Following on from the first bedroom update with Dulux, the next step has been to decide on new blinds for the space. Having teamed up with Luxaflex® back in 2018 when we installed beautiful Silhouette® shades in our dining area, I was excited to work with them once again. A world-renowned brand, their window solutions are the most stylish and innovative, and they provide an amazing service. They also specialise in designs that have been rigorously tested to withstand the varying New Zealand climate as well as the demands of busy, everyday life. Having learned a lot about their product range during the first collaboration, I was keen to revisit some of the options and find out about their newly launched product, Luxaflex LumiShade™.
My first mood board with some of the Luxaflex swatches I brought home to test out
To start, one of the Luxaflex team visited our home to look at the bedroom. An important step in the process, it gave us the opportunity to identify and discuss key issues and hone in on what we wanted to achieve. On one side of the room, there are sliding doors that open up to the outdoor area, and there is also a horizontal window on the wall behind the bed. When we built, we installed simple blockout rollershades in all the bedrooms, but I now wanted to look at ways of visually enhancing our space at all times of the day. The ideal solution would be to create a softer effect during the day by filtering out some of the strong afternoon light and providing some privacy, while also creating a cosy retreat at night.
The first product presented to us was the new LumiShade. I was immediately drawn in by the look of the vertical curtain vanes which I thought would go hand in hand with our sliding doors. A contemporary take on a classic window covering, LumiShade strikes the perfect balance between versatility and elegance. Designed to offer beautiful light control, the individually curved fabric vanes feature an alternating light filtering and room darkening fabric panel. When opened, they provide daytime privacy with a soft view, which is exactly what we were looking for. What’s more, the level of privacy and light can be easily adjusted by rotating the fabric vanes to angle the amount of light entering the room. For room darkening, you simply tilt the shades completely.
Luxaflex LumiShade
Another key feature of the functional design is that it allows you to walk through the individual fabric vanes – whether they are opened or closed – providing for seamless indoor-outdoor living. Free from noisy connecting chains and bottom weights, LumiShade operates quietly and softly settles back into position. Ideal for our sliding doors, they would also stack to one side for complete access to the doors.
Luxaflex LumiShade
Luxaflex LumiShade
With the LumiShade ticking all the boxes in terms of aesthetics and light filtering functionality, our focus turned to the issue of blockout. A non-negotiable for my husband, we also needed to find a solution for the window behind the bed. When we chose our beautiful Silhouettes for our dining room space, the Duette® shades were a strong contender, so we decided to revisit this option.
Luxaflex Duette Shades
Luxaflex Duette Shades
Featuring the ultimate in Honeycomb Cellular Construction and energy efficiency, the Duette Architella Shades have three internal air pockets which dramatically increases the product’s ability to insulate in the winter. They also filter unwanted glare while defecting heat, keeping your room cooler during the summer. Available in a range of blockout fabrics (more on that soon), I could envisage how the Duettes would work in harmony with the LumiShade, providing an all-round solution for our bedroom. An added feature of the Duette Shades is the Powerview Automation. A wireless operating system designed to automatically control the shades via a remote, smart device and voice control, we also learned that we could get the Powerview Automation Hub to integrate with the upstairs dining room Silhouette Shades.
Luxaflex Duette Shades
Having decided on the blinds, the next step was a visit to the Luxaflex showroom to see how they would function once installed. An exciting part of the process, I love getting to see and touch the blinds (I even got to walk through the LumiShade) and test out the Powerview Automation.
Mood board with a shortlist of my favourite LumiShade and Duette fabric swatches
The three LumiShade fabric variations to choose from
LumiShade fabric swatches
This was also the beginning of the fabric and colour selection, where I always feel very much in my element! Having just painted our bedroom I took in my Dulux colour swatch Mangaweka Quarter and used this as the starting point. Wanting to create a warm, tonal effect, I picked out some complementary colours to take home to test out in our space, along with hardware samples to ensure a seamless finish. Placing them over the windows, I paid close attention to how the LumiShade fabric, which has subtle textures and durable qualities, looked during the different times of day as the light changed. In addition to the wall colour, I also took into account our furniture, lighting and bed linen to ensure there would be an overall sense of cohesion.
Mood board showing my final fabric and colour selections
With a decision now made on the fabric and colours, Luxaflex visited our house once again to measure up our windows and get the blinds (custom-made to order) underway.
Now installed, I’ll be sharing the full reveal soon. Stay tuned!
Images 1,8,9 & 11 Styling and photography by Michelle Halford/Studio TDC
Other images courtesy of Luxaflex
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