Shades have a primary and a secondary purpose for which they are used and commodified. Their primary usage is to give you all in one light control, insulate the heat and give you privacy. Their secondary usage is to dictate, enhance and change the aesthetic of your home to make it pleasing and easy on the eyes, while giving off a very comfortable vibe for you to live with.
Amongst the primary types of usage, light control is one of the most important aspects of window shades as they act as the first form of defence between the sunlight and your interiors (windows themselves do not count as they offer very little to no resistance to heat and light). You might find yourself wanting to allow some sunlight to illuminate your room naturally during the mornings and evenings, while also wanting to completely block them during the afternoons.
There might even be certain days where you would want to partially block the light so that it is not overbearing. There is no problem with wanting different types of light control. However, each window treatment has a unique capacity with respect to how much light it can control, but, if your needs are changing throughout the day there are certain window shades that offer all in one light control. These are one set of shades that have different modes of light control that are easily accessible so that you can change the modes to allow just as much light as you need.
Three Shades that Give you All in One Light Control
1. Top down bottom up shades are some of the most unique and beautiful window treatments in the market today. They have unique functionality that allows you different control solutions. These shades can be raised from the bottom or can be opened from the top. You can also leave either of them up or make sure the whole window is covered, then you leave the top or bottom half of your shades up, it allows you to ensure that you do not have to give up any sunlight for privacy.
When these shades come in blackout fabric, your ability to block sunlight fully gives these shades a huge advantage over any other fabric or shades. Essentially, top-down bottom-up blackout shades give you a lot of flexibility in controlling how and from where sunlight can enter your home.
Aside from these stunning functional aspects, the design of these shades makes it highly stylish and desirable for the modern home and can perform really well in bedrooms and living rooms. There are many different shade types with this lift option as well, including roman shades, pleated shades, and cellular shades.
2. Dual Shades are two roller shades combined in a single headrail running side by side. Roller shades do not have the ability to function as a top down bottom up shade, but they easily control light as they combine two different types of fabrics. You can easily mix and match a blackout fabric with a light filtering or a solar fabric.
With multiple fabrics, you will have the ability to choose how much light you want to come in. If you need full darkness, like when you are sleeping, you can have the blackout fabric come down. If it’s during the day and you need some natural light to come in, then roll up the blackout shade and keep the light filtering shade down. You will still have full privacy but you will get to enjoy good lighting without resorting to using electric light bulbs.
3. Motorized Smart Shades provide the ultimate control system for you. You don’t even need to worry about opening and closing them yourself, you can simply program them to open and close per certain hours, like during sunrise and sunset. This can be a great way to help reduce your energy consumption, like for example, the shades can open during dawn, reducing the need of using indoor lights to get your day started.
Apart from saving energy, smart shades can come in many different benefits such as various methods of control. You can use a remote control, your smartphone, or you can hook them up with your smart home system like Amazon Alexa or Google Home. Like bottom up blinds, they come in many different types, from roman shades, cellular shades, and roller shades.
Conclusion
Window treatments such as top-down bottom-up blackout shades, dual shades and smart shades are great investments for your home for two reasons. First, they provide the light control that is needed and also with that, much needed privacy. Second, these shades add great aesthetic value to any home. So long as you match them well with the rest of your décor, you can achieve stunning visuals that are easy on the eye.
Shades themselves also help with increasing the value of your home. Any prospective buyers will see that you made careful thought and effort with the shades you use, and they will know that the house was well taken care of. With that in mind, it is easy to see why adding these new types of modern shades can really make a tremendous addition to your home.