Best Kitchen Roman Shades | How to Choose Kitchen Window Treatment

Roman shades is such a timeless window treatment, especially for utilitarian spaces such as your kitchen. So I’m sharing my top tips on what to look for when choosing window shades for your kitchen, roman shades recommendations, plus other kitchen window treatment alternatives.

If you are into for farmhouse roman shades for other rooms, you can check out my farmhouse roman shade roundup post.

Table of content

Why choosing roman shades for kitchen?

Best kitchen roman shades 2021

Things to consider when choosing kitchen roman shades

Roman shades alternatives

Why choosing roman shades for kitchen?

Limited height for window treatment

For a lot of rooms, drapes can be the first thing people think about when dressing up the window. However, drapes just doesn’t work for a kitchen.

With cabinets and countertops, there’s limited height for a window treatment and that is really where roman shades come in handy.

Also, the roman shade height is so customizable that you can easily find one that fits your kitchen window size perfectly.

Keep it clean

Generally speaking, roman shades just works better than curtain drapes in utilitarian type of rooms, such as kitchen, bathroom, laundry room, etc. 

In kitchen, there can be a lot of spills or splatters. A roman shade that is hanging at the top portion of a window can do a pretty good job of keeping itself clean.

Timeless look

Sometimes, choosing a roman shade for window treatment is based on your home interior style or what you are going for.

For example, roman shades have an open and clean look which matches the functionality of kitchen and dining spaces really well. Also it is such a timeless window treatment option that it will never be out of style.

Best Kitchen Roman Shades 2021

Roman shades is probably the top window treatment options for a kitchen, so here’s a roundup of the my favorite kitchen roman shades – including a few options which I have in my home and love 🙂

1. Riviera Cordless Roman Shades

This is probably one of the most popular roman shade for a traditional or farmhouse home! It is made by Pottery Barn so I have no doubt on its quality. Also it is cordless which makes it user easy to open and close.

I have a similar cordless shade from Pottery Barn in my home office that I love so much for its convenience to control.

These striped shades are the same product line as my home office shades, just with just different fabric.

This shade is blackout, so as long as it doesn’t cover much space for the window, it is a great option still. You can also do outside mount to allow more light into your kitchen.

2. Emery Linen/Cotton Cordless Roman Shade

This is what I use in my home office – I have two and really love them!

This roman shade comes in many color options. I picked the white one for its simplicity since I know where’s gonna be a lot going on in my home office.

I also love the blue and ivory color options which can look great for a more traditional space!

This window shade is also cordless and with blackout lining. I wouldn’t recommend it to super small windows as it can block a little bit light. If you have a very small window, you can use it for outside mount to let more light in if you love this design.

3. Flat Ribbed Roman Shade

I have this ribbed flat roman shade for my bedroom above my DIY window seat and really love the clean style.

This is custom, because my window is really wide.Although custom made to my window side, it is actually not very expensive compare to buying it ready made.

This roman shade has two types of linings, I recommend choosing polycotton lining for your kitchen.

I also like that it uses the continuous loop chain mechanism which is easier to use than a pull chain.

4. Whitewash Bamboo Roman Shade

Woven shade with natural materials is another great option for a wide variety of styles!

This bamboo shade has white wash look, which makes a great window treatment for coastal, modern, clean styled homes.

It is also really affordable.

5. Relaxed Sheer Roman Shade

A great option for a cozy and relaxed home kitchen. It is faux linen meaning you get the linen expensive look without paying extra.

I really love the relaxed look of this custom roman shade. If choose wisely, custom roman shade is actually not more expensive than big buck stores.

I can be frugal in terms of home decorating, but I have bought three custom roman shade in the past two year, and probably will buy more in the future.

I have purchased a roman shade from the same Etsy store and the quality is so good. I’m considering purchasing a pair of this for my new master bedroom which we are building.

It is also using sheer fabric meaning you are able to dress up your window while letting tons of natural light into your kitchen.

6. Chicology Cordless Privacy Roman Shades

A cordless roman shade with light filtering lining. It lets some lights in which allows you to keep your kitchen light and bright in the day time.

Cordless makes it easy to pen and closet and no extra chain hanging around.

It has several colors, I personally love the white one the most. You can check out all the color options here.

7. Black Villa Stripe Roman Shades Hack

This is what I use for my kitchen and dining room. I call it a cheaper alternative of Pottery Barn Riviera Shade.

Whenever I post photos of these spaces on my Instagram, one of the most asked questions is where I got those roman shades. The truth is, it is not store bought, but rather a hack.

It is custom made, but way cheaper than you think. In fact, it is probably the most affordable window treatment I have in my house.

You can check out my post on Affordable Custom Roman Shades Hack.

Bonus tip to make your roman shade looks nice

Sometimes when your new window shade arrives, there can be small wrinkles here and there, due to packaging and shipping. That is totally normal and you can remove them easily.

What I like to do is to open the shade completely expanding the fabric, after install them in position.

Then I use a fabric steamer to steam the entire fabric surface which does an amazing job at smoothing out those wrinkles.

My favorite fabric steamer is this one, because it doesn’t leak water when pointed down. That way I’m also able to use it for my sofa, beddings, clothes, etc

It is very affordable but has improved my life so much! It is interior designers’ secret tool to make spaces look more polished.

Things to consider when choosing kitchen roman shades

Because there are so many options of a roman shade, it is always nice to think before hand what you want in a roman shade.

Roman shades styles for kitchen

For roman shades, there are a few different styles to choose from. The most readily available style is flat style – which is also my favorite.

I have ribbed style roman shades in my home as well, which looks similar to flat, but looks slightly more structured. So it is up to you.

Another one to consider is relaxed style roman shades.

The relaxed look adds more softness to a space. I personally think it works better for bedroom or bathroom than a kitchen.

Cordless vs cord

Another thing to consider is cordless vs corded.

Most of ready made roman shades are cordless, and most of custom made roman shades from Etsy are corded.

For corded, you can find pull string or continuous loop. I personally find continuous loop cord easier to use, given I have both in my home.

If your roman shade is lightweight, a pull chain would be just fine. If your shade is heavy, such as large shade or with heavy fabrics, I’d recommend using continuous loop instead.

There’s also motorized roman shades, but it can be expensive and is not necessary to spend extra money unless your window is up high and hard to reach, or you use it frequently.

If you don’t plan to open and close your shade everyday, I don’t think corded or cordless matters too much. So instead, I’d prioritize pricing and fabrics first for choosing kitchen roman shades.

You can read more about corded vs cordless from my farmhouse roman shade post.

Blackout linings vs light filtering

In general, a black out lining works great in a bedroom because it blocks light completely and gives a nice dark environment to sleep at night.

On the contrary, a light filtering or privacy lining let some light though and will make the room brighter. For a kitchen, I would suggest to get light filtering lining, such as this sheer linen shade, or bamboo shade.

Kitchen roman shade fabrics

This is the key factor to the roman shade style and can make or break the space.

Because window treatment is not as easy to change as a throw pillow, I usually err on the safe side and select roman shades fabric with simple and classic color or pattern.

Those above options I have shared fit right in this category. It’s always nice to be able to reuse window treatment after you have painted the walls or redecorated the entire space.

You can even bring your roman shade with you when you move because they can be mounter outside of a window so the space doesn’t have to perfectly match.

Roman shades alternatives – other kitchen window treatments

Cafe curtains

Cafe curtain can be a great option if you are looking for a more casual and relaxed look. It works extra well with homes that are cottage, or farmhouse inspired. 

If you have a slightly modern taste, you can choose some simple fabrics for your cafe curtain.

Roller shades

Roller shade makes a good kitchen window treatment for modern homes. It has a very sleek profile, and can almost disappear when you don’t need it.

I use this roller shade in my bedroom.

If you are into a minimalist type of look, this can work really well. 

Cellular shades

Also called honeycomb shade. This type of window treatment is relatively new, but has gain its popularity because it provides good insulation and energy efficiency.

Additionally, you can raise the shade from the bottom or lower from the top allowing light in from either direction, which can be convenient for privacy usage.

I have been wanting to try it out for a while.

More related decorating tips:

Ikea kitchen honest review

Ikea kitchen organization tips and hacks

Best farmhouse roman shades

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