SmartFit® frame
A slim frame grips the edge of the glass and holds a Portrait™ honeycomb shade inside it, so nothing swings or rattles when the door does. No cords; the frame looks like molding.
French Door Blinds
French door blinds that swing with the door and clear the handle.
A French door covering lives on a moving panel next to a lever handle. It has to mount to the door, stay put when the door slams, and leave the handle free. Portrait™ honeycomb in a SmartFit® frame, Soluna™ roller shades, or shutters with a handle cut-out, fitted to the door by PAPABLINDS across the Greater Seattle Area.
Three ways to mount on a door.
The covering is attached to the door, not the wall. What holds it there, and what happens at the handle, is the whole decision.
Shutter with a cut-out
A hinged Normandy® or Woodlore® Plus panel mounted to the door, with a curved, square, or angled notch around the handle so the lever still turns.
Roller shade on the door
A Soluna™ roller mounted above the glass on the door itself, in light-filtering or room-darkening fabric. The slimmest option on a narrow stile.
Which one for which door?
| Door | We usually show | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Full-lite door to the patio, used daily | SmartFit® honeycomb, dual shade if the room needs dark | Held at both rails, so it does not swing loose; top-down option keeps the view above |
| French doors in a bedroom | SmartFit® Dual Shade, or shutters | Room darkening on the door itself; shutters close tighter than any fabric |
| Doors with a deep lever handle | Shutter with a cut-out, or a roller mounted high | The cut-out is shaped to the handle; a roller sits above the glass and clears it |
| Doors that match shutters in the room | Normandy® or Woodlore® Plus door panels | Same louver size and color as the windows, hinged to the door |
| A rental or a low budget | Soluna™ roller | Least hardware, easy to replace, still cordless |
Why French doors defeat ordinary blinds.
An ordinary blind hangs from the top and swings free at the bottom. Mount it on a door and every swing of the door sends it into the glass, and every gust through the open door lifts it. Hold-down brackets help; a product designed to grip the door does better. SmartFit® holds the shade at both rails inside a frame, and a shutter panel is hinged to the door like a second door.
The handle is the other trap. A lever handle sits on the stile a few inches from the glass, exactly where an inside-mount blind wants to be. We measure the handle projection first and choose between a cut-out, a narrow frame, or a roller mounted above the handle line.
- Products that attach to the door, not just hang on it.
- Handle clearance measured on the door.
- Same color and louver size as the windows beside the door.
- Cordless and certified Best for Kids options on honeycomb and rollers.
© 2021 Norman®. All Rights Reserved.The French doors we fit most.
Family room to the yard
SmartFit® honeycomb in a light-filtering fabric, top-down bottom-up so the door still shows the yard above eye level.
Doors to a balcony
SmartFit® Dual Shade with a room-darkening layer, or shutters with the louvers closed for the darkest result.
Interior French doors
Privacy for calls without losing the light: a sheer honeycomb in the frame, or shutters that tilt.
French door questions.
Will the shade bang against the glass when the door closes?
Not in a SmartFit® frame: the shade is held at the top and the bottom inside the frame. Shutters are hinged to the door and do not move at all.
What about the handle?
We measure how far the lever projects. Shutters get a cut-out shaped to it (curved, square, or angled), frames are sized to clear it, and rollers mount above it.
Can I match the shutters on the windows next to the door?
Yes. Normandy® and Woodlore® Plus door panels use the same louver sizes and colors as the window shutters, so the wall reads as one set.
Do you do the door and the sidelights?
Yes. Sidelights get a narrow shade or a narrow shutter panel in the same product, measured separately because they do not move.
French door blinds and shades in the Seattle area
PAPABLINDS fits coverings to French doors in Seattle, Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, and neighboring communities. The three products we mount on doors are Norman® Portrait™ honeycomb shades in SmartFit® frames, including the dual shade and top-down bottom-up versions, Soluna™ roller shades, and Normandy® or Woodlore® Plus shutters with handle cut-outs. Each attaches to the door itself and clears the handle.
Framed shades or shutters?
SmartFit® is the everyday answer: an edge-gripping frame holds the honeycomb shade against the glass, nothing swings when the door does, and there are no cords. Shutters are the answer when the windows beside the door already have them, or when the room needs the tightest closure. Rollers are the slim, low-cost option for a narrow door stile.
What we measure on the door
- Glass size and the width of the stile around it.
- Handle projection and the swing direction of the door.
- Sidelights and transoms, so the whole doorway is covered in one product.
Request a free in-home visit and we will hold a SmartFit® sample and a shutter panel against your door.