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When considering the interior design of your home, how you cover your windows is a very important decision, and one that shouldn't be taken lightly. At Tracks-Direct we are taking a look at the top 10 advantages of curtains over blinds.

1) Curtains add visual elegance to a room

Where both vertical and horizontal blinds just cover the window and add very little to the look and feel of the room, curtains and their fittings add a certain style. Curtain poles come in a wide variety of styles, from simple metal curtain poles to wood effect ones. Finials (the decorative ends of the curtain poles) also come in all shapes and sizes, so you are sure to find a style that suits your room.

When open, curtains frame a window beautifully, creating a border which is lacking with blinds. Whether pulled up or to the side, blinds cover only the window, whereas curtains can hang below and to the side of the window. Tying curtains back adds a certain elegance which blinds cannot offer.

2) Curtains and curtain tracks or poles can be bent to fit a bay window

Although some vertical blinds can be bent to the shape of a bay window, a vertical blind will take away the lovely effect and leave the room looking more like an office. A curtain track or curtain pole can be made to measure and bent to suit a bay window and the curtains will once again add elegance and style. Curtain tracks are also more flexible and can be made to fit a wider range of bay windows.

3) Increased fitting flexibility

Some of today's more modern windows and patio doors open inwards leaving little space to fix. With curtain tracks that can be as small as 5mm and some that can even be recess fixed into a ceiling, this will leave plenty of room for a window or door to open inwards.

4) Curtains provide insulation

Typically blinds are thin and offer minimal heat insulation to a room. Compare this with a lovely warm set of curtains which not only keep the heat inside but also cut draughts as they can hang below the window ledge, unlike blinds which stop just above the ledge. Curtains can also be interlined with a thick material to add extra heat insulation.

5) Hand, cord or electric operation

Curtain tracks and curtain poles can be hand operated so that many different curtains can operate on one window. This allows curtains of different widths and drops to stack at different locations on the window. In addition they can also be operated as a blind with a cord to avoid handling the curtains or electrically for the extra security and a touch of luxury.

6) Easy to keep clean

Blinds can be dust traps, especially horizontal ones. As more people are suffering from asthma and dust allergies, curtains are a healthy choice, requiring little care to keep them clean and presentable. The tracks and poles need little servicing and the curtains need only be vacuumed or dry cleaned on the odd occasion.

7) Want a new look and feel?

Although white or cream blinds will fit in with most room styles and colours, they do nothing to enhance it. Curtains can blend in with your room, or can be chosen to enhance or contrast with it. Redecorating? No problem, just choose new curtains to match. Curtains can also have trimmings and contrast edges to pick out other colours within the room. Buttons can be added to pleats, cord can be added to edges or pleats as can a contrast trimming. Curtains offer a much wider scope for design.

8) Curtains can be controlled remotely

As mentioned above, electric curtain tracks can be fitted which allow you to control your curtains from the comfort of your armchair. Although it may seem like the height of laziness, there is a practical aspect to electric curtain tracks. When on holiday, people typically use automated light-switching devices but have to leave curtains or blinds half open. Electric curtains can be set to open and close at set times each day, giving the impression that someone is home. Alternatively a light sensor can be added to open and close the curtains in conjunction with the daylight hours.

9) Curtains are easy to hang

Want to change your curtains? Simply unhook them from your curtain pole, attach the hooks to your new curtains and away you go. Replacing vertical blinds can involve unhooking each blind from the next, unclipping each one carefully (the plastic is easy to snap), and then going through the whole rigmarole in reverse to put them back up. Other blinds must be removed all in one, making it easy to damage them as they are taken down or put back up.

10) Reliable and cost effective

With so many working parts or fiddly clips, blinds tend to be less reliable than curtains on a track or a pole. Combining curtains with a good, reliable curtain track or pole can be a more cost effective option; especially as curtain prices have been greatly reduced since the introduction of ready-made and express curtain making services. And if your requirements change, you can simply hang new curtains on your existing track or pole.

We hope you have found our information about the advantages of curtains over blinds useful. Find out about the wide range of curtain tracks and poles, fitting options and more at Tracks-Direct.