Sliding glass doors and French doors are among the most used solutions for the patio entrance of a house. Sometimes, such doors may be used for creating a temporary separation between two rooms, so they can be fully opened for allowing the two rooms merge into a bigger one. This can be a good idea for people who like to organize festivities and celebrations in their home, thus needing to occasionally set up a big dinner table to accommodate all those guests.

Because of their large glass areas, sliding glass doors don’t offer too much privacy if the glass is clear. This is where bamboo shades for sliding doors come into play: they can provide this privacy when needed, but they can also be completely open in order to allow daylight in at times when we don’t care if people in the street are staring at us through the glass of our doors. Bamboo has a natural look which helps creating an exotic and Earth-friendly atmosphere, while passing almost unnoticed. This is a nice feature, especially when it’s not desirable to have one decor element which focuses the attention, making people ignore other elements we’d like them to see and admire.

Styles of Bamboo Shades for Sliding Doors

Bamboo sliding panels: such window treatments can add a dramatic look to your room, offer you privacy, while allowing enough filtered light to pass through. They are usually multiple panels installed on a double track, so they can overlap when opened. The number of panels may vary depending on the opening size, but the most usual numbers are 4 or 6. This has to be an even number, because symmetry is nice to have when you slide the panels to the sides. Of course, you can opt for a one-way draw to open, case in which the number of panels doesn’t matter anymore. Bamboo is very good for such installations because it’s lightweight, therefore there’s no need for a sturdy track that could be hard to install and to secure in place, especially if the door opening is very large. Thanks to the liners that can be added to the shades, the light filtering degree can be chosen from very light to total blackout. Bamboo sliding panel curtains can be paired with matching valances, for more sophisticated interiors.

Bamboo Roman shades: this is another option for covering sliding door glass panes. Compared to sliding panels, Roman shades offer the advantage of not needing to open them each time you want to use the door. This is important when you have kids, because they might not be careful enough with curtains, drapes, shades or other window treatments, so they may damage the bamboo slats of the sliding panels if they use a lot those patio doors. After all, we can’t expect kids to slide open those panels when they have so many things on their mind, do we?

Be it we talk about sliding panels or Roman shades, bamboo slats are available in many color choices, from the darkest Black Cherry finish, to the warm Colonial shade or Maple Kauai and even to the unevenly looking Pecan color.

Blinds, shades and curtains are usually indoor window treatments, so they don’t have to be weatherproof. Yet, there are situations in which blinds need to be installed outdoor, like in case of sunrooms or patio shadings. This means that the blinds will be exposed to direct sunlight, to wind and rains, therefore they need to made of something that can resist all those, yet preserve their appearance for a long time. What else could be better than bamboo for making such outdoor blinds? Bamboo is natural and flexible, it grows in wet climate areas, with lots of heavy rains and hot sunny days, with storms and many other weather challenges. This is why choosing outdoor bamboo blinds can save a homeowner a lot of future trouble with frequent replacements or repairs.

If you have a sunroom or a patio and you think of shading it with outdoor bamboo blinds, here are a couple of cheap and beautiful options:

Radiance Laguna Bamboo Roll-Up Blinds

These outdoor blinds are made 100% of hand-selected bamboo featuring plain weave type and rollup shade lift system. They are ready-made window treatments, with a height of 72” and a width of 60” or 48”. If needed, they can be cut shorter at home, but beware that you may lose the 1 year warranty if you do that. Radiance Laguna bamboo blinds are delivered with all required mounting hardware included, so they can be installed easily. They provide a medium light filtering and some thermal insulation, but you shouldn’t count on that to heat your sunroom during the cold season. These blinds are available in several stores such as Target or Sears, as well as in online window treatments and home improvement shops.

Lewis Hyman Reed Natural Blinds

These blinds are made of reed and bamboo and they are suitable for both indoor and outdoor use. They are available in natural tones of wood, which may feature slight variations of color which make them look even more natural. The roll-up system is easy to install and to use, the only required maintenance being periodical dusting or vacuuming. These blinds are ready-made in the size of 72” x 48” and they are available in many online window blinds stores.

When buying outdoor bamboo blinds, keep in mind that all metal parts should be made of non-rusting materials, otherwise the blinds won’t serve you for too long, especially if you live in a front beach house, exposed to salty water drops which can easily eat up your metal during one single year. See if you can get some additional warranty for the hardware, so you can enjoy your blinds for a very long time.