Stained Vs Painted Wood Blinds
Wood blinds come in a variety of finishes, and choosing the best one can be a tough choice. The two most common finishings for wood blinds are stains and paint. The best idea is to choose based on the decor of the room and the look you are trying to achieve.
Traditionally, wood blinds were stained, but recently, paint has become more popular. The current trend in interior design is lighter room colors, which match well with a white or off white blind. Lighter shades make the room more bright and give off a more energetic, if boring feel. Generally, darker wood absorbs more light while light colors reflect it. People who want dark blinds usually opt for a stain. Dark stains on walnut or pecan blinds offers a stunning contrast to light rooms. For and intelligent, old-world feel, try Cherry or Mahogany stains. This is good for libraries, dens and billiard rooms. Bleached colors in a beige or baby-blue room will give rooms like the bathroom a beach look. The classic stains are Pecan, Maple, and oak and will beautify any room.
When trying to decide on a shade for your wood blinds, look around the room and picture the effect of, for example, a dark wood blind on your windows. One early choice is if you want to match or contrast. If you have a room full of dark, heavy furniture, then a dark stained blind might be overpowering and oppressive. A white painted wood blind would lighten up the room.
Coordinating with your wood floors is another consideration. Floors and windows are dominating factors in the space available in a room. A dark stained wood floor and a dark stained wood blind might be too much. On the other hand, if you are trying to achieve that study-sanctuary look, dark stains might be just the thing.
The direction your windows face must also be taken into account when designing an interior. A north-facing window that does not get much light would take well to a white blind to pull light into the room. Be careful what kind of blind and finish you get, because some blinds cannot be re-stained because of the protective clear coat on most blinds. This finish seals and locks in the color, but that also means that for store-bought blinds, you may only get one chance for the color and shade you desire. You can try to re-stain a sealed blind, but it will probably take many coats to get the desired effect. If you restain or spraypaint, make sure you do it evenly and wipe down the wood blind afterward to minimise drip marks. If it takes several coats-do it, otherwise you will have turned your elegant wood blinds into a streaky mess. Ask for a free sample stain before you buy. Most blind manufacturers are happy to give you as many samples as you want. Custom blind manufacturers will allow you to check the stain color before final shipment.