Bamboo and Woven Wood Shades

Understanding the Difference Between Bamboo and Woven Wood Shades

Bamboo shades and Woven wood shades never seem to go out of style. In the past they were an especially popular choice for sunrooms or bohemian living rooms because they let so much light in though the gaps of their loose weave. Well a lot has changed over the years and woven wood shades are now available in a much wider range of colors, textures, and lining options. Now they can be the perfect window covering solution for any room and any decor style. While this new versatility brought them back into popularity, their eco-friendly materials have only further endeared them to a whole new generation of people seeking ecologically-responsible window treatments for their home. Read on to learn the difference between bamboo wood window shades and woven wood shades, what rooms they are most popular in, and why they are an eco-friendly window shades choice.

Lined woven wood shades with edge-binding

The difference between bamboo shades and woven wood shades

Many people refer to all woven wood shades as bamboo window shades, but bamboo shades are just one style in the family of woven wood shades. Woven wood shades include window coverings made from natural materials including bamboo, rattan, jute, grasses and reeds. These natural materials are woven together to make a window shade with a rich texture and delicate rows of open space in between rows of natural materials.

The main visual difference between natural bamboo blinds or bamboo shades and other woven wood shades is the size of the bamboo slats, which are much larger than the reeds and grasses of other woven wood shades.

Typically, the bamboo slats woven into bamboo shades are between ¼”-½” in width, which is quite large for woven wood shades. The slats of natural bamboo blinds are strung together to make a beautiful pattern of thin vertical stripes of natural wood. Whereas woven wood shades made from reeds and grasses will have a finer weave, fewer light gaps and will be lighter in weight than bamboo shades, which are closer in weight to classic 2” slat real wood blinds.

White bamboo shades with lining and fabric edge-binding

Fabric edge-binding is an option for all types of woven wood shades at Blinds To Go. You can add edge-binding tape to the sides of your woven wood shades for a more tailored look, choose a fabric tape that matches your shade or choose one in a contrasting color for a different look. Edge binding tapes are available in 1" and 2" widths. Whichever tape you choose will wrap around the edges such that 1/2" is visible if you choose the 1" tape and 1" is visible if you choose the 2" tape. Leave you shades "au naturel" with no edge-binding tape for a more bohemian look for shades made of grasses and reeds, or for a flat, modern look for the shades that have fabric woven in with grasses and reeds.

A sample of fabric edge-binding tapes

Woven wood shades, including bamboo shades, can be left unlined to provide more light and less privacy, or they can be lined with a light-filtering lining to block some light and give full privacy. They can also be lined with blackout material that will block most incoming light, a great option for bedrooms and nurseries. The size of the slats of bamboo blinds or other natural materials that comprise a woven wood shade will only affect the amount of privacy or incoming light if the shade is unlined. Many woven wood shades made from finer materials will not even require a lining to provide full privacy, because of the gaps in the weave. This is another major difference between different types of woven wood shades. Keep in mind that not all bamboo blinds and shades require a lining to offer privacy, it all depends on the tightness of the weave. This is why it is so important to come into a showroom or order free woven or bamboo samples online to see the materials in person.

Best Rooms to Use Bamboo and Woven Wood Shades

Woven wood shades are still very popular in sunrooms, florida rooms and rooms with a beachy or bohemian vibe. However, now that light-filtering and blackout linings are available the popularity of woven wood shades has spread to bedrooms, kids rooms, and even nurseries. You can really put them in any room. Below we will discuss some of the spaces where their popularity is growing.

Woven wood shades paired with linen curtains

Using Bamboo Shades in Home Offices

Woven wood shades have that relaxed yet luxurious feel that can really dress up a home office space, without making it feel too stuffy. Work can be stressful and the work day can feel longer if you feel like you are stuffed in an inadequate space for most of your day. If this is the case for you, consider revamping your work space with a relaxing and modern decor update. A desk positioned near windows in a home office situation can make the work day more pleasant and the right window treatments can help you get the light, view, and privacy that you need to focus on the tasks at hand. The lining options make woven wood shades a perfect fit whether you need lots of natural light or if you need to block light for better computer screen visibility.

Why Woven Wood Shades Are Perfect for Bedrooms

Bamboo shades with blackout lining

As mentioned above, now that linings are available on bamboo and other woven wood shades, many people are choosing them to add texture to modern bedroom layouts. They can add just a bit of texture to a demure and calming room or they can add even more to a room that already has a ton of texture and exciting decor elements. After all you can't simply put white roller shades in a room where the whole point of the decor is to be over the top, you need a little bit of texture, but not so much that it will compete with other strong accents like accent wall paper and interesting furniture. Few window treatments work so well with so many different types of decor styles as woven wood shades.

Lined bamboo woven wood shades

Put a modern and elegant frame on a large window by layering curtains or drapes with woven wood shades:

Lined woven wood shades paired with curtains

Child-Friendly Woven Wood Shades for Kids Rooms and Nurseries

If there was ever a room that you wanted to have a calming vibe it is a child's room at bed time. Perhaps thanks to the rise of influencer culture and platforms like instagram, kids bedrooms seem to have come into the spot light in the last few years in a big way in terms of decor and home design. Woven wood shades are very popular right now in home decor in general with this whole wicker-chic, farmhouse decor that is popular and kid's rooms are no exception. Woven wood shades are doubly appropriate for kids rooms because they are slightly imperfect from the very beginning so there is no need to be overly precious with them because a scratch or a pen mark wouldn't even show up like it would on a white roller shade, roman shade or faux wood shades.

Woven wood shades with blackout lining

Woven Wood Shades: Perfect for Dining and Living Room

The dining room and living room are two great places to update your house with a modern decor style. If you have to go one room at a time, either of these rooms will allow you to show off your new decor much more often than a bedroom or home office and giving it a modern update will make your whole home feel a little more modern. Adding texture and natural materials, like bamboo, reeds and grasses, is one way to make the room feel more updated and modern.

Add a little texture with neutrals and woven wood shades and other woven wood accents, like wicker chairs and modern baskets:

Unlined woven wood shades

Add woven wood shades to a room with a beach vibe, and bring the outdoors inside in a way that feels simultaneously relaxed, tailored, and modern:

Woven wood shades with light-filtering lining

Add a lot texture with layers of eclectic statement pieces; an interesting rug, artfully mix matched chairs around the same table, and multiple bold prints like animal print mixed with a bold geometric print:

Unlined bamboo shades

Reduce harsh incoming light and add a modern bohemian vibe with unlined woven wood shades:

Unlined woven wood shades

Add elegant texture and a little extra privacy to large windows with unlined woven wood shades: 

Unlined woven wood shades paired with drapery

Why woven wood shades are the eco-friendly choice:

Plastics make very sturdy and easily-to-clean blinds and shades, but if you are looking for an alternative with a smaller carbon footprint, woven wood shades may be the window treatment for you. The reeds straws, grasses, and bamboos from which many woven wood shades are constructed grow to harvest much quicker than the wood from trees used for 2" natural wood blinds. These crops also require less water to grow. Not only are woven wood shades more ecologically-friendly on the production side, they are also much quicker to breakdown at the end of their lifecycle, once you dispose of them. This makes them an even more attractive option for those looking for eco-friendly window treatments.

Woven wood shades

Best bamboo window shades come in and out of fashion some people worry about them becoming outdated. Woven wood shades have become much more functional with recent updates to lining options and cordless functionality so we encourage you to go ahead and try them if you are looking for a beautiful neutral window treatment with rich texture. Natural colors like the browns and tans of woods, grasses, and straw will always have a timeless appeal, unlike strong bright colors that come into popularity as swiftly as the color of the year and then leave again as quickly as they arrived. The natural beauty of woven wood shades and their long lasting quality make them a must-have item to try in at least one room within your household.

As always, we invite you to come into a Blinds To Go showroom to see and feel woven wood texture in person. Bring in pictures of your room and window and we will help you pick the best option for your privacy concerns, light preferences, decor, and budget. Or order free swatches online, so you can see and feel the materials in your home lighting and decor. Stop in today, shop online, or give us a call at +1 (800) 254-6377.