Little Difference #27 - Metal Blinds
99.9% of all houses, apartments, and commercial buildings have metal blinds. And I have to say that I think they are brilliant. When closed completely they let absolutely no light though. Which did lead to a few problems when we first arrived. Remember the day we woke up at 2:00 in the afternoon? But for those of us who like to sleep in a room as dark as possible, well, you couldn't ask for anything better.
In the evening or early morning, with the blinds shut tight, the houses all look deserted or closed for the season. No peeping into windows here in Luxembourg.
The blinds are located on the outside of the windows. Blinds can be operated 3 different ways. We have a long wand on the right side of the blinds that is turned to open and close. Other blinds have a wide strap that is pulled. Some houses have switches that open and close the blinds. Fancy, huh?
Are their metal blinds where you live? If not, is something else common?
Read all the Little Differences here.
99.9% of all houses, apartments, and commercial buildings have metal blinds. And I have to say that I think they are brilliant. When closed completely they let absolutely no light though. Which did lead to a few problems when we first arrived. Remember the day we woke up at 2:00 in the afternoon? But for those of us who like to sleep in a room as dark as possible, well, you couldn't ask for anything better.
In the evening or early morning, with the blinds shut tight, the houses all look deserted or closed for the season. No peeping into windows here in Luxembourg.
The blinds are located on the outside of the windows. Blinds can be operated 3 different ways. We have a long wand on the right side of the blinds that is turned to open and close. Other blinds have a wide strap that is pulled. Some houses have switches that open and close the blinds. Fancy, huh?
Are their metal blinds where you live? If not, is something else common?
Read all the Little Differences here.
11 comments:
I too loved the blinds and even more the screens! The screens at my in-laws in Belgium (and sisters-in-law in The Netherlands) easily pull down from a casing just inside the window casing while the blinds come down from a casing just outside the window casing. Open the window and pull down the screen if so desired---love the ability to switch so easily. I looked high and low here in the Midwest US to no avail to do match this design.
I noticed that they also tend to have a lot less window treatment on the inside---which I tend to like (five years in our house and I haven't hung a window fixture yet)---since they have no real functional need to cover the windows.
we don't have them in Australia but we recently spent 3 months in Europe (my in-laws are all over UK and Europe) and after arriving at Parents-in-law in France my youngest (5 1/2) slept 12+ hrs overnight for the 1st time in her life - all week long, thanks to those lovely creations!!!!
anywhere we stayed with those blinds was awesome because it was summer and would have been impossible to get the kids to sleep without them.
those blinds are available in australia but not to that degree. People just personally buy them if they can afford them, want dark window and for safety reasons. It would be a much lower percentage
they are quite common here too,we live in a new development and I would say 90% of the houses have them. We opted not to, I worry about what would happen if there was an earthquake or fire and we couldn't get out through the door for some reason.
We have them here in Melbourne (called roller shutters), I'm sure they are in other parts of Australia.
I loved the ones we had in Germany. I often rolled mine down - but without letting them all the way down so there were little gaps and then I'd leave the window open (I'd do this at night or when it was dark). I loved that I could get fresh air into my room without having the whole window wide open.
They are common in Italy, as well. In fact, most every house has either those or functional shutters. The house we rented here before buying had the fancy electric ones -- lovely. I especially liked the switch near the main door that could control them all at once. One flick, all closed. Italians use them for security, but also for temperature control within the house, either inviting or blocking the sun. Our house has the shutters, which aren't exactly shutters, but close enough. It baffles our neighbors that we don't shut them all each night or each time we leave home. Ahhh. . . we probably should. . . but I rely on the alarm instead.
Have a great day!
D
I grew up in Germany with these and dream of them in the US - to no avail. They used to be called Rolladens (sp) and they are the smartest thing. My Dad worked shift work and so they were great when he slept during the day. Keep in the heat too. I have never fully adjusted to American blinds etc.. in the house. oh well.
My husband wishes we had these blinds here in the states. Since he grew up with these blinds he has a hard time falling asleep here even after 18 years.
Lucky you! I wish we had such blinds. "Metal blinds in the US are mini blinds that let a ton of light in - not to mention they are almost useless for privacy.
Your sound won-der-ful!
Such interesting comments about these blinds. I wonder why they're so hard to come by here. I'd sign up in a heartbeat.
I love those blinds! We had them at a b&b we stayed at in Italy - our first day (jet lag) we got up at 3 or 4 in the afternoon. Just as the proprietor promised - we opened the door and 5 minutes later breakfast appeared on the patio. I would love to have these for my and Logan's bedroom!
Post a Comment