The best automated blinds for a luxury home are the ones that run on the same system as your lighting, use fabric chosen for each room’s light and privacy needs, hide their hardware in the architecture, and come from a company that will program and service them for years. The brand on the motor matters less than those four decisions. Here is how we would walk you through them.
Start with the control system
If you have, or plan to have, whole-home lighting control, put the shades on the same platform. Lutron shades (Sivoia QS, Triathlon and Palladiom) run natively on Lutron RadioRA 3 and HomeWorks. The shades share keypads, scenes and schedules with your lights, so one button at the door can set the lights and lower the shades together.
If your home runs on Savant or Control4, Lutron shades still work well. They connect to the main system, so the shades show up in the same app and on the same touch screens as your audio, video and climate. Shades with Somfy motors can also be tied into these systems through an interface.
Hunter Douglas PowerView shades are another common choice, with a wide range of fabrics and their own app. What we would avoid in a high-end home is a mix of several app-based brands, each with its own hub and its own schedule. That is how you end up with shades that don’t move together and a drawer full of remotes.
Wired or battery-powered?
- New construction or a major renovation: wire the shades. A low-voltage cable to each window means no batteries to change, quieter operation and support for the largest shades.
- A finished home you don’t want to open up: battery-powered shades like Lutron Triathlon and Serena avoid cutting into walls. You will change batteries from time to time, and the largest windows may still need wired motors.
Many homes end up with both, wired shades in rooms being renovated and battery shades elsewhere, all on one system.
Which type of shade fits each room?
- Roller shades are the most common choice. They roll up tight into a small space and come in sheer, light-filtering, solar and blackout fabrics.
- Roman shades fold up in soft pleats and suit traditional rooms and bedrooms.
- Honeycomb (cellular) shades trap air in their cells, which helps with drafty windows in older houses.
- Wood blinds tilt rather than lift. Lutron makes battery-powered versions that tilt from a remote or the app.
- Motorized drapery on a ceiling track works well for tall living rooms and primary bedrooms.
- Layered shades pair a sheer shade with a blackout shade on one bracket, so you can choose daytime privacy or full darkness.
Choosing the fabric
Solar shade fabrics are rated by openness, the share of the weave that lets light through. Common openness levels are 1%, 3%, 5% and 10%. A lower number cuts more glare and heat but gives you less view out. Color matters as much as openness. Darker fabrics usually give a clearer view through the shade and less glare, while lighter fabrics bounce more light into the room.
Bedrooms and media rooms usually need blackout fabric, and side channels if you want true darkness, because light leaks around the edges of any shade. For rooms with art, rugs or wood floors, the right fabric also cuts the UV that causes fading.
Ask for fabric samples and look at them in the actual room in the morning and afternoon. A fabric that looks right in a showroom can look different against your windows and your light.
Hiding the hardware
Hardware is where a well-planned job and an afterthought look different.
- Ceiling pockets recess the roller above the window so only the fabric shows. They have to be planned with your builder before drywall goes up, and they need an access panel for service.
- Fascia and cassettes cover the roller on homes that are already finished.
- Matching hems and finishes keep a room with several shades looking like one design. Lutron Palladiom shades, for example, offer metal finishes for the brackets and hem bars.
- Quiet motors matter in bedrooms and offices. Ask to hear one before you decide.
Controls you will actually use
Most of our clients use keypads and schedules more than the app. A good shade system usually includes:
- Engraved keypads at the doors to each room, labeled in plain words like “Shades Open”
- Small handheld remotes, such as the Lutron Pico, at bedsides and chairs
- Scenes that combine lights and shades, such as a morning scene that opens the bedroom shades and turns on soft lighting
- Schedules tied to sunrise and sunset, or shades that follow the sun on each side of the house
We explain the sun-tracking option in our post on Lutron shades that follow the sun.
Installation and service
Windows in older New England houses are rarely square, so the installer should take the final measurements, not a showroom. On new builds, the shade company needs to work with your builder, electrician and interior designer early, so wiring, blocking for brackets and ceiling pockets are in the right places.
Ask who will service the shades later. One company that handles the shades, the lighting control and the programming is easier to deal with than three companies pointing at each other. Our guide to maintaining motorized shades covers what upkeep looks like after installation.
Questions to ask before you buy
- Will the shades run on the same system as my lighting?
- Wired or battery for each window, and why?
- Where will the rollers and motors be hidden?
- What fabric openness do you recommend for each room?
- Who programs the shades, and who do I call when something needs adjusting?
Planning a motorized shade project?
We design and install Lutron motorized shades and lighting control in homes across Greater Boston, the South Shore and Rhode Island. Book a free consultation or read more about our motorized shades.
