

How to Successfully Pattern Match Roman Blinds

Posted on January 14, 2013 by Juliette

How to Successfully Pattern Match Roman Blinds

To pattern match your Roman Blind use the vertical pattern repeat. To work out the vertical pattern repeat measure from the top of the design in one spot down to the same spot on the design below.

Aston Pewter Roman Blind

All cut lengths have to start at the same point in the pattern so they match at the seam when the blind is joined. This means the cut length has to be a multiple of the pattern repeat. Once you have determined your pattern repeat you need to determine the cut length of your blind please see example below.

Plaza Silver Roman Blind

Finished length = 150cm divide by pattern repeat 69cm = 2.17cm

Round up to 3

3 is the number of repeats you will need

2 x 69cm – 207 = cut length

Why we think you should always fit Roman Blinds outside the recess

Posted on January 8, 2013 by Juliette

Roman Blinds Fitted Outside the Recess

There are many advantages to fitting a Roman Blind outside the recess these are:

It lets in more light in your room
Easier installation
Sizes are more flexible
From the outside the look of your Blind will be improved
Roman Blinds outside the recess make your window look well dressed
There is less of a chance your fabric will fade
Bounce back is not an issue

Roman Blinds Fitted Inside the Recess

Hard Blinds such as Roller Blinds, Venetian Blinds and Roller Blinds are designed to be fitted inside the recess as bounce back will not happen. Bounce back happens with normal use over a period of time depending on the nature of the fabric.

Alma Black Roman Blind

When fitting a Roman Blind inside the recess when measuring we recommend that you make your usual width allowance from the recess which is generally 1cm but do not take anything off the drop. This allows for the bounce back that occurs.

Alma Grey Roman Blind

How to make a Pair of Pencil Pleat Curtains

Posted on January 4, 2013 by Juliette

How to make a Pair of Pencil Pleat Curtains

Follow these easy steps to make a pair of Pencil Pleat Curtains.

Curtains

Cut to the drop + 20cm cutting to the pattern repeat
Join widths and pattern repeat where possible
Blind hem the face cloth double 7cm for hems
Join widths and lockstitch hem on linings double 5cm hems
Place lining on top of the face cloth and measure 6inches from the outer edge of the face fabric inwards and trim off. This will give you your turnings either side of 1.5 inches
Pin in the lining 1.5 inches up from the bottom of the blind hem on the face cloth
Over lock in the sides adding a weight to the bottom hem. If there is a join add a weight to the bottom of this
Hang on the measuring hoist. Enter in the drop + 5cm and cut off the remainder
Making sure you have equal turnings either side turn over 5cm as machining in 3 inch tape
Lockstitch down leading edge on tapes
Press sides and mitre the corners then slip stitch
Press curtains and joins
Put hooks in the middle pocket of the tape about 7 per width
Cut off all ends
Pull up curtains to gather size

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Moonshadow Blinds

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Juliette

Closing for Christmas

For any orders placed between 21st December and 1st January will be processed in the New Year on the 2nd January.

We hope you have a great Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Everything you need to know about Roller Blinds

Posted on November 22, 2012 by Juliette

Everything you need to know about Roller Blinds

Roller Blinds are an affordable and stylish way of dressing your windows. The main advantages of having a Roller Blind instead of another kind of Blind are:

Roller Blinds are easy to use.
They are easy to maintain.
You can choose from a wide range of styles and colours to find something to suit your individual style.
Roller Blinds give you control of the sunlight which will reduce the light damage on any furniture.
You can choose a Blackout option

Roller Blind Splash Capri

Installing your Roller Blind

Firstly you need to decide if you would like to install your Blind inside or outside of the recess.

Roller Blind Splash Candy Pink

Outside the Recess

When fitting a Roller Blind outside the recess you need to follow these easy steps:

Measure the Blind
Measure the width of your window
Deduct the two measurements and then divide it by two

This gives you the measurements each side of the window; this is place your Blind will sit between.

Next mark off how far above the window you would like your Blind to sit; We recommend 4cm
Start with the controller bracket and mark through the hole positions then drill to fix
Locate the controller end and ensure that the head points down to the floor. You can then slide the Roller Blind into the end bracket.

Roller Blind Metropolitan Avocado

Inside the Recess

When fitting a Roller Blind inside the recess you need to firstly decide if you are going to face fix, top fix or side fix your Blind; We recommend top fixing Roller Blinds.

Measure the distance of the handles from the window frame and make sure you allow 10mm as this is the measurement from the window frame back to your Blind
Place your Roller Blind in the recess with the brackets attached
Position your Blind centrally in the window and note how much space there is at the end of the Blind; This is the distance you need when positioning your brackets
The pin slots inside the barrel allowing a small amount of sideways movement for your fixings which allows you to side fix your Blind but no more that 5mm as it will put too much strain on the pin

Roller Blind Splash Tango

If you have any more questions regarding Roller Blinds or any other Blinds on our website please tweet us @ms_woodenblinds

How to make a Roman Blind

Posted on November 13, 2012 by Juliette

How to make a Roman Blind

Follow these easy steps to make your own Roman Blind.

Alma Lime Roman Blind

Firstly measure your window for your Roman Blind
Cut to the drop + 15cm cutting to the pattern repeat. Width + 5cm. Cut Lining.
Measure the face fabric and lining.
Lockstitch lining to face fabric using 1.3cm turning on the face and press lining flat.
Turn up the hem and double 5cm then press.
Work out your rows by taking the drop and adding 1cm take 2.5cm for velcro.
Mark rows for tapes and pin.
Pin in the velcro and sew on the wrong side then turn the velcro and sew along the bottom of the velcro to the face side.
Check for any loose threads.
Sew the hem onto the blind.
Sew in tapes and lockstitch tape closed on one side.
Slipstich ends of the hem of the blind.
Cut rods and track to size.
Insert rods and sew the ends.
Place track on the velcro and cord up the blind.

Plaza Camel Roman Blind

Things you will need to make your Roman Blind

Alma Black Roman Blind

Handy Measure Guide For Roman Blinds

Posted on November 6, 2012 by Juliette

An Easy way to Measure your Windows for your Roman Blind

There is an easy way to measure your windows for your Roman Blinds if you follow these instructions to make sure your blinds are a good fit.

Firstly you need to decide whether to fit your blind inside or outside the recess.

Belmont Grape Roman Blind

Roman Blinds Inside Recess

Measuring For Roman Blinds Inside the Recess

1) Measure the width in 3 different positions inside the window recess from wall to wall. Measure at the top, the middle and the bottom. The most essential measurement is the smallest one.

2) Measure the Drop (height) in 3 different positions inside the recess from the top of the recess to the window sill. Again the most important measurement to write down is the smallest one.

3) Enter these measurements into the website. We make the appropriate allowances.

Aston Pewter Roman Blind

Outside recess

Measuring for Roman Blinds outside the Recess

1) Measure the width of your window then add at least 12cm to allow for overlap.

2) Measure the drop (height) of your window and add at least 12cm to allow for overlap.

3) On Roller Blinds the exact width entered will be from bracket to bracket in between the brackets you would have your controls, this means your fabric will be 2cm to 3cm less. Ex:- A Roller Blind width of 60cm exact size from bracket to bracket would mean the fabric would be around 57cm to 58cm in width. Please take this into acount when measuring for your blind to go onto a door with a window, bay window or window with a small frame.

4) Remember to enter your sizes as Exact size when ordering for outside recess this will mean the blind will be made to your precise measurements.

Alma Sand Roman Blinds

Notes:

Always measure every window as no two windows are the same size. Blinds are custom made to fit each window. Please re check your measurements before ordering your blinds, any help required measuring for bay windows, conservatories or just general information please call our customer services on 0115 9837626 Monday to Friday 10.00am till 5.00pm