...to think that vertical blinds

[LampingPolars]

...live in offices and not people's homes.

I get why people dislike them but they have their place. All but 2 windows in my home have roller blinds. But I have a Venetian in my bathroom and vertical in the living room. The living room is a huge window that people on the street can walk right past. I spend a lot of time in there and don't like feeling like I'm in a goldfish bowl. They let the light in and give me some privacy. The look is softened with some curtains though.

I don't really get the need-for-privacy thing. (Maybe I'm an exhibitionist...) I hate windows being covered up, and hate the look of nets and blinds of all kinds. My mother is very exercised about privacy and thinks my net-less house is a disgrace. I live in London, and I don't think people really stare - quick glance as they go past maybe. Once it's dark, I close the 'proper' curtains. Has worked for me everywhere I've lived.

Hideous bloody things. They deserve to be flung into Room 101 with anaglypta wallpaper, woodchip, festoon blinds and walls which are stripy on the bottom and have fleur de lys wallpaper above the dado rail.

Just looking at buying some yesterday in a sheer fabric. Don't really like them but have a big kitcken window and patio doors out to a southwest garden and the heat and glare can be too much.

Was thinking of a sheer roller for the kitchen- if I can get one big enough. Maybe some sheer voile curtains for
the patio.

Feel free to come up with an alternative.

Quite agree OP, they are horrid and should be seen in offices only, if they must be somewhere.

I have verticals in my living room as its a huge window but they are a bit manky looking and the cat gets tangled up in them so I'm trading them in for a roller blind which I have in every other room of the house anyway.

I have to say I don't mind them they look ok to me, I don't like venetian blinds or nets though.

Everyone saying they are practical it really depends. My neighbour got them for her kitchen but soon regretted it when she realised she could no longer grow seedlings or herbs on the window sill because the blind was taking up all the space.

'It depends'...implies that yes, sometimes it is more practical. Not always. I don't have them in my kitchen, just the living room, where I don't attempt to grow anything

bambam I would fully recommend perfect fit blinds on a patio door - best things we could have got for our south facing doors!!

if you have large patio doors its fine i love horizontial blinds

Babygiraffe - what do they look like? Can you post a pic if possible!

They come in either roller or venetian but with a clip frame around the glass so only cover the size of the glass not the whole door - not dangling blinds. I'll see if I can find the link for where we got ours from - they're recommend for conservatorys but perfect on our pvc doors and fil has bought some for his oak ones :-)

Hope this helps......

Ah, ok - thanks! Looks ok but looks like a lot of dusting! I don't really see what makes them better than vertical TBH. Both are practical though if you want to be able to limit the sun coming in without shutting it out completely.

Whilst I personally think wooden blinds on any axis are the height of naffness, I'm not really bothered what other folk have on their windows.
Mind you, I still have the same pull cord curtain rail in my front room that I bought 20-odd years ago. I'm just coming round to the idea that that's a bit naff.

babygiraffe- they look interesting. My conservatory has 48 separate window panels though, so would take a lot of blinds. Luckily my conservatory looks out over open woodland and countryside, so privacy is not an issue. I don't have any blinds or caurtains on them.

My main problem is my lounge windows- each is a single expanse of 18' by 12 ', one being a sliding patio door.

personally prefer them as we have 2 cats and when we have Verticals in an old property the blinds were more of a game for kitties and I was forever putting those chains back on - I now never want another vertical blind haha!

antumbra ouch that's a lot of separate windows, we don't have anyone overlooking us but are south west facing and spend a lot of time in the dining room/kitchen areas so have to angle them otherwise its just too bloody hot :) (also noticed the dining table was fading in the sunlight stupid oak!)

I have Venetian blinds in both my front rooms. I don't know what the fuck I was thinking. They're grim and were from day one.

Soon they will be gone, gone I tell you, bwahahaha.

Totally agree they are vile. I cannot understand why anyone would covet the office look in their home. When we moved into our house ds2 bedroom had them. I ripped them out immediately and replaced them with a nice blind. Out neighbours have them and they cheapen the look of their otherwise lovely home. I would prefer a net any day of the week.

Nets are very iffy unless it's nice floaty voile panels. I moved from scotland where I don't remember anyone having nets (maybe ancient old greatauntie Isa) to the south and it was net city. I think nets are banned in Scotland for crimes against humanity.

YANBU they're horrible. Yes, they may be practical but they are so officey and cold looking. I think they look a bit grubby too, or that might be my imagination. I think they are the window dressing equivalent of those clear plastic carpet runners in the hall. 'Druget' my nan used to call that stuff. Very practical, but hideous!

My mum likes hers in the conservatory as they are easy for her to pull. That's the only place they should be seen IMO.

I hate the way they clatter about in any breeze as well. Reminds me of being stuck in a classroom at school during summer

I haven't seen one of those clear plastic runners in yonks! They were everywhere in my childhood, wonder where they've all gone.

I'd rather sit in a room reminiscent of a 'granny' (nets) than a dentist's waiting room (verticals)

Hideous bloody things. They deserve to be flung into Room 101 with anaglypta wallpaper, woodchip, festoon blinds and walls which are stripy on the bottom and have fleur de lys wallpaper above the dado rail.

YY to all of that. And I would add that nasty royal-icing-effect swirly spiky artex to the list. Who the hell invented that?

My mum still has horrible 45 year old Venetian blinds in her house. I hated them. I remember having to dust them with this thing that looked like a Muppet's hand. Anyway, it has put me off horizontal blinds so we have some vertical ones. They are now old and I don't like them but am unsure what to use instead - our house is set quite close to the pavement.