Building A Home? Plan Ahead For Window Treatments
So many material selections and decisions are made during the construction of a new home that it’s easy to overlook the importance of planning ahead for window treatments. Taking time to consider the types of windows and window coverings you intend to use before construction will result in a more beautiful, cost-effective and practical outcome. With forethought, the treatments needed to control the light, heat, glare, and privacy issues of each room will be centered or recessed properly with adequate space for installation and a balanced appearance.
Selection of the Window: Style, Shapes, Sizes and Location
Dramatic circle, arch and angled windows located high on the southern walls of a home can bring the warmth of the sun into the home in January but what kinds of window treatments will you need in July when your air conditioner is running from dawn until dusk? Consider as early as possible the limited options in window treatments that will be available to you for those specialty shapes. Are you prepared to motorize these treatments? If you have not brought power to the windows during construction, you will need to keep a ladder handy to change the batteries once every year. Think about the large windows over garden tubs and foyers also.
Leaning toward beautiful wood window systems with matching 3 ½” casements? Although beautiful, this type of window often provides only a ½” inside dimension for the installation of window treatment brackets. Thus, an inside mount into a window like this, when possible, will result in a treatment that protrudes into the room and may not be secured to the manufacturer’s recommendations. Unfortunately, the solution is generally a face mounted treatment that conceals most of the casement and protrudes into the room. Protruding window treatments often create light or privacy gaps and exposed hardware problems that require an additional layer of side panels or top treatments to mask the problems.
Popular today are the sophisticated French doors. If you need a window treatment on this opening, it might be best to go with a slider, especially if you would like some type of top treatment. With any door, consider the style and placement of handles, dead bolt locks, etc. Lever handles, although commonly used, create more obstruction for window treatments. If you don’t have a choice, select a lever style that provides at least 1 ½” of clearance between the glass and the handle to preserve your options for custom window treatments.
Window Jamb Depths
When planning the depth of your jambs, think big. Many of the beautiful new products on the market today require larger headrails. While a 2 ½” jamb is common and will provide adequate room for many treatments, a 4” jamb depth will allow you to recess almost everything currently available. Deep jambs are especially useful if you have selected a crank operated window to prevent your window treatment from hanging up on the operating hardware when you raise and lower it. Ask your builders about the different types of crank mechanisms available now that fold down tight to the jamb.
Shutters
If plantation shutters appeal to you, there are some considerations to be made that can save you money and insure a beautiful installation. If you like the beautiful integrated shutter framing available today have your contractor remove the casement from his bid for those windows that you are thinking about for shutters. The final look is flawless and the cost savings can be significant. This is especially true with arch top windows. If you are interested in the popular 3 ½” and 4 ½” louver systems, they require more clearance in the window so it is best to review the proposed window detail with your window treatment designer prior to construction. Shutters can interfere with the operation of tilt-in windows if not engineered properly. Ask your builder to leave the maximum amount of tilt-in clearance on both sides of the windows which will receive shutters.
Drapery
If drapery is the treatment of choice for your showcase room, think about the placement of the windows on the walls. To insure a balanced final result, make every effort to center your windows on the available wall space with equal spaces between multiple windows and on both sides of your outermost windows. To keep your drapery from becoming air filters for the home, make sure that air vents are not located where you envision your drapery to hang. Equally important is the creation of clearance between crown molding and the top of the window for the application of brackets without damage to the casement.
Visit a window treatment gallery and work with a professional designer select the styles you love. and talk about integrating them into your new home and then work with your architect and builder to ensure the best possible outcome.
Jennaver Brown is the owner of Eye on Design and a certified Window Treatment Consultant as recognized by the Window Coverings Association of America. Together, she and her staff, offer more than 20 years of professional expertise in their field. Customers will find Eye on Design to be a full-service window fashions showroom featuring a beautiful Hunter Douglas Gallery™ and a full line of custom fabrics. Offering the best national brands, competitive prices, and personal service, Eye on Design brings individual lifestyle, personality and budget together with the right product. Located at 309 E. Main Street in Belleville; 618-257-9750; eod4u.com.