I hear this complaint a lot: you pull your shades down for privacy, and the room goes dark with them. Top down bottom up shades fix that specific problem. This actually comes up quite often in consultation. This is especially an issue for living rooms and breakfast nooks that face a street or a neighbor’s yard.
What Are Top Down Bottom Up Shades?
The name tells you what they do. Instead of one shade that only lowers from the top, this shade style moves from either direction, top down, and/or bottom up. Raise the top to block sightlines and direct sun while the bottom stays open for light. Or lower the bottom for privacy while the top stays open. Both sections move on their own, so you are not stuck picking one or the other.
Pamela’s Argyle Project
I recently finished a project for Pamela in Argyle that’s a good example of this. Her living room and breakfast nook both needed light during the day without giving up privacy once it got dark. I installed motorized top down bottom up honeycomb shades with the top down bottom up feature in both rooms, along with sheer drapery panels in the living room and a cornice board finishing out the breakfast nook.
Honeycomb shades do one more thing besides light control. The cellular pockets trap air, which helps insulate the window against heat and cold. So the shades are working for comfort and energy efficiency too, not just how the room looks.
Where Top Down Bottom Up Shades Work Best
I don’t put these shades on every window. They solve one problem well, and I recommend them most for street-facing living rooms, breakfast nooks, and bathrooms, where you need privacy but still want natural light. For a window facing a private backyard, or a home office nobody can see into, a standard shade usually works fine and costs less.
Layering the Look
Pamela’s project is also a good example of top down bottom up shades working as part of a layered treatment, not standing alone. They handle light and privacy. Drapery and a cornice board add the finished look that makes a room feel decorated rather than purely functional.
Book a complimentary consultation and I’ll bring samples to your home so you can see how top down bottom up shades work in your own space and light.
