What I've found since renovating my first home is that so many jobs look much more difficult than they actually are. Also, you can't always believe what every company tells you when profit is at stake. (We'll get to the latter in a bit).
In late 2014, my Dad's mate installed our 2nd hand conservatory for us. We originally got it off eBay for about £200 and is a very spacious 6m x 3m (the same width as the back of out our bungalow). And as soon as it was put up, I called around for blind quotes and also tried to get some online as we wanted some privacy for our new room.
But I am not kidding when I tell you that everyone I spoke to said they either didn't make them for sloping roofs, OR we that they'd cost us £1500+ (and that was for the two slanted windows and NOT the main window section).
Here's a few things that popped in my head:
- Why were they so expensive?
- Cutting up blinds looks very scary. Something might go wrong.
- Measuring and hemming each slat looks extremely time consuming.
- Why did companies insist if I shortened them myself, they wouldn't sit right?
- And how was it possible if I cut them, "they wouldn't work".
And once someone in a DIY budget facebook group said it worked for them (and when I held up one from another room to see how they would hang with gravity in place), it made me realise - yes, this is going to work!
Well, today, I'm proving that my gentle sloping vertical blinds really do work. If your window is a very steep slope, I'd hang an old once from there to see for yourself first before ordering. But I found it extremely easy and cheap to do.
(I ordered Amaris beige)
Here's what I used:
- Direct blinds basic vertical blinds 100mm longer than my window's drop to give me enough excess hem to fold over the for the longest lengths. I also ordered the pull to be on the longest side of each window and NOT a centre split opening.
- 3.5" blind slat top clips
- Wallpaper scissors for precise cutting *Mine were about £1 from B&M and they're BRILLIANT!
- Self tapping screws (I used black drywall screws which aren't visible while the blinds are up)
- Old Black + Decker screwdriver
- About 3mm thick flat piece of cardboard (or you could use thicker if you prefer shorter blinds)
Method
- Follow the manufacturer's blind fitting instructions on installing the blinds (it's fine that they're longer than windows at this stage).
- I then laid the cardboard on the windowsill to create an even clearance for the hem.
- Then, eyeballing it, one by one, I raised each slat at the top to where it would hang if hooked, using the existing tops as a height guide. *I made sure each hem JUST touched the 3mm cardboard on the sill.
- Now folded over the excess slat at the top and facing outwards and created a crease with my finger tips.
- Then, I slotted the stick (that comes with the slat hangers above) and slid the hanger section on top and hung back up.
- Repeat until every one is at the right length - you may want to adjust some slightly if a little shorter/longer than others.
- And once you have all of them to the length you want, using sharp wallpaper scissors, cut the excess off, leaving about 2cm behind. You may want to measure, but again, I eyeballed because I didn't feel each one had to look absolutely pristine (as it's facing outwards).
- Make sure each blind rotates ok. If not, the stack of the blinds needs to hang the other way. It's really easy - just follow this 1 minute video I found.
- Then attach your chain to link them all together as per manufacturer's fitting instructions.
WHAT IF I MAKE A MISTAKE?
If you make a mistake on a slat for whatever reason while shortening them (which is probably extremely unlikely), then you can actually order extra slats separately. The money you'll be saving will be worth it!
SAVE YOURSELF OVER £1350!
So in total, I paid £146 for two of the blinds alone, making a £1353 saving that can help contribute towards a new driveway. That's definitely more like it! Now I've placed my order to finish the main window.
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How to Fit Blinds by Type
*This is NOT a sponsored post.
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