Roman Blinds Buying Guide: Fabric, Fit and Controls Before You Order

A roman blind is a panel of fabric that folds into flat pleats as you raise it and hangs smooth when it's down. Buy one for a bedroom, lounge room, dining room or study where you want the softness of fabric with the tidy shape of a blind. Skip it for a steamy bathroom, a kitchen splash zone or a window you want completely clear when the blind is up. It's a DIY buy: you measure, we make it to your sizes in Australia, and you fit it yourself. This guide takes each choice in the order the designer asks for it.

Is a roman blind right for your room?

Start with what the window has to do. Here's how we'd call it.

Torn between the two? Our roller vs roman blinds comparison puts them side by side on look, fit, controls and price.

How our roman blinds fold

We make one fold style: flat, even folds. The fabric has sewn pockets with punched brass eyelets for the lift cords, and the panels are spaced evenly so you don't get an untidy extra fold near the bottom. Each panel overlaps the next, which helps with privacy and light when the blind is down.

Raised all the way, the folds stack to roughly 30 cm high. That number matters more than anything else in this guide, because it decides where you mount the blind (more on that below). When it's lowered, the blind hangs flat across the glass with no folds showing.

Blockout or light filtering?

This is the choice that changes how the room feels, so make it first. You don't pick a lining as a separate step: choose the light level and the fabric does the work.

Dark colours block light just as well as pale ones. They just show dust sooner.

Which of our seven fabrics?

Every one of our seven roman ranges comes in both blockout and light filtering. The range decides the texture and the price; the colour is just the colour. A roman uses more fabric than a roller, so it costs more than a roller in the same range. You'll see your exact price in the designer as you pick.

Colour counts as listed on our roman blinds page, 22 October 2026.

Picking a colour that works on your wall

Whites are the tricky ones. A white blind next to a warm cream wall can read as grey. Hold each sample flat against the wall beside the window, look at it in daylight, then look again at night with the lamps on. Two rules rarely let you down: match the window frame for a quiet look, or go one shade darker than the wall if you want the blind to stand out a little.

Plan on dusting, not wiping

Five of the seven ranges, Sanctuary, Jersey, Metroshade, Balmoral and Le Reve, are dust-only, according to the fabric makers' care notes. Lower the blind all the way so the folds open out, then go over it with the soft brush on your vacuum. Don't count on wiping marks off a roman, which is one more reason to keep it away from the kitchen bench.

Inside or outside the window?

A recess fit sits inside the opening the window sits in. It looks built in, but it needs a deep, square recess so the folds don't catch on the frame as they rise. Remember the 30 cm stack will sit across the top of your glass.

A face fit goes on the wall or the architrave, over the opening. It's the safer choice if you're unsure, it covers more of the window, and it lets less light around the sides. This is how most romans go up.

Chain, cord and cleat, or cord lock?

For the control side, stand inside the room facing the window and pick the side you can reach without leaning over furniture. If a bed or a bench sits under the window, choose the open side. On a wide window with two blinds, put the controls on the outer edges.

Whichever control you pick, the chain tensioner or cleat comes with the blind, so fit it. Chains and cords must be fixed so they can't hang in a loop within a young child's reach, and our install guide shows exactly where they go.

How to measure for a roman blind

You need a steel tape measure and a few minutes per window. Write everything in millimetres.

Give us the real opening, not a blind size. We make the deductions on recess fits so the blind runs freely. We make romans from 600 to 3,000 mm wide and 1,200 to 3,000 mm drop, and the designer tells you straight away if a size won't work. We also check every order before it goes to the workshop and call you if a number looks odd.

There's more detail, with diagrams, in our guide to measuring for blinds.

Fitting it yourself

It's a similar job to a roller blind. Screw the brackets that come with your blind to the frame (recess) or the wall or architrave (face fit), one at each end about 2 cm in from the edge and the rest spaced evenly. Screw into the timber studs beside the window where you can; if you can't find them, use wall anchors rated for the weight. Slot the front edge of the headrail into the brackets, roll it back until each one clicks, then fit the chain tensioner or cleat into a firm surface. Our roman blind install guide has the video and the PDF instructions for both fit types.

Lost a bracket or need a new cord part later? Our roman blind spare parts are sold separately.

See the fabric before you order

Screens get colour wrong, especially whites and greys. Order up to 10 free roman blind samples, posted free. They post separately, so they never hold up a blind order. Tape them up at the window you're buying for and live with them for a day or two.

Once you've chosen, open the roman blind designer, enter your width and drop, and pick the light level, fabric, colour and control. The price updates with every choice. We make it to your sizes in Australia and dispatch it in 8 to 15 business days, with a 5-year warranty.

Roman blind questions