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1. Window Location
One of the most important factors when considering kitchen shades and blinds is the location of the window. There are several things to consider for each window in your kitchen:
Work areas
A window above or near a work area can be an excellent source of light—you’ll want a window treatment that maximizes available daylight.
Walkways
Window treatments adjacent to where people will be passing through the kitchen should not impede the flow of foot traffic.
Views out of kitchen
The view to the outside is also an important factor. Do you have a view of a mountain or a lake that you’d like to maintain? Or, does your kitchen look out onto a parking lot you’d rather not see?
Views into your kitchen
You’ll also need to consider the view to the inside—do you want to minimize views into the kitchen from the street or sidewalk?
2. Durability
Shades, blinds, shutters, and curtains in a kitchen can take a beating. Luckily, Graber’s modern materials are incredibly durable, giving you a wide range of choices when decorating your kitchen windows. However, there are some types of window treatments that might not be a good idea for certain areas of a kitchen. For example, the very durable cellular shade holds up to hard use quite well, but it would not be able to handle grease from a nearby stove. And while a set of curtains can stand up to years or even decades of hard use, you might not want to put them in places where spraying water might repeatedly reach them.
3. Privacy and Light Control
When it comes to privacy and light control, every kitchen is different. Some people choose to have little or no light control on their kitchen windows, opting for merely colorful valances or simple sheer curtains. Others see the kitchen as a sort of private sanctuary space where the can find refuge any time, day or night. Most people see their kitchens somewhere in between these two extremes. Luckily, the huge variety of fabrics makes it easy to achieve exactly the right level of light and privacy.
4. Motorized & Automatic Blinds and Shades
A motorized set of blinds or shades is ideal for a kitchen. One reason is that kitchens breed dirty hands. Cooking, cleaning, doing dishes—clean dry hands are rare in some kitchens. So, it makes sense to have window treatments that can be opened or closed using a remote control. With the touch of a button, you can raise or lower your shades without having to handle them directly. It’s a huge convenience and it will help your shades stay clean and tidy.
Frequently Asked Questions About Kitchen Window Treatments
What is the best window covering for a kitchen window?
In terms of versatility and durability, solar shades and faux-wood blinds are hard to beat as kitchen shades and blinds. Both are made with materials that hold up extremely well to high temperatures, and both can be easily cleaned. The simple shade design of solar shades and the classic horizontal blinds design both work well in a modern design scheme. In areas of the kitchen where spills and splashes are minimal, curtains work quite well and are available in a huge variety of colors and patterns.
What window treatments work best over the sink?
A set of faux-wood blinds would be an excellent choice near the sink. Vinyl blinds are another fine option. The key considerations would be the proximity of the sink to the window and the potential for splashing onto the window treatments. In a situation where there’s a low chance of the window treatment getting wet, a set of airy curtains could be appropriate.
How do you avoid staining window treatments in a kitchen?
The key to keeping blinds and shades clean in a kitchen is to install only easy-to-clean blinds and shades near sinks and stoves. Outside these key areas, nearly any window treatment can work in a kitchen. When planning your kitchen, consider where water, cooking grease, and dirty hands might have an impact—then use durable, easy-to-clean window treatments such as faux-wood blinds and vinyl blinds in these areas.
How often should you clean kitchen shades and blinds?
A good rule for window treatments is to lightly dust them with a feather duster or vacuum them with an upholstery attachment whenever you clean your home (the key to long-lasting window treatments in any room is this occasional cleaning). For complete information on cleaning any window treatment, check out Graber’s simple cleaning guide.
