Ever since the first human knocked a hole in the wall of his mud hut and called it a window, humans have been trying to find a way to control the way light enters the home, without letting out all the warmth!
Since way back in the early days of civilization, people have used all sorts of materials to try to solve their window problems. Across history people have tried using translucent stones, thin pieces of animal horn and bone, paper, material and hides to stop the drafts and keep in the warm. Blinds may have first appeared in ancient Egypt over 6000 years ago when people used dried reeds from the river Nile that had been carefully woven together to create hanging sheets that let in light but stopped dust and bugs from getting in. At about the same time people in ancient China started to use reeds, paper and material in a similar way and many years later the style we know as venetian blinds took shape in the area of Persia.
The ancient romans had the same problems as everybody else, but their cleverness caused them an extra problem too! Roman roads were the invention of the age but in every town and city the iron cartwheels and tramping troops raised huge amounts of dust. Damp sheets hung at the window helped cool the hot Mediterranean air and kept the dust and grit from the roads from entering the house. This wasn’t a totally new invention, but like many ideas in the ancient world, the roman people nicked the idea and then made it even better.
Roman blinds really took shape because Roman homes were lavishly decorated, as we know from Roman archaeological sites like Pompei and Herculaneum. Roman blinds came into their own when Roman homeowners took to using finely patterned materials for their blinds and it became fashionable to decorate them with tassels, coloured threads and carefully folded pleats.
These days, roman blinds look much the same as the roman blinds of the ancient world, except that because now we have modern windows with glass and UPVC frames, we don’t need our blinds to keep the dust down. However, homeowners still like their roman blinds to be beautiful in a range of styles and colours.
Bubbles Blinds and Shutters in Eastbourne, East Sussex, have been providing and fitting roman blinds and other blinds for many years and have a great range of styles and designs when can be seen in their gallery. Their range of roman blinds can be fitted with blackout material, or choice of linings, and they use the most modern pull string designs for best use in the home.
Having too much light in the home is a nice problem to solve, first because it means you have lovely windows, and second because the solution is so easy. Whether you choose to go for the increasingly popular roman blinds, elegant roller blinds or venetian blinds, contact Bubbles Blinds and shutters!
