Vertical blinds consist of two main parts, a head rail which holds hooks that travel along and rotate, attached to these hooks are ‘louvres’ which is basically the material part of the blind which covers your window.

The hooks are controlled using cords on the end of the blinds. Using the cord you can rotate the hooks to control the amount of light entering the room, or when you don’t want to use the blind you can bunch them on the end of the headrail to leave open access to the window.

The louvres usually come in two sizes 87mm and 127mm, when in use they overlap slightly to make sure they is no gaps. Normally the louvres are made from polyester, although other materials are available for special applications. For example, PVC louvres can be great for kitchens because they can be wiped clean easily.

Aluminium is usually the material of choice for the headrails, mainly because it is strong and reliable unlike the plastic alternative. The components inside the headrail are usually manufactured from moulded plastic.

Vertical blinds can often be found in large office buildings and conservatories. This is because unlike some other blind types verticals can be manufactured in large widths such as 4 or 5 metres as there is not a substantial weight being put on the headrail.

Traditionally vertical blinds usually had white or pale coloured louvres, which is why they got their reputation as being drap and boring. Fortunately nowadays they are available in a multitude of different colours and effects. Repeating patterns are also pretty popular for example on louvre white, then the next one black and so on.

Wooden louvres are favourable to fabric as they are much more durable and less likely to blow around in the wind. Wood also has that warming effect that just can not be achieved with fabric.

One of the great things about vertical blinds is that nearly all the parts are replacable. If one of your hooks breaks you can replace it easily without dismantling the headrail, if a louvre becomes damaged you can simply replace it with another, or if you want to change the look of your room you can easily replace all the louvres to create what looks like a brand new blind.

Vertical blinds can also be found in wood, wood-effect and aluminium louvers! Which makes them the perfect blinds for most environments. I’m pretty confident when I say you will be able to find a vertical blind to compliment your décor.