How to measure windows for roller blinds

First, two decisions

Decision one: reveal fit or face fit. Inside the window opening, or on the wall above it. This changes what you measure, so it comes first. If you haven't decided, read reveal vs face fit and come back; the short version is that reveal fit looks trimmer and face fit blocks more light and forgives more sins.

Decision two: millimetres, and only millimetres. Every blind order form in the country works in mm. The moment you write "118.5" meaning centimetres, you have created a blind ten times too narrow or a conversion error at the kitchen table. Write 1185, write mm, and never convert anything.

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Measuring for a reveal (recess) fit

1. Check the reveal is deep enough

   Measure from the glass (or the flyscreen, winder or handle, whichever sticks out furthest) to the front edge of the reveal. A roller needs enough depth for its brackets to sit fully inside, and the bracket's own spec is the number that matters; as a rule of thumb, a shallow reveal under about 75 mm means the blind will stand proud of the wall or should go face fit instead.

   Winders and handles that stand proud are the most common depth thieves in older Hunter homes. The blind has to clear them for its whole drop, not just at the top.

2. Measure the width in three places

   Inside the opening, brick or timber to brick or timber: once near the top, once at the middle, once near the sill. Write all three down. In a new build they might match; in a weatherboard house that has spent eighty years settling, they won't, and that's normal.

3. Keep the smallest width

   The blind must pass the opening at its narrowest point, so the smallest of your three numbers is the width you record. Use the biggest and the blind jams or never goes in.

4. Measure the drop in three places

   Top of the opening to the sill: once at the left, once at the centre, once at the right. Keep the smallest here too, so the blind meets the sill cleanly at its shortest point instead of stacking fabric at one end.

5. Check the diagonals

   Corner to corner, both ways. If the two diagonals differ by more than about 5 mm, the opening is out of square. A small lean is liveable with a roller; a big one means light gaps at one corner, and it's worth reading whether face fit rescues it or whether this window belongs at the other tine of the fork.

6. Record it as width × drop, in mm, exactly as the tape reads

   1194 × 1370, width first, drop second, every time. Don't round up "to be safe" and don't take anything off yet; the next step is about whose job that is.

Measuring for a face fit

1. Decide the coverage, not the opening

   A face-fit blind mounts on the wall or architrave above the window, so you're choosing how much it overlaps. Measure the opening width, then add overlap each side, at least 50 mm a side and more if light control matters; past the architraves is the tidy visual line in most homes.

2. Set the drop from bracket height to landing point

   From where the top of the blind will sit (leave at least 60–80 mm above the opening for the bracket and roll) down to the sill, or below it if you want the blind to run past. Add drop generously; extra fabric stays rolled up, but a short blind is short forever.

3. Check what the bracket will screw into

   Face fit means the wall carries the blind. Timber architrave and solid brick are happy days; plasterboard needs the right anchors and ideally a stud or the timber lintel above the window. The install guide covers fixings; the measure stage just needs you to look.

The last two calls on the form

Chain side. Left or right, decided standing in the room facing the window. Pick the side you can actually reach: clear of the bed, the bench, the taps. On a wide window, the chain side also sets which hand does the work every morning, so choose the convenient one, not the symmetrical one.

Roll direction. Standard roll (fabric falls off the back of the tube, hugging the glass) is the default and best for light control. Reverse roll (fabric falls off the front) stands the fabric out from the reveal, useful for clearing a winder or a chunky handle. If a handle stole your depth in step one, reverse roll is often the fix.

The measure sheet

One row per window. Fill every cell in pencil, in millimetres, standing at the window; a measurement remembered across the house is a measurement invented. Print it, stick it to the fridge, and bring it to the order form, or to us.