Voiles or vertical blinds floor to ceiling windows?

Funnily enough we’ve just had new cream vertical blinds at the south facing patio doors of our kitchen and a new roller blind at west kitchen window. Both good sun blinds and look good at night although we’re not overlooked. The verticals match the same as sun blinds in the back bedroom and bathroom so they all match at the back of the house. DD2 said she thought they looked like an office too but we like them! At the front, facing the road, we have cream Venetian blinds, as well as curtains-a great improvement on previous voiles which became very grey looking.

My daughter has Voiles on her sliding doors leading to the Conservatory, they look lovely.
I also think that vertical blinds look very unattractive.

@BradfordLass72
Lovely and fresh looking

Just bought mine

I have voiles pulled back through the day and pulled over at night although I do have curtains permanently tied back at the sides for a bit of colour.

Ikea have curtains and voiles which are relatively inexpensive. I would get both- voiles plus darker unlined curtains to dress the Window

I had vertical blinds but grew to dislike them, they felt like bars at the window and as Maw said they look quite corporate.
I would opt for the softer look of voiles. You mention the cost of these but vertical blinds are quite expensive as well.

I've only recently "done something about the French windows" in my dining room, after months of ruminating on the same conundrum. I've plumped for a very narrow pole from which I've hung voiles from John Lewis. I've got double the width of the doors, so plenty of "fall". Then, on the outside of the frame, I've put a stronger pole from which I've hung heavier weight curtains for the winter months. This will keep the heat loss down to a minimum too. In the summer months, I can easily life the curtains, and the pole down, leaving just the voiles gently moving in the summer breeze from the open french windows! This is the plan any way!

I had french doors overlooking a verandah with a small window on each side in our last propery and didn't want curtains as the whole wall would have been covered when they were drawn so opted for roman blinds. It took me ages to decide on this but was pleased with the result.

My friend thinks the same as others on this post. She can't stand vertical blinds and thinks they make the home look like an office.

I am the complete opposite as I find they are so easy to maintain and I like them in my house. I do admit that a lot of offices do have vertical blinds so I understand my friend's point of view.

Thanks, everyone. Food for thought here. I agree that vertical blinds can look a bit like an office but it's just that they are so neat and tidy. I love the softness of voiles. What's putting me off actual curtains is the price! I hadn't actually considered 2nd-hand ones, PamelaJ1, but thank you for that idea. Before making a decision I will look on Ebay and Gumtree. Must say as I'm sitting here tonight it's very cold outside and I feel the dark windows make it feel even colder so we do need to put something over them.

We have vertical blinds that we only use to shade us from the sun. We don’t use them at all at night as I like the view out of the window onto the street (we live 2 floors up) . When closed they do not look attractive I would far prefer curtains.

I’ve got voile type curtains that actually came with a material lining, so they hang softly and look good too. From Dunelm but 11 years ago now, they’ve lasted well!

I prefer voiles. My apartment came with horizontal Venetian blinds, but they were very dirty and some were bent, so I got rid of them. I put a new Venetian blind up in the kitchen, but some of the lower blades are bent now too ( those pesky kids!) so I am putting a voile panel there and on another window. . I got two from John Lewis with rufflette headings, and I will have proper curtain tracks so I can pull them back. I don’t like vertical blinds either.

I dislike vertical blinds. They remind me of the dentists' . We have wooden horizontal blinds but have no very long windows,

Vertical blinds make any room look like an office, and they rarely hang straight.
Voiles are pretty, but it depends upon the type of furnishings you have.

Blinds every time for me

You can get a semi sheer fabric which has the draping appearance of voile but is slightly more opaque if you pull them. I use that type in my kitchen which has French doors. They wash very easily and dry very fast. My fabric was double width - bought in Dunelm about 12 years ago.

Lots of people really like vertical blinds, personally I think they are suitable for offices.
I bought some absolutely fabulous curtains on gumtree for very large folding doors. They cost £100 ex John Lewis.
As gonegirl suggested what about blinds? You can get some that come up from the bottom.

We have bi folds. I don't like blinds or curtains. There is quiet a bit of lighting in the garden and it's lovely to see at night.

My next door neighbour has the voiles over the blinds, they look good.

I have voiles at home in the U.K. and vertical blinds (cream) here in Spain. I agree with Maw - the blinds shout ‘office’ really.

That's a good idea.

Could you have vertical blinds with voiles to soften the look, voiles are quite cheap.

We also have lovely garden views and thankfully no one can really over look us, at a pinch someone could but would need very good eyes-sight and binoculars so if they are going to that much effort....hey ho, they are welcome to the view! Anyway we went for some ecru voiles from John Lewis. We have them pulled back most of the time and held by smart metal tie-backs so they are loosely draped. We were advised to order the width generously so that they are not skimpy if and when we pull them across. We had clear acrylic pulling rods attached so that if and when we do pull them across we do not handle them too much. So glad we chose them. Younger daughter has a flat with two lots of full length windows and has the vertical blinds - it suits the flat well enough but I just knew I did not want them....they somehow look a bit 'office-like' to me.

So many people seem to opt for vertical blinds, but I think they look very “corporate”
I would always have curtains, indeed always have regardless of the height of the windows. and if it has to be Dunelm instead of William Morris, so be it.