The Pebble Controller can move a single window covering or a whole group!

Picture this: You’re away from home for a few hours and the sun begins to set. Your $4 outlet timer from the hardware store clicks and the lamp it’s attached to comes on. Your errand takes longer than you thought and the house is empty. The street gets dark. Cars slowly drive by, every one of them looking through your big front windows into the house, wondering what they might see.

The automation that little timer provides could be so much more. Smart Home technology can do everything from turn your lights on to shut off the television, on a timer or through your phone, even if you’re not there.

Guess what else it can do.

That’s right. It can close the window coverings.

Hunter-Douglas offers a system called Powerview that uses the Logitech Harmony Hub  to connect multiple Smart devices together. You connect your phone or tablet to the Harmony Hub and then connect Hunter-Douglas’s Powerview shades and blinds to it. The Harmony Hub works with thousands of other devices you might want to control remotely as well, making the shades part of the larger Smart Home system. 

For example, you might add motorized drapery rods that can also be controlled by the Harmony Hub, making it possible to close all of your window coverings at dusk.

Once the system is connected, you can schedule your shades and blinds to move wherever you want through the Powerview app or with a Pebble controller. In addition to acting as a traditional remote control, the Pebble controller lets you control schedule individual windows or adjust groups of window coverings with one touch of the button. It can also schedule the groups.

Smart Home technology can give you a little extra peace of mind in a busy world. Schedule the system to turn on the light and close the blinds at the same time and no one can peer into your living room as they drive by your home at night. Contact us to talk about fitting your home with a smart system.

Are your window treatments American-made? If not, do they meet American standards?

Most of all, did your money support your vision of the world?

We’ve all heard the admonition to “Buy Local!” or “Buy American!”, but why is that so important?

We’ve written before about why we sell Hunter-Douglas window treatments. We like the quality, the lifetime guarantee and the commitment to safety features that keep kids and pets safe. But we also like them because Hunter-Douglas is an American company and we believe that neighbors supporting neighbors with our purchases makes our community better.

We primarily work with the Hunter-Douglas offices in Broomfield and Denver, CO. The company headquarters are in New York and it has offices and facilities all over the world because in addition to window coverings, they also make architectural products for commercial buildings. The pretty ventilated facade systems you see on new buildings or the acoustic ceiling in a concert hall may have been made by Hunter-Douglas. They don’t just know about window coverings. They know the materials used to manage sun, sound and ventilation inside and out.

Equally important to us is the way Hunter Douglas treats their employees. They hire people who are “committed to creating world class solutions with passion” and then compensate them in a way that shows they value the people who work for them. Employees earn enough to support their families, have 401K plans and insurance through the company. They offer employees education so that they can move up in the company and grow with it.

This means that every time you buy a Hunter Douglas product through us, not only can we be confident about the quality and that it will last, we know that a lot of the money spent is going right back into our community and our country. Your window treatment dollars are ultimately paying for a family home or children’s education.

That’s our vision for the world. We want to see our work benefit our community and the best way to do that is to buy American products, especially when they’re made right here in Colorado.

Contact us today to put the best quality, American-made window treatments available in your home.

Have you seen the articles about homes designed especially for cats? Frances Walker and Bob Mooney wrote a book about their remodeling activities. They installed catwalks, climbing posts and doors in the walls for cats to move through the house at the ceiling level.

Many of us adore our pets, even we don’t necessarily want to redesign our entire homes for them. We want to keep them safe and live in harmony with them. Here are a few tips for making your furry friends welcome in your home.

Use Cordless Window Treatments

Pets and children can become tangled in window blind cords. Those cords kill an average of 12 children a year and an unknown number of pets. It’s not hard to imagine your kitten getting himself tangled in a loose cord or your puppy chewing and swallowing it. Hunter Douglas has been the leader in child and pet safety. They have all sorts of products that your pet can’t get in trouble with, from motorized blinds to shades that a cat can push up himself!

Use Straight Drapery Trim

Dogs and especially cats love dangly things. Just look at the design of cat toys to see that it’s true. Dangly trim on your drapes will be too tempting for your furry friend to resist.

Use Fabrics and Products that are Easy to Clean

Some types of fabrics hold pet hair and never let it go. Microfiber felt is notoriously difficult to clean. Something like Hunter Douglas Silhouette sheer shades will collect fur and be easily torn by a claw.  Consider products made of tougher, more easily cleaned material, such as shutters or drapes.

Put in Wood or Tile Floors

Dander and hair is easily trapped in carpet, making allergies worse. Even the best behaved animals sometimes have accidents or leave food on the floor. Tile floors hold up well to dog nails and wood floors can be easily cleaned. Besides, have you ever seen a young cat play on a wood floor? Your little friend won’t mind being stuck inside.

Consider Leather or Suede Furniture

Fabric upholstery collects fur and can be difficult to clean. It’s also susceptible to the same collection of dander as carpet. Leather can be scratched by a playful cat and it’s not easy to fix. Consider leather furniture if you have dogs and suede furniture if you have cats.

Remember to make sure your pets get plenty of exercise and to provide special toys and furniture just for them. They are less likely to play with your things if they have their own.

Call us if you’d like our designer, Theresa Guthals, to come out for an interior design or window treatment consultation. We’re pretty sure she won’t recommend building catwalks.

Colorado Springs isn’t the triendiest place in the world, but we do have our likes and dislikes. Our designer, Theresa Guthals, says that people like for their interior spaces to reflect the outdoors. And with good reason! People move to Colorado because it’s beautiful. Why would we want to forget that when we’re inside?

Here are some popular looks in Colorado Springs:

Simplicity

When you gaze at the mountains, what do you see? They can be any color from gold to pink to blue, but during the day they are sometimes a shade of gray or taupe. They often look like a green or gray blanket has been thrown over them, with soft shadows and curves.

Those gray and taupe colors are popular here. You can install a window treatment or buy furniture in colors that reflect the mountains and expect it to look current a long time.

The clean lines and simplicity of the mountain view look just as calming and dramatic in a home. Expect this “trend” to last.

Colorado Lodge Look

People love to vacation in the mountains. Rent a lodge somewhere, go skiing, enjoy the peace and quiet of Rockies in a dramatic natural setting and you’ll come back refreshed. When they move to Colorado, they like to have a reminders of those treasures in the house. The mountains are just as beautiful when you own the home as when you’re renting it.

Elements of an updated lodge are popular in Colorado Springs homes. You’ll find warm tones, dark wood floors and wood accents. You might even find a rustic look like that of a 19th century barn or farmhouse, with some vintage and some contemporary items. Homes look like a cottage, but with a modern twist.

Classic Look

Have you ever been in a home with a cabinet full of knick knacks? Or where every space had something displayed in it? That look has gone out of style in favor of classic, open spaces.  Shutters are popular window coverings right now and they bridge almost every trend. The most classic window treatment available, they will weather every trend until they physically wear out.

Even lines of furniture and fabric patterns are trending towards straight, without much curve. People like the simplicity.

Why are people interested in classic, simple interior spaces now? Because our lives are cluttered. We are constantly bombarded with activities, information and communication. Classic-looking interiors help keep us calm.

Would you like your home look more current? Contact us and we’ll make it as classic or contemporary as you like.