Brands installers meet in the field

Hunter Douglas is the reference point most clients have heard of, with proprietary systems like honeycomb cellulars and sheer horizontal shades. Expect the highest price and the most involved installation hardware. Alta covers a similar made-to-measure range with a strong shutter and specialty shape programme.

Maxxmar is widely used by Canadian dealers, known for its cellular and combination shade lines and for handling arches and other specialty shapes. Salneks shows up in the same dealer channel for custom fabrication. Both are ordered through independent retailers rather than off a shelf.

Bali and Levolor straddle both worlds: stock sizes in home improvement stores and a made-to-measure programme through dealers and online. For a standard rectangular window, a stock blind from a big-box or warehouse retailer — the sort you'd pick up at Home Depot, Costco or a home hardware store — is usually the cheapest workable answer.

Stock wins on price and availability and loses on size, fabric range, light gaps and anything that isn't a rectangle. Custom wins on fit, options and warranty support, and loses on cost and lead time. Most homes end up with both: custom in the rooms that matter, stock everywhere else.

Adding the manufacturer and collection as keywords makes the library far more useful — it turns a pile of photos into a searchable record of how a specific fabric or headrail actually looks once it's on a window.