Tips for Planning Your Window Treatments When Working with a Professional Organizer
When our homes reflect calm and comfort, they help us to manage the stress of the outside world. Now more than ever, clients are looking for simplicity, privacy and serenity in their spaces. As a result, an increasing number of people are seeking the help of professional organizers and window treatment specialists.
As partners with the National Association of Professional Organizers Oregon Chapter, Adrette Window Coverings is fortunate to do business with a number of talented professional organizers in the Portland area. We LOVE working with them to give their clients the home makeover they’ve been dreaming of.
Once an organizer has spent time helping their clients clear out and make their home more livable and functional, the client begins to see the potential in their home differently. Feeling this burden of “stuff” lifted, they now have the passion to move forward and personalize their home even more by updating their room, which ultimately may include window coverings. That’s where we come in!
How Window Coverings Can Make Your House a Home
After getting organized, you may feel that your home is ready for a few new touches. The right window treatments can make your home feel warm, cozy, and more inviting. Blinds and fabric shades can:
Give extra privacy
Help with heating and cooling
Protect your furniture and rugs from sun fading
Keep the glare off of TV and computer screens
Insulate from outside noise and help you sleep better
Create additional extended home space in the summer through patio shades
Draperies have come a long way in the past few years and they are not your grandmother’s drapes anymore! Here are several of their positive attributes:
They soften the feel of the room, adding pattern and texture to what previously felt like a big black hole
Vertical lines of the folds can visually add height to a room
With just a few inches of wall space on each side of your window, a pair of stationary side panels will frame your view
They provide aesthetics. Simply put, they are pretty!
How We Work with Organizers
Clients and organizers are often looking to join forces with a specialist who is knowledgeable in the art of quality window coverings. Here are my top tips for creating a seamless transition from organization to a completed design concept.
Clear the clutter. Working with an organizer to declutter is the first step towards creating the home space of your dreams. In particular, consider items that are living near or on your windowsills and relocate them if possible, so that your window treatments can really shine once installed. This also allows our installers the space they need to do the job quickly and efficiently.
Draperies will help to make your newly organized house feel like a home!
Make a Plan. Before selecting your window treatments, it’s important to have an overall plan for what you want your space to look like. That means thinking about the colors you want to pull together, rearranging furniture where you want it, and generally having a clear look and feel for the space. Of course, we want you to feel comfortable calling at any stage to check in and ask questions if you have them! If you are working with an organizer, they can help you bring all of these elements together.
Move furniture first. If you want to update your furniture or move it around, we recommend doing that first so that window coverings are one of the final pieces that pull the room together. Also, colors with fashion trends. If the furniture is 10 years old, it can be difficult to find the same colors in fabrics, so keep this in mind as you are making decisions about decluttering furniture vs. holding on to it.
Hang pictures last. Before you hang pictures, be mindful of how much space you have on either side of your windows. For instance, if you want to add a pair of decorative side panels, and you don’t want to obstruct your view, you could need up to 18” of wall space. For that reason, hanging pictures should ideally happen after the new draperies are installed.
Create workspaces. Since coronavirus reared its ugly head, many homeowners have been making efforts to create private work areas in the home. Shades and or draperies can make an office area look more professional – even if it doesn’t have walls! This might mean creating a backdrop, softening light from the window for Zoom calls, or creating a partition to give you a bit more privacy from your family. Keep this in mind as you are organizing and try to think creatively about how rooms or even nooks can be transformed into much needed privacy alcoves.
Take photos. When we work together with professional organizers, we encourage them to send photos of the space to us. That way we can give a recommendation before the work is done, and you can plan your organizing accordingly. In addition, we can virtually coach organizers to how measure and walk through the house together, eliminating the need for an additional person coming into your home until the final measurement and the installation.
Think creatively. For example, motorized shades can now be voice-controlled, which is a great solution for many, especially anyone who has dexterity difficulties.
Looking for a Portland Area Window Coverings Specialist?
Here’s How We Work:
When you get in touch with Adrette, Marlys will help you from the initial phone call. Just like an organizer, we ask open-ended questions to make sure we have it right. With every project, our clients receive complimentary advice and three decades of expertise.
Once we have virtually narrowed down or selected the right products, we will do a final measurement at your home and make sure the product selection is what you are envisioning.
Our goal is always to “deliver good surprises on installation day”.
If you’d like to work with us, please get in touch! We are located in the Portland Metro area and excited to help with your home transformation.