Venetian Blinds - A Short History By Susan White

I thought it would be nice to put a short history and description of Venetian Blinds on Blinds and Shutters Info. Everyone has heard of Venetian blinds but not everyone knows how they work and when they originated. So here goes -

Venetian blinds are slatted blinds, consisting of a number of long horizontal strips of metal or vinyl attached in rows. Venetian blinds are nearly always made of metal or vinyl — wooden varieties do exist, but these are now referred to as wooden blinds.

The slats of Venetian blinds are usually connected with string such that they may be turned to either allow light to pass through them by becoming parallel with the window-sill, or else turned flat to block light from the outside.

Usually the turning of the slats is accomplished by rotating a metal or plastic piece found at the upper-corner of the blinds. A string or pull allows the blinds to be raised, as well, removing them entirely from obscuring the window.

Venetian blinds were created sometime in the late 18th century, most likely in or near Venice, Italy. John Hampson of New Orleans in 1841 devised the method used to adjust the angle of the slats on Venetian blinds — this method is still in use today.

Susan White is one of the UK's leading experts on window blinds and shutters and has worked for Hillarys Blinds - the UK's leading online blinds supplier - for several years - http://www.hillarys.co.uk