How to Choose the Best Bedroom Blinds

Installing bedroom window treatments will provide a number of important benefits, including helping to maintain a pleasant temperature and controlling light, which are both important for good quality sleep.

What are the best blinds for bedrooms? There are a number of styles of blinds and window treatments, so it can be challenging to work out which is best for your room. To narrow down your choices, think of how you would like the bedroom blinds to function and the look you hope to achieve. 

To help you choose, find out the best blinds and window treatments for bedrooms, and the practicalities and aesthetics of each style. 

 

Why Opt for Bedroom Window Coverings

Bedroom window treatments are essential to maintain privacy, and control light and temperature for a comfortable sleeping environment. Many people opt for curtains or drapes, but internal or external bedroom window blinds or shutters can offer several benefits over these. 

These advantages include greater flexibility to adapt light and privacy levels than curtains and typically better control of room temperature. 

What’s more, blinds and shutters are easy to use, maintain and clean. They are durable and straightforward to install. Plus, they come in many different styles, each of which offers unique benefits.

 

Styles of Shutters and Blinds for Bedrooms

Here are the different types of blinds suited to bedrooms and the pros and cons of each. 

 

Internal Bedroom Window Blinds 

Internal blinds come in a variety of styles and can add a colourful, cosy and stylish touch to your bedroom. The choices include:

• Roman blinds 
• Vertical blinds, 
• Venetian blinds 
• Roller blinds.

Internal blinds can be made from fabric, coming in various colours, patterns, finishes and degrees of thickness. Fabric blinds can usually be lined with blackout material to create a darker sleeping space or therma-lined for better insulation in cooler months.. 

Venetian blinds, however, are typically made from slats of wood, faux wood or plastic. These slats can be adjusted to add varying levels of privacy and light.  

 

Pros and Cons of Internal Bedroom Blinds

Internal blinds are a good budget option. They can add a pop of colour to a room, infuse texture and interest, and can be changed up easily because they are so simple to install, affordable, and widely available.  

Interior bedroom window blinds are versatile. They make it straightforward to adjust light levels throughout the day and can be fully or partially open as needed. 

Some choices of internal blind will help you retain heat if you live in a cool area. Experts estimate that internal blinds can reduce heat loss by up to 33%.

However, internal blinds are less effective at keeping heat out. This is because heat has already entered through the glass before being only partially blocked by the interior blind. This trait makes them generally less well-suited to warmer climates. If you have large bedroom windows that let a lot of heat in, you may want to consider an option that offers better temperature control.    

 

External Roller or Louvre Shutters 

External roller shutters or louvre shutters can be used instead of or as well as internal blinds. They offer excellent insulation and shade during hot weather. 

Motorised aluminium roller shutters are a convenient addition to your home. Remote control operation makes it simple to open and close your shutters as required. 

Louvre shutters offer excellent flexibility for controlling shade since you can open their slats as little or as much as you like. Modern louvre shutters are also crafted from aluminium, making them robust and long lasting. 

Pros and Cons of External Shutters

Exterior shutters can better control various nuisances affecting your sleep and comfort levels, including:

• Heat. External shutters can help prevent the 40% heat transfer that can occur through windows, keeping your bedroom a comfortable temperature all year round, no matter the heat and humidity outside. 
• Light, External shutters are opaque and can cover the whole window opening, making them effective at keeping your bedroom as dark as possible.
• Noise. Exterior shutters can reduce everyday noise from outside that may affect your sleep.
• Insect life. External shutters provide an effective barrier against pests.
• Security and safety. You can sleep more soundly knowing that your home is better protected from intruders, storm damage and bushfires. 

External shutters don’t have the same impact on the aesthetics of your bedroom as internal window treatments do. But, you can add blinds and drapes as a decorative touch and still install external shutters to enjoy the benefits of both.   

 

Internal Plantation Shutters 

Plantation shutters are a beautiful, classic solution for bedroom window treatments. Bespoke shutters are created to fit your windows exactly, sitting perfectly within the internal frame. You can opt from various methods of opening your shutters, including:

• Bi-fold
• Hinged
• Sliding
• Fixed shutters for small windows that don’t open.

Plantation shutter slats can be controlled through a discreet tilt system, giving you full control over light and privacy. Plantation shutters are also available in a variety of colours and finishes to suit your home’s style. 

Pros and Cons of Plantation Shutters

Modern Australian-made plantation shutters are high performing, long lasting and low maintenance. In addition, homeowners find that they:

• Are moisture and mould resistant
• Can reduce energy bills by up to 35% because of their insulating properties
• Safe because they are made from non-toxic, fire-resistant materials.

For an aesthetically pleasing single solution to controlling the light levels, privacy and temperature in your bedroom, plantation shutters are hard to beat. Most agree, they have an elegant, timeless design that will elevate your home. 

Plantation shutters can initially require a higher investment but their longevity means that they are very cost effective in the long term. Also, if you wish for uninterrupted views of the landscape from your windows, take care to get plantation shutters that can be fully opened. 

 

How to Choose the Best Bedroom Window Treatments

Now that you understand the advantages and disadvantages of various types of shutters, and internal and external blinds for bedroom windows, you can narrow down your choice. 

You may already have a preferred option but, before you make an investment in blinds or shutters for your bedroom, it’s sensible to consider the following:

• Cost and value over the lifetime of the blinds or shutters, including potential savings on energy bills.
• Their impact on the temperature of your bedroom.
• The practicalities and costs of fitting, cleaning and maintaining your preferred blinds or shutters.
• The blinds or shutters’ ability to control light, shade and access to external views.
• Their aesthetic appeal, both internal and external.

No one type of blind or shutter is the best. Your choice will be guided by your personal taste and your lifestyle. It’s also crucial to address the unique needs of your home, its position, location and the climate it is exposed to.

For a better night’s sleep, why not begin exploring your bedroom blind and shutter choices today?