When I first added ivory blinds to the windows of my conservatory, my intention was to keep the space feeling light and fresh.
But 10 years down the line, and with the benefit of hindsight, I realise choosing this particular colour of blinds was just one of the ways I'd wasted thousands of pounds on trying to make my conservatory usable all year round.
The conservatory gets all of the afternoon and evening sun, and even with the blinds closed, there is a significant glare, which my light-sensitive eyeballs do not like at all. I looked into some replacement conservatory blind ideas and was considering thermal blinds in a slightly darker colour, but when the quote came back at more than £1,000, I knew it was time to look for a more budget-friendly and easy DIY project to tide me over until I could afford a full replacement.
As a first idea, I attached some window film (£35.69 from Amazon) on the windows on one side to help reduce the glare, but to do this on all sides of the conservatory was going to prove quite expensive, so I wanted to come up with a budget solution to reduce the glare along the side with the most glazing.
Then I had a brainwave to buy some fabric and fashion it in a way to provide a covering for the blinds to reduce just how starkly bright they felt when the sun was on that part of the house.
I measured the width and drop of the existing blinds, then went to my local fabric shop to look for a suitable print. I knew I needed a lightweight fabric due to how I planned on attaching it to the existing blinds. I planned to attach the fabric to the blinds on the longest bank of windows as a first step to see how I liked it, and then thought I could add to the other two sides at a later time.
To help counteract the glare, I decided I needed something with a pattern that wasn't too dark, but had a significant depth of background colour.
I ended up choosing a pretty floral fabric that complemented the furniture in the conservatory already, so that it would feel cohesive.
In total the fabric, hemming tape, hook and loop tape cost me £65 and it look me about half a day. Did also buy some fabric scissors.
The fabric I chose is similar to this one, adding subtle colour and warmth to a space that was starkly white. It also still lets light through, but doesn't have the same blinding glare of a much lighter blind.
I always have some of this iron-on hemming tape knocking around at home and it's so easy to use. Just cut it to size, place it where you want to hem, put the fabric over and iron to secure.
I chose white hook and loop tape, which attached well to my existing blinds. If I ever don't want the fabric over the blinds, the tape can be hidden by rolling up the original blinds slighty.
Once I had the fabric, which I asked them to cut roughly to size (plus an extra couple of inches on both the width and depth in the shop to save me a job at home, all I had to do was iron it, and then add some hemming tape, and iron over that to ensure a nice neat edge. (If you have a sewing machine, you could always sew around the edges).
Then I applied hook and loop strips to the blinds and the fabric and left it for 24 hours, before attaching the material to the blinds.
Throughout this roasty toasty summer we've been having, I've left the fabric down at full length, but on cooler days, I can fold it up with a little more hook and loop tape, so I can enjoy views of my garden.
While it's not the same as replacement blinds, I'm actually really pleased with the result, and alongside replacing the conservatory roof, it's made the space much more usable for me.
Despite my intention being purely practical, I'm actually quite fond as to what the fabric looks like from an aesthetic point of view. It adds a little bit of character and colour to the space, and is very effective at reducing the glare off the original blinds, without making the conservatory room feel dark at all.
I don't actually mind that the fabric is just across one wall of windows, rather than the ones at the side. It helps that it's on the wall you see first as you step into the space, so it feels purposeful.
Better still, it was really easy to do, and I feel a sense of pride as to having done it myself, and saved myself the best part of £1,000 in the process.
If you enjoyed reading this, sign up for the Ideal Home newsletter for all the latest home decor trends and inspiration delivered straight to your inbox
