Standard rectangular windows are easy to cover, but what happens when your home features a dramatic wall of windows, elegant arched openings, or a beautiful bay window that adds architectural character? Big-box stores stock limited sizes that leave homeowners with challenging windows searching for solutions that actually fit.
The Short Answer: Specialized Custom Solutions
Long Island Custom Blinds specializes in custom window treatments for any window configuration. We design solutions for wide sliders, bay windows, arches, and other non-standard sizes that standard retailers can’t accommodate.
Because everything we provide is made-to-measure, we’re never limited by stock sizes or standard configurations. We measure your exact window dimensions and specifications, then order treatments manufactured specifically for your unique openings. Whether your windows are oversized, unusually shaped, or architecturally distinctive, we create functional and beautiful solutions.
Why Big-Box Stores Can’t Handle Unusual Windows
Understanding retail limitations helps explain why custom solutions are often your only viable option.
Standard retailers stock pre-manufactured sizes designed to fit the most common window dimensions. They might offer products in 24-inch, 36-inch, or 48-inch widths, expecting customers to find something close enough. This approach works for basic rectangular windows in standard sizes but fails completely with unusual configurations.
Limitations of stock products include: Maximum width restrictions that can’t span wide windows, inability to accommodate non-rectangular shapes, limited mounting options that don’t work with architectural features, and no customization for multi-window configurations like bay windows. These retailers also lack the expertise to assess complex installations and recommend appropriate solutions.
Custom window treatment providers measure precisely, order products manufactured to exact specifications, recommend appropriate products for specific challenges, and provide professional installation that ensures proper function despite complexity.
Wide Windows and Sliding Doors: Specialized Solutions
Large expanses of glass create unique coverage challenges that require specialized products and installation techniques.
Windows spanning eight, ten, or twelve feet wide need treatments engineered to support their own weight without sagging. Standard products designed for typical window widths fail when stretched across large openings. We use products specifically engineered for wide spans, including additional support brackets, reinforced headrails, and appropriate operating systems that function smoothly despite the size.
Best solutions for wide windows:
Vertical blinds with updated contemporary fabrics operate smoothly across sliding doors and wide windows. Sliding panel systems offer modern alternatives with large fabric panels that glide on tracks. Motorized shades eliminate the difficulty of manually operating treatments across expansive windows. For very wide openings, we sometimes recommend splitting the coverage into multiple coordinated sections that operate independently while appearing cohesive.
The key is selecting products rated for your specific width and ensuring proper support during installation. We’ve covered windows exceeding fifteen feet wide with treatments that operate reliably and maintain appearance without sagging.
Bay and Bow Windows: Multi-Section Coordination
Bay and bow windows create beautiful architectural features but challenge window treatment design with their angled configurations.
These multi-section windows require either individual treatments for each window section or continuous treatments that accommodate the angles. Individual treatments allow independent operation of each section, with options including blinds, shades, or shutters mounted in each window. This approach provides maximum flexibility but creates multiple separate elements.
Continuous treatments span the entire bay or bow configuration, creating unified appearance. Custom curved rods for drapery follow the window curve, flexible track systems accommodate angles while supporting panels or shades, and specialty hardware designed specifically for bay windows ensures smooth operation.
During consultation, we assess your bay or bow window configuration, discuss your preferences for individual versus continuous coverage, recommend products that suit the specific angles, and design mounting solutions that work with available space. Each bay window is unique, requiring customized approach based on the angle of sections, depth of window seat if present, and your functional priorities.
Arched and Angled Windows: Specialty Shape Solutions
Arched windows, angle-top windows, and other non-rectangular shapes showcase architectural beauty but need specialized coverage solutions.
Arch window options include:
Specialty arched shutters custom-made to follow your arch curve provide permanent, elegant solutions. Sunburst shades designed specifically for arch shapes mount inside the arch and operate with specialty hardware. Some homeowners prefer covering only the rectangular bottom portion while leaving the decorative arch exposed, creating functional privacy while celebrating the architectural feature.
Angled windows including triangular, trapezoid, and other geometric shapes require treatments manufactured to exact specifications with custom hardware and mounting solutions. We template unusual shapes to ensure perfect fit and identify mounting locations that provide adequate support.
The approach depends on whether the unusual shape is decorative or functional. Purely decorative shapes might not need coverage, while functional windows require both coverage and easy operation.
Other Non-Standard Window Challenges
Beyond size and shape, other window characteristics create coverage challenges.
Deep window recesses where windows sit far back in walls require extra-long mounting brackets or inside-mount solutions with sufficient depth. Windows with cranks or handles need treatments that clear operating mechanisms while still providing adequate coverage. Windows at unusual heights including very high windows or those near floor level require specialized operating systems like motorization for accessibility.
Grouped windows where multiple windows sit close together need coordinated coverage that functions independently or together depending on your needs. Windows with obstructions including ceiling fans, light fixtures, or architectural elements require creative mounting solutions that work around constraints.
Each challenge has solutions when working with custom manufacturers and experienced installers. During consultation, we identify potential issues and design around them before ordering products.
The Made-to-Measure Advantage
Custom manufacturing transforms impossible situations into perfect solutions.
Off-the-shelf products come in predetermined sizes forcing you to compromise on fit, function, or appearance. Made-to-measure products are manufactured to your exact dimensions ensuring perfect fit with no gaps, designed around your specific obstacles and constraints, built with appropriate support for your window size, and equipped with operating systems suited to your configuration.
The process involves precise professional measurement accounting for every fraction of an inch, assessment of mounting options considering your specific situation, recommendation of products engineered for your dimensions, and manufacturing to your specifications rather than forcing standard products into non-standard situations.
While custom products cost more than stock items, the price difference reflects actual solutions versus compromised coverage that never works properly.
Red Flags: When Companies Can’t Handle Complex Windows
Warning signs include: Quick dismissal of your window challenges without assessment, recommendations for standard products clearly too small, suggestions to “just leave it uncovered,” lack of questions about specific window configurations, inability to explain how products will be mounted, or pressure to choose simpler windows instead of addressing actual needs.
Quality companies ask detailed questions about challenging windows, take extensive measurements and photos, discuss multiple potential solutions, and explain exactly how products will be mounted and operated. Complexity excites professional custom providers rather than discouraging them.
Bottom Line: Challenging Windows Need Custom Expertise
Long Island Custom Blinds specializes in finding solutions for windows that confound standard retailers. Our made-to-measure approach and partnerships with quality manufacturers allow us to design functional, beautiful treatments for any window configuration.
We handle: Wide windows and sliding doors exceeding standard dimensions, bay and bow window multi-section configurations, arched and angled specialty shapes, deep recesses and unusual mounting challenges, windows with obstructions or accessibility issues, and grouped or closely spaced window combinations.
Don’t settle for “close enough” coverage that leaves gaps, sags, or fails to operate properly. Custom solutions ensure your unique windows receive treatments that fit perfectly and function beautifully.
Next Steps: Get Solutions for Your Unique Windows
Ready to cover those challenging windows properly?
- Schedule your free in-home consultation for precise assessment
- We’ll measure your exact window configurations
- Discuss custom solutions designed specifically for your needs
- Receive professional installation ensuring perfect fit and function
Visit longislandcustomblinds.com or call directly. We specialize in custom window treatments for windows big-box stores can’t handle—from wide sliders to elegant arches, we create made-to-measure solutions that fit perfectly.