Roman or Austrian? Folded or relaxed? If you’re daunted by the vast lexicon of window shades, our primer will help guide you through the essential varieties that designers reach for when it’s time to pull the cord.
Structured Roman
Structured Roman shades feature sewn-in horizontal dowels to ensure that they hold their shape whether raised or lowered, making them a fit for clean-lined spaces like Jacques Grange’s Paris apartment.
Relaxed Roman
For her daughter Astrid’s bedroom, designer Kristin Ellen Hockman chose relaxed Roman shades in ivory linen. “I didn’t want anything heavy that would compete with her canopy bed,” says Hockman.
Peter Dunham matched shade fabric and wallpaper (both by Lake August) in a client’s office; an extra lift cord in the middle of the double-width Roman shade prevents it from sagging too much in the center.
Soft-Fold Roman
Looped pleats give these soft-fold Roman shades (also known as hobbled Romans) a voluminous silhouette even when lowered, as seen in this Upper East Side living room designed by Stephen Sills.
Flat Roman
The uninterrupted design of a flat Roman shade makes it a perfect partner for large-scale prints like the Sarah Vanrenen floral that Georgia Tapert Howe used in this cozy bedroom nook.
Austrian
Horizontally gathered panels give Austrian shades a sense of formality; here, Stephen Sills used an airy blue silk and kept the swags to a minimum, creating a single sweep of fabric for an ethereal effect.
London
Pull cords are inset several inches from the sides of a fabric panel to create the gathered fishtail effect of a London shade, which Suzanne Tucker rendered in Fortuny cotton for a warmly lit vanity area.
Balloon
Vertical pleats or gathers at the top header give balloon shades their extra bit of oomph; the romantic, flouncy result is a fitting partner for Flora Soames’s Dahlias fabric, which she used in her Cotswolds dressing room.
THIS ARTICLE ORIGINALLY APPEARED IN VOLUME 17 OF FREDERIC MAGAZINE. CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE!
