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30-Minutes with Workroom Tech: Episode Fifteen / Relaxed Roman Shades

Updated: Dec 16, 2019


In episode fifteen of the Sew Much More Podcast: 30-Minutes with Workroom Tech, Ceil DiGuglielmo and Susan Woodcock talk about relaxed Roman shades. You can listen to the episode here: 30-Minutes with Workroom Tech Podcast

What is a "Relaxed" Roman Shade?

A relaxed Roman shade is similar to a standard Roman shade except that the center isn’t square and level, and is allowed to slightly swag. That’s the “relaxed” part… the center isn’t structured and held up by cords.

There are many other types of shades that swoop or swag at the bottom, but they are made with more generous fullness. Examples would be a London shade, with a pleat inset from each end; a balloon shade with gathered or inverted pleats across the width of the shade; and an Austrian shade which that has fullness added to the length that is then gathered up vertically with shirring tapes.

Fabrication Methods

Susan shared that she has three favorite methods for making relaxed Roman shades, but there there are more than three. Before deciding on how you are going to make the shade, you need to need to understand the client’s wishes, and the fabric selection.