Most homeowners find that Roman Blinds suit their style and optimise the ambiance of their home. So it’s interesting to note that they are called Roman Blinds for a very good reason. That’s because they were used by the Romans more than 2000 years ago. Of course, these were not the exact blinds we use today, but they are very similar!
Roman Roads Created the Need for Roman Blinds
It’s said that the Romans started using the precursor to these blinds to prevent dust entering their homes through the open windows. Eventually they installed shutters and even later they used glass, but they started by hanging loose pieces of cloth. However, to keep the dust out of their homes they dampened this cloth with water (otherwise the dust would just blow right through the cloth). The dampness also helped the cloth to hang downwards rather than being blown about by the wind, as well as adding a nice evaporative cooling effect as well.
The dust was caused by the roads the Romans are so famous for building. If you remember, these roads were built from blocks made from iron ore, pebbles, gravel or hardened volcanic lava (whichever was available in the region). Though some of these roads were actually made from a form of concrete (constructed from a mix of volcanic ash and lime), their roads still created a lot of dust in the air. This dust was made worse by all the solders marching along, as well as horses and horse drawn carts, which combined with the heat made the environment very uncomfortable for everyone. Another common cause of this dust was their building programs. All the stones needed for the roads, homes and public buildings were hand cut by stone masons, which with each tap of their chisels would have added additional amounts of dust to the air.
As time went on, the Romans added cords to the blinds so that they could be lifted and lowered easily. Then they added horizontal slats so that the blinds would lift and lower evenly. They even tried different materials for the hanging cloth and the slats and started adding patterns, colours and hand drawn pictures to the blinds. Eventually, they would have come up with something that we can be pretty sure looked very similar to the Roman Blinds we install in our homes today.
Benefits of Installing Roman Blinds in Your Home
When you imagine how you would live without glazed windows, Roman Blinds seem like the perfect solution. They kept out the dust for the Romans, as well as the heat, rain and sunlight. In fact, their blinds were so well designed that they still serve the same purpose today. Of course, we only use Roman blinds to enhance our home’s decor (because we have glazed windows to keep out the elements), but they are still as popular today as they were 2000 years ago in Ancient Rome.
One of the advantages of using Roman blinds is that they use a single piece of fabric, so that you can control both the light entering a room and your privacy. They also increase the energy efficiency of your home, prevent sunlight from fading your furniture and carpets, and are a timeless and elegant window treatment. You can select from a large range of colours and patterned materials to create one-off designs that perfectly match your décor (just like the Romans!).