Many people like the look of wood blinds, whether wood venetian blinds, wood plantation shutters, or wood vertical blinds even, but find them quite expensive to buy.  It is unfortunate that it is difficult to find cheap wood blinds and that most are expensive, because I feel that they really do add a nice touch to a room, particularly if you are looking for the rustic look in a home.

There are some options however for buying cheap wood blinds, with pros and cons to each one. When making your decision it will really be all about what is available for you, what you can afford and most importantly what you feel the most comfortable with.

Buying Online: Without any doubt, you can definitely find the best prices for wood blinds by searching online for them.  There are often sales online also, and if you look around enough you should be able to find a supplier that also offers free shipping.

When you buy your blinds online, however, you don’t really have any way of returning them if you measure wrongly, for example.  You also have to either put the cheap wood blinds up yourself, or hire someone to do it for you, which adds to your costs.

If you measure for cheap wood blinds that you are going to purchase online, make sure to carefully follow the instructions given on the web site you are ordering from.  Use a very good measure (don’t try and do it with your kids school ruler!) and take the measurements a few times. It’s even a good idea to have someone else measure as well, to see if they come up with the same measurements. That’s really the main consideration when ordering online, as you don’t want to make a mistake with the measurement.

It is also sometimes difficult to get the exact match of color or wood stain when ordering online, but there are different ways around that. I’d suggest you buy all your blinds at once, or if you can’t afford that at least note down the style and item number and go back to the same on line merchant when it is time to order more cheap wood blinds.

Buying from a Store:  Home Depot has cheaper blinds, in general it seems, than Lowes for example. Other places where you can sometimes find cheap wood blinds include “Next Day Blinds” and “Budget Blinds”.  I’m sure there are a  lot of other shops that also sell blinds, where you can sometimes find good deals.

Recently I heard that Home Depot was only selling custom sized blinds, which has pushed the price for ordering blinds from them up a bit as you need to pay for them to come and measure and install. One thing you can do with Home Depot, and most likely other shops, is to pay for their workers to come and measure for the blinds, but then arrange to put the blinds up yourself, this can really cut costs considerably.

There are also sometimes coupons for Lowes or Home Depot offered, where you can get discounts on your blinds.

The pro of ordering from a shop, and having them come and at least measure for your wood blinds, is that they will take responsibility for any mistakes with measuring, which is great. Some shops also do actually offer free installation, so be sure to shop around.   Another pro is that you can actually go down and physically see the blinds and make a sure choice based on what is in front of you. The main con is the expense involved .

If you are really looking for bathroom blinds ideas such as cheap wood blinds, I think you will find it best to order online, from a supplier that offers free shipping.  Just be sure to measure correctly for them. Make sure too that your bathroom blinds and shower curtains match, in order to provide continuity to your bathroom decor.

To begin with I want to offer a disclaimer.  When I write ‘cheap blinds’ I am referring to the price you pay for your blinds, and not with the ‘look’.  You don’t have to pay exorbitant amounts of money to buy blinds that look good in your home, and that are stylish. There are some simple things you can do to lessen the amount you spend on blinds without making your home look like a hovel.

Tip #1 – Look for Sales

Many times, if you shop around, you can find cheap blinds on sale. A tip is to actually type in ‘cheap blinds’ as a search and see what you turn up. You’ll be amazed at the very good sales online right now, and there’s a great chance that you may well be able to pick up good quality cheap blinds.  Remember, sales are a way a retail outlet has of getting rid of old stock which oftentimes is still very good quality.  Once a shop has stocked an item for some time, they begin looking for ways to get rid of it so they can reinvest in new stock, thus a sale is born.  So, do keep an eye out for sales when you are in line for purchasing cheap blinds.

Tip #2 – Decide on Material

You will find a big difference in price between wood blinds and faux wood blinds, for example with the faux wood being a cheaper blind than the real wood blinds in most cases.  There are also other ways you can save on your blinds by looking into buying blinds made out of a different material.  I am not suggesting investing in lower grade materials, such as cheap PVC blinds, as they simply won’t last. Instead I’m suggesting you check out faux wood instead of wood, or vinyl instead of faux wood, or bamboo instead of wood.

Check your alternatives, look around and don’t get stuck on any one material.  If you leave yourself open to other possibilities you may well end up finding those great looking cheap bathroom window blinds that you have been wanting to buy.

Tip #3 – Mix up Styles of Blinds

You don’t absolutely have to have expensive wooden blinds on every window in your house, not even on every window in your  living room.  It is perfectly acceptable to mix and match your blinds.  Put the faux-wood plantation shutters on your big view window in your living room, and really show it off.  Then use classic design roller blinds, that complement the wood color of your plantation shutters, on the smaller side windows. Or choose bamboo roller blinds instead.

Be inventive.  Don’t limit yourself, but really stretch your imagination and your creativity to come up with cheap blind alternatives for the windows that don’t get much attention. If you choose carefully, these alternative cheap blinds will blend in and no one will notice. In fact, they’ll probably compliment you on your creativity.

Tip #4 – Buy the Right Blind for the Right Room

Think and ask questions before you buy.  It really is not a good idea to put wood blinds in your kitchen, or in your bathroom, unless you know they are treated to resist dampness and moisture (moisture is a killer for wooden blinds, makes them warp and the wood swells.)   If you are concerned about keeping the light out of your child’s bedroom, especially that early morning sun that makes them wake up at 5.30 when you want to keep sleeping, then invest in a black-out roller blind. They come in all sorts of colors, perfect for decorating a kid’s room and you can find any pattern you like.  They look great, add color and fun to a room, and do the job of keeping  that sneaking morning sun out of your child’s room until you decide to let it in!

If you are going to invest in blinds, really think about what you want for each room, weigh up practicality and looks, and buy the right blind for the right room. You’d be surprised at how many people rush out to buy blinds without really thinking about what they’re getting. They buy on impulse, buy because it would ‘look good’ and don’t give a second to thinking about practicality.  The blind comes home, it doesn’t do the job, and that’s money wasted.

Tip #5 – Measure Your Window Properly

While not actually a tip on finding cheap blinds, it is definitely a money-saving tip nonetheless.  You would also be surprised at how many people fail to measure their windows correctly, according to directions, and end up with blinds that are too long, too short, too narrow or too wide.  Almost every online store offers slightly different directions on how they want to receive measurements.

Read up on how to measure before you purchase your blinds, and follow the guidelines given. You might end up saving money!

Tip #6 – Look for Second Hand Sales

Yes, that’s right. Sometimes you can find second hand blinds or shutters that are still in good condition. You would be amazed at how often some people re-do their living room or house, including their window treatments.  And it is also fairly common that many windows are actually built to standard size, thus blinds from their window may well fit on your similarly sized window. So, that is also a good way to look into getting cheap blinds.

Remember cheap blinds don’t have to look cheap, they just have to cost less.