Why are made-to-measure blinds better than readymade blinds?

Why are made-to-measure blinds better than readymade blinds? I am so glad that you asked, as there are many reasons. The first is that they’re uh, made to measure, and so, fit the window they’re designed for exactly. They also tend to be better quality; and this reflects in terms of both the finish and appearance, and longevity of the blind too.

Made-to-measure blinds are almost certainly better value then than readymade, as well as being less hassle to work with.

If you decide to explore made-to-measure blinds or at least consider them as an option, the world is your lobster. I mean literally, you could order made-to-measure blinds in a lobster print fabric if you wanted to, and you’re not going to get that in Dunelm, are you. (That may be a total lie given how huge “Friends” suddenly is again, I know).

But anyway, established made-to-measure blinds companies can make blinds for you in a vast range of fabric colours and patterns, and that’s just the beginning; the level of choice you have and the range of customisation options open to you extends to more or less every part of the blind, including finishes, materials, controls and so on. Think of it like Build-A-Bear, only for blinds.

Buying blinds or anything relating to the look and feel of your home is a big commitment on many fronts, and you wouldn’t choose a “bold” colour paint and paint the whole wall at the risk of finding out later that you don’t like it. (I would do that. I have done that. Don’t do that.)

For a more comprehensive answer on why made-to-measure blinds are better than readymade, I’ll need to break down a little further the various different meanings of “better” in this context, which is the exciting treat that’s in store for you next. Read on to find out why made-to-measure blinds are better than readymade ones.

Made-to-measure blinds fit better than readymade blinds

While readymade roller blinds come in a range of sizes designed to approximately fit standard-sized windows, what actually is a standard sized window? I bet you don’t have any, whatever it is, given than even double-glazed windows themselves are usually made to fit the recess rather than being mass-produced to have a house built around them. This means you tend to have to trim readymade blinds to size, and while if you follow the instructions you hopefully get for this, pick the right tools, are fairly dexterous, and are bold but not reckless – oh also, and are confident of your measuring prowess in the first instance – this might work out ok.

But for the rest of us, cutting a readymade blind to size can be a bit hit and miss; and the finish it leaves, even when the need to trim is factored in, won’t be as polished as with a blind that actually fits a window it was made for.

Made-to-measure blinds are better quality than readymade blinds

Made-to-measure blinds are made from better quality materials, and they’re made by actual people rather than being mass-produced. Obviously our dudes use machines to fabricate the blinds; they don’t sit around carving wood directly off trees and dying our fabrics using crushed flower petals and so on, but our blinds are human-made to order, rather than being spat out wholesale by a production line.

Real People work best with good quality materials; which we use so that we get a premium result with our blinds and so that they last for the long term, in both good working and good looking condition.

You can see and feel the quality of a made-to-measure blind compared to a readymade blind, and to put it bluntly, ours win.

Made-to-measure blinds have a longer lifespan than readymade blinds

Our made-to-measure blinds are designed and made to last for a decade or more. That means that they’re intended to look good and perform properly for at least ten years, assuming that you don’t bash them around or use them in an inappropriate environment (which basically means nothing more caveat-y than that you need to use waterproof blinds in steamy or humid rooms like kitchens and bathrooms).

Additionally, lots of our blinds are still in use and working well for far longer than a decade; they don’t tend to just give up the ghost when they hit double digits.

Readymade blinds then? They’re designed to last for 2-5 years, and if you open and close them every day rather than simply leaving them in situ, I would not expect you to get to the two year mark without the blind showing signs of wear, and most will start to fail functionally by that point too.

Many readymade blinds made of heavier materials will bow at the headrail over time too, as they’re not made as sturdy as made-to-measure blinds, in order to allow for people to potentially need to cut readymade blinds to size at home.

Made-to-measure blinds are available in a far wider range of options, and you can choose the exact ones you want without restriction

Readymade blinds do come in lots of different types, in terms of their styles and the colours/fabrics/finishes that you can buy them in. But you can only choose from what’s already been made; what the Readymade Blinds People think you might like, or maybe, what they need to shift that year.

This is self-evident, but may mean that you can’t find anything you like and/or that is in line with your tastes, and that is also available within a range that will fit the windows you’re dealing with.

I think the most common manifestation of this annoyance (and the final push that often herds first-time made-to-measure blinds buyers in our direction after they finally lose the will to continue trying to buy readymades) is a scenario in which the prospective buyer finds exactly the blind and fabric they like for their room – and then find that it is only available in a size that will fit or that can be cut to fit some of the windows they need to cover, but not that one awkward (or sometimes not even that awkward) one, taking them right back to square one.

But the priiiice, the price, made-to-measure is so costly, much spend, very expense!

No.

In closing, I’m going to set you straight on the whole price/value divide chasm between readymade and made-to-measure blinds. Now, in terms of the initial outlay, yes readymade blinds will be less costly than a made-to-measure equivalent.

But, over the longer term and lifecycle of these two respective blinds, readymade will cost you more in the medium to long term, in terms of their need for more frequent replacement. You will also get more satisfaction from a made-to-measure, because it looks exactly how you want it to look rather than being as close as you could get from what was available to buy, and because it will look and behave like a premium product, which it is, rather than something that was destined for the bargain bin at the end of the season.