Glossary

A

Size designation of plastic Venetian blind tape. Size-A tape has a Slat Size of 2 inches, a Ladder Length of 2 ³/₁₆ inches, and a Double Ladder Space of 3 ¹/₄ inches

AB

Size designation of cloth Venetian blind tape. Size-AB tape has a Slat Size of 2 inches, a Ladder Length of 2 ³/₁₆ inches, and a Double Ladder Space of 3 ¹/₂ inches

Additional cord

Lift cord in a blind or shade exclusive of the minimum two lift cords.

Angle

Specialty blind or shade made to fit windows in which the header and sill are not parallel. [Angle shade examples]

Blind

Any window covering with movable slats or louvers for modulating light and privacy through the window covering.

Bottom rail

Element of horizontal blind or shade, normally at the bottom, which is moved by the lift cords in order to raise or lower the blind or shade.

Break-Thru^™ safety tassel

Hunter Douglas tassel designed to protect children and pets by separating into two halves when something is caught between the cords of a window covering. To reassemble, simply snap the halves together. To reassemble a four-cord tassel place loose cords in slot in top of tassel halves and snap the halves together. [Break-Thru tassel example]

Braided ladder

Element of a horizontal blind which supports slats. Constructed of two parallel cords connected at right angles to each other by short strings called rungs — the slats are supported by the rungs.

Cellular shade

Any shade which, when utilized, creates air spaces in the form of tubes or cells in order to increase thermal efficieny, sound absorption, or opacity.

Clutch-lift

Any specialty window covering which uses a RollEase® (or equivilent) lift system. Brand-specific names of clutch-lifts are: EasyGlide (Hunter Douglas), EasyUp (Bali, Graber, Nanik), and Activator (LouverDrape, Fashion Tech, Verosol)

Concealed bracket

Installation bracket which is not visible when blind or shade is installed.

Convolute roller

Shade roller made of cardboard which is laminated into a thick tube. Generally used on inexpensive, standard-sized roller shades.

Cordlock

Mechanism which holds a horizontal blind or shade open by friction on the lift cords.

Cord retractor

Device which winds the cords of a window covering on a spring-loaded reel to prevent access and possible injury to children and pets.

DE

Size designation of cloth Venetian blind tape. Size-DE tape has a Slat Size of 2 ³/₈ inches, a Ladder Length of 2 ⁹/₁₆ inches, and a Double Ladder Space of 4 ¹/₄ inches

Double Ladder Space

Venetian blind tape dimension. Linear distance between every-other ladder rung. Determines the spacing between slats and, by extension, the height of the blind given a set number of slats or the number of slats required given a set height of the blind.

Duck

Color designation for cloth tapes. Duck is equivalent to Natural (a slight off-white) as opposed to white which is a bright, bleached white.

Duette^® shade

Registered trademark for honeycomb shade manufactured by Hunter Douglas Window Fashions, Inc.

Face

Surface of the window frame which is (typically) parallel to the window and wall. Or, the moulding around the window which faces the room.

Head rail

Element of window covering, normally at the top, which is attached to the installation brackets and houses the operational components (i.e. cordlock, carriers, etc.) of the window covering.

Horizontal blind

Any blind with horizontally oriented slats.

Honeycomb shade

Cellular shade

Inside mount

Measurement specification for manufacturing a window covering intended to fit inside a window casing. The manufacturer will take a standard deduction from the specified measurement to allow for proper operation of the window covering within the window casing.

Intermediate Bracket

Installation bracket for horizontal blinds used for additional support between end brackets on wide blinds.

Jamb

Inside sides of the window frame which are perpendicular to the window and window frame face.

Ladder Length

Venetian blind tape dimension. Linear measurement of the rung between the front and back of the tape.

Louver

Element of a blind (usually a vertical blind), similar to a slat but may be made of cloth or a rigid material like plastic, aluminum, or wood.

Luminette^® privacy sheers

Registered trademark for window covering product patended by Hunter Douglas, Inc. combines features of sheer drapery, and vertical blind.

Macro blind

Horizontal blind with 2" slats

Metal head

Venetian blind with metal headrail

Micro blind

Horizontal blind with ˝" slats

Mingled

Color designation for cloth tapes. Mingled is Duck with a green thread woven into the herringbone pattern of the tape. It has a more neutral/grayish overall look than Duck.

Mini blind

Horizontal blind with 1" slats

Motorized window covering

Any blind or shade operated by an electric motor via a wall-mounted switch or remote control unit.

Mylar shade

Roller shade constructed with transparent Mylar film for fabric. Very effective for minimizing glare, interior heat gain, and ultraviolet radiation damage without obstructing the view through a window. Ineffective for night time privacy.

Outside Mount

Measurement specification for manufacturing window coverings intended to be installed outside the window casing. Manufacturers will normally not make any adjustments to the specified measurements.

Pleated shade

Any shade in which the fabric is folded and creased in an accordian-like manner. Similar to Cellular shade, but lacking air cells.

PowerRise^®

Registered trademark for battery-powered, remote-controlled, motorized window coverings manufactured by Hunter Douglas, Inc. Available on Duette® and Silhouette® products.

R-value

Numeric measurement of a material's resistance to thermal transfer. The measurement represents the time it takes for one degree Fahrenheit of heat to transfer through the material. The larger the number the better the insulation provided by the material.

Record

replace lift or draw cord in blind, shade, or traverse rod.

Renovation

Complete overhaul of horizontal blind (excluding cordlock and tiltgear replacement). Service includes cleaning, recording, and retaping.

RollEase^®

Registered trademark of a clutch-driven shade lifting system manufactured by General Clutch, Inc. It is comprised of a loop (either cord or chain) which operates a clutched roller driver. Pulling the loop one direction will raise the shade, while pulling the loop in the opposite direction will lower the shade.

Roller shade

Any shade in which fabric is wrapped around a roller and is operated by winding and unwinding.

RV & boat

Any specialty shade made specifically for a recreational vehicle or marine vessel.

Shade

Any window covering which, when utilized, lacks a mechanism for modulating light and privacy through the window covering.

Shade roller

Long tube or dowel with a winding mechanism on which shade fabric is wrapped.

Silhouette^® window shadings

Registered trademark for window covering product patented by Hunter Douglas, Inc. Combines features of drapery, roller shade, and macro blinds.

Skylight shade

Any specialty window covering made to fit a window which is not perpendicular to the floor.

Slat

Element of a horizontal blind, usually made of wood or aluminum, which obstructs light and view through a window and is supported by ladders.

Slat Length

Measurement across the long side of a slat.

Slat Size

Measurement across the short side of a slat.

Soffit

The top inside surface of the window frame which is perpendicular to the window and window frame face. The top of the window covering headrail is typically installed against the soffit of the window frame.

Specialty blind or shade

Any blind or shade which does not fit the definition of a standard rectangular blind or shade.

Standard rectangular

Any window covering made to fit a window or door in a wall which is perpendicular to the floor.

T-Handle

Low-profile replacement window crank. T-handles provide adequate leverage without obstructing window coverings, fit most brands of windows, and are available in several colors.

Tape Ladder

Element of a horizontal blind which supports slats. Constructed of two parallel strips of cloth or plastic approximately 1˝" wide connected at right angles to each other with narrower strips of the same material called rungs — the slats are supported by the rungs.

Tiltgear

Mechanism by which the slats of a blind are adjusted to modulate the light through the blind.

Top-down/bottom-up

Specialty shade with two sets of lift cords. The first set controls the bottom rail like a standard rectangular shade. The second set controls a middle rail which is attached to the top of the shade fabric. When lowered, this middle rail reveals the window from the head rail to the middle rail.

Traverse rod

Device from which a drapery is hung which has a draw cord to facilitate the opening and closing of the drapery.

U-factor

Numeric measurement of a material's transmission of heat. Reciprocal of R-value. The smaller the number, the less heat is transfered through the material.

Vane

Element of a blind, synonymous with louver.

Venetian blind

Any horizontal blind. Usually in reference to older style blinds.

Vertical blind

Any blind with vertically oriented vanes.

Wood blind

Any blind with wooden slats or vanes.

Wood rail

Venetial blind with wood head and tilt rails. Wood rails may have wood or metal slats.

X

Size designation of cloth Venetian blind tape. Size-X tape has a Slat Size of 1 ³/₄ inches, a Ladder Length of 1 ¹⁵/₁₆ inches, and a Double Ladder Space of 2 ³/₄ inches