A
Application: Window installed for a specific use. For example, a sliding glass door.
Apron: The part of a window casing below the sill.
Atrium/French Doors: Pair of doors with glass panes. With Atrium doors, one door opens; with French doors, both sides open.
B
Bay: Three or more windows set at angles to each other within a recessed area.
Bottom Rail: Bottom of a window covering. Often moved by lift cords to raise or lower the window covering.
Bottom-up: Term "top-down/bottom-up" refers to a window treatment with two sets of lift cords that allow the window covering to be raised from the top down or from the bottom up.
Brackets: Installation parts that are mounted on the window frame or wall used to attach and install the headrail of a window treatment.
C
Carrier: Clip used to hold the vertical vanes inside the headrail of a vertical blind.
Casement: Crank-operated window that opens either inward or outward.
Casing: The structural case into which a window or door is set, usually covered by a wide moulding.
Cellular Shade: Fabric shades that use air pockets to maximize energy efficiency and insulate against heat, cold and sound. Also called honeycomb shades.
Cloth Tapes: Long and narrow vertical strands of fabric used to hold slats of a blind together. Cloth tapes also increase light control by covering the route holes found on blinds.
Continuous Cord Loop: A window treatment mechanism that uses a pulley system to rotate a clutch that raises and lowers a shade.
Controls: The mechanisms used to raise, lower and tilt a window treatment. Controls are usually cords or wands.
Cord Cleats: Used to prevent the cords of a window covering from dangling on the floor or window sill. Cord cleats are a safe solution to keep dangerous, dangling cords out of reach of young toddlers.
Cord Tensioner: Specially designed cord weight with spring tension and bracket that improves the safety of cord-looped products.
Cornice: A wood or molded frame over the top of a window that can be stained, padded or covered with fabric.
D
Depth: Front-to-back measurement of a window.
Diffusion: Method of controlling window light. Diffusion bends the light coming into the room, causing it to scatter in multiple directions without shadows.
Dormer: Small window projecting from the house in an alcove-like manner.
Double: Two windows set side by side, usually double-hung.
Double Cell: A type of cellular shade construction that offers increased insulation by using two layers of cellular fabric.
E
End Cap: Plastic cap placed on the end of the headrail or bottom rail.
Extension Brackets: Provide additional space between the blind and the mounting surface so that the blind will clear obstructions such as window cranks or trim.
Eyebrow: Half-oval or ellipse shaped window.
F
Flush Depth: Depth required for a window treatment to fit completely inside the window opening without projecting into the room.
Frame: See Casing.
French/Atrium doors: See Atrium/French Doors.
G
Gothic Arch: Arch whose curves meet in a point at the top.
H
Hard Treatments: Window treatments that cover windows, such as shades,
shutters or blinds.
Conversely, window coverings that primarily decorate windows, such as
drapes, curtains, sheers,
swags or
valances are known as soft treatments.
Headrail: Top of a window covering that typically attaches to the installation brackets.
Hold-Down Brackets: Hold-down brackets prevent blinds from swaying and are recommended for doors and windows subject to wind exposure.
Honeycomb Shade: see Cellular Shade.
I
Inside Mount: See Mount.
L
Lift: The cord control that raises and lowers the window treatment.
Light Control: The ability to control the amount of incoming window light. Blinds with slats or louvers provide the best light control.
Light Filtering: A shade that allows light in while the product is fully lowered. The more opaque a fabric is, the less light will be filtered into the room.
Louver: An integral part of a blind used to control the amount and direction of natural light entering a room.
M
Minimum Depth: Minimum depth required to mount the treatment inside the window frame. Typically at this depth, the treatment will project slightly.
Mount: Refers to the type of installation for a window treatment, either within a window frame (inside mount) or on the wall or ceiling surrounding the window (outside mount).
O
Opaque: A non-reflective surface that blocks up to 99% of outside light. Opaque is the best choice for bedrooms, children's rooms and media rooms.
Outside Mount: See Mount.
P
Pleated Shades: Shade where the fabric is folded and creased in an accordion-like manner.
Privacy: Refers to how much of a view is blocked when the window treatment is fully closed.
R
Reverse Roll: Roller shade option where the fabric rolls off the front of the shade, preventing the backside of the fabric from being seen.
Roller Shade: A flat vinyl or cloth fabric attached to a dowel with a spring roller mechanism that raises and lowers the shade.
Roman Shade: Flat fabric shade that folds into neat horizontal pleats when it is raised.
Room Darkening or Blackout Fabric: Fabric that has been treated or is constructed to block out a large portion of light. Particularly effective for bedrooms or media rooms.
S
Sash: Framework that holds the panes of glass in a glazed window or door, including the narrow bars between the panes.
Semi-Opaque: Fabric that is partly impervious to rays of light.
Sheer: Fabric capable of transmitting light and allowing a clear view of what lies beyond. Opposite of opaque.
Soft Treatments: See Hard Treatments.
Spacer Blocks: Used to add an extra half-inch to an inch of depth to the headrail. Typically used to avoid obstructions such as moulding around a window.
Stack: The area on a vertical blind where the slats stack when opened. For example, if you order a blind with a left stack, the slats will stack on the left side of the window when fully opened. Other types of stacks include split stack, in which the blinds open from the middle, half stacking on each side, and center stack, in which the blinds open from both sides and stack in the middle.
Stack Height: The space at the top of a horizontal blind that is taken up by the slats when they are fully raised. The smaller the stack height, the greater the view you will have to the outside.
T
Tapes: Strips of fabric, usually one or two inches wide, used to hold a blind together.
Tilt: The cord or wand control that adjusts the slats of a blind to a closed or open position.
Top-Down: Refers to a window treatment with two sets of lift cords that allow the window covering to be raised either from the top down or from the bottom up.
Traverse rod: Rod used to open or close vertical blinds.
Two-on-One Headrail: Two separate blinds, including slats and operating mechanisms, placed into one headrail. Used in large windows and on sliding glass patio doors.
V
Valance: The decorative piece used as a finishing touch to hide the headrail of a window treatment.
Valance Returns: The two side pieces of a valance that connect the main part of the valance to the wall. Valance returns are used only on outside mounts.
Vanes: Vertical slats or louvers made of plastic or fabric and mounted onto a headrail.
W
Wall Mount: A standard type of installation for vertical blinds in which the headrail is mounted on the wall surrounding the door or window.
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