Tall Windows, High Ceilings
The older houses around the Green set the tone for window treatments in Taunton, MA. Victorians close to the centre were built with high ceilings, and their windows rise to match: tall, narrow double-hung sash that can run most of the way from the floor to the cornice. A shade bought by the width alone will rarely suit them, because the length, the depth of the old frame and the trim all have a say.
Taunton is a mix, though. Weir Village has rows of triple-deckers with stacked porches and windows of a more modest size. East Taunton is largely mid-century ranches with a broad front window and a slider out back. The newer colonials off Bay Street bring big family rooms and two-storey entries. Each type of house needs its own answer, and sometimes each floor of one house does.
- Treatments made to the exact height and width of each sash
- A specialist measures in the house, our installers fit the order
- Fabrics, slats and louvres to handle at the Swansea showroom
Every Service, Made for Taunton Houses
Interior shutters
Louvred panels fitted to the frame. On a tall Victorian sash, a divider rail lets the top and bottom tilt on their own.
Drapes made to length
The store’s genuine specialty. Panels cut to fall from a high rod to the floor, which suits a room with a tall ceiling.
Blinds in wood or metal
Wood, faux wood and aluminium slats, a practical choice for the bedrooms and kitchens of a triple-decker flat.
Honeycomb shades
Single and double cell shades that hold a pocket of air at the glass, helpful on big old windows in winter.
Folded fabric shades
Roman shades in flat, hobbled or relaxed folds, each sized so the stack sits neatly at the top of a tall sash.
Roller shades
A single roll of fabric or solar screen that disappears into a slim headrail when raised.
Woven woods
Natural weaves with an optional liner, giving warm, dappled light to a sunroom or ranch family room.
Verticals and panel tracks
For the sliders that open so many East Taunton ranches onto the back yard.
The Norman range
Norman blinds, shades and shutters, which we carry and keep on show in Swansea.
Motorized operation
Shades and blinds that rise and fall from a remote or a wall switch, ideal where the top of a window is out of reach.
Pillows, duvets and upholstery
Custom fabric decor cut from the same cloth as your drapes, so the room reads as one.
Victorians Near the Green
The Victorians close to the Green are the houses where measuring takes longest, and where it matters most. Their windows are tall and slim, the ceilings are high, and the plaster walls and deep moulded trim were never built to standard sizes. Two windows in the same parlour can be a little different in height, and an old frame that has settled over the years may be slightly out of square.
These rooms suit treatments that respect their height. Floor length drapes hung from a rod set well above the frame make a tall window look even taller and give the room a finished look that a short treatment cannot. Plantation shutters fitted inside the frame keep the trim on show, and a divider rail partway up lets you close the lower louvres for privacy while the upper ones stay open for daylight. Roman shades work too, as long as the folds are sized so that the raised stack does not eat into the glass.
Working with high ceilings
A high ceiling gives you choices that a low room does not. You can hang drapes from just under the cornice, layer a shade inside the frame beneath them, or add a valance across the top for a more formal finish. The space above the window also gives room for a headrail or a motor without crowding the glass.
The catch is reach. The upper half of a tall sash is hard to get to, and a cord or wand long enough to reach it can look untidy. Motorized shades, run from a remote or a wall switch, take that problem away: the shade rises and falls at the touch of a button, and the cord is gone entirely. For a bay of three tall windows in a front parlour, one switch can move all three together.
Planning window treatments in Taunton, MA for older sash
Old sash windows bring a few practical points. Many have shallow frames, so an inside mount needs checking at every opening, not just the first. Some have interior storm panels or old hardware that a treatment has to clear. And because the glass is large and single in many cases, the room loses heat through it on a winter night. Cellular shades help here, because the cells trap air against the window, and a room darkening fabric doubles as an extra layer in a cold bedroom.
Triple-Deckers in Weir Village
The triple-deckers of Weir Village are a different kind of house to dress. Each floor is usually its own home, with a front room facing the street, a long hall and rooms that open onto the porches at front and back. The windows are smaller than in the Victorians near the Green, the ceilings lower, and privacy from the street and from the porches next door is often the first thing on the list.
Blinds are a natural fit. Tilting the slats upward lets daylight in while keeping the view from the pavement out, and faux wood copes with the steam in a kitchen or bathroom. Cellular shades in a light filtering fabric keep a front room bright but private. In a flat where every window can be seen from outside, choosing one colour for the whole front of the house makes the building look tidy from the street, whatever each room uses behind it.
Porch doors and narrow halls
Many triple-decker flats have a glass door out to the porch, often with a window in it or beside it. A shade mounted on the door itself, or a narrow blind, keeps the door usable while giving privacy at night. In the long hallways, a small window at the end can take a simple roller shade that stays out of the way.
Ready to Get Started? Book Your Free Quote
Call the Swansea store for a free quote, or come and see the samples in person.
East Taunton Ranches
The mid-century ranches across East Taunton keep things on one level. Most have a wide picture window in the living room, standard windows in the bedrooms and a sliding door from the kitchen or dining area to the back yard. The windows are more regular than in the older parts of the city, which makes it easier to give the whole house a consistent look.
The picture window is usually the main decision. A single wide shade can be heavy to lift, so we often suggest two or three shades side by side, lined up so they read as one. Woven wood shades suit the casual feel of a ranch living room, and a liner behind the weave adds privacy at night. For the bedrooms, room darkening cellular shades or blinds keep the early sun out.
The slider is the window that most ranch owners ask about. Vertical blinds draw to the side and tilt to angle the light, and panel tracks give a softer look with wide fabric panels on a track. Both are measured across the whole door and set to clear the handle.
Newer Colonials off Bay Street
The colonials built off Bay Street in more recent years are the largest houses in the mix. Family rooms open to the kitchen, two-storey entries with a window high above the door, and primary bedrooms with several windows across two walls are all common. These houses tend to be planned room by room, often over a few visits, as the owners settle in.
For these houses, consistency across the open spaces is the thing to get right. A kitchen, dining area and family room that run together look calmest when the treatments share a colour and style, even if the kitchen takes faux wood blinds and the family room takes Roman shades. The two-storey windows are a natural place for motorized shades, because no cord can reach them comfortably. In the primary bedroom, drapes over a room darkening shade give the most control. You can see the full range on our window treatments page.
Shutters, Shades or Blinds for a Tall Window
When people weigh up window treatments in Taunton, MA for the older, taller sash, the choice usually comes down to three families, and each behaves differently on a long window.
Shutters are fixed to the frame and do not rise and fall, so the height of the window is no obstacle at all. They are sturdy, they last, and a divider rail splits a tall panel into two zones. Louvre size matters: a wider louvre gives a clearer view between the blades when open, while a narrower one suits a slim window better. The frame style decides how the shutter meets the old trim.
Shades lift as a whole, so the weight and the stack height both grow with the length of the window. A Roman shade on a very tall sash needs its folds planned so the raised stack is not too deep, and a cellular shade stacks smaller than almost anything else. Top down, bottom up shades are worth a look for a street-facing parlour, because you can lower the top for daylight while the bottom stays closed.
Blinds give the finest control of light, but a very long blind is heavier to raise and stacks deep at the top. On a tall Victorian window, a blind is often best kept for the shorter windows in the kitchen or bathroom, with shutters, drapes or shades in the main rooms.
Light and Privacy, Room by Room
Different rooms in the same house rarely want the same thing. In a downtown Victorian, the front parlour faces the street and wants privacy without losing daylight, the dining room may want warmth and colour, and the bedrooms at the back want darkness first thing in the morning. In a Weir Village flat, the back rooms open onto a porch that the neighbours can see from theirs.
We talk through how each room is used before suggesting anything. A home office is easier on the eyes when daylight is bounced off the ceiling, which tilted blinds or a top down shade can do. A nursery or a bedroom over a busy street benefits from a room darkening fabric with drapes on top. A kitchen needs something that wipes clean and copes with steam. Thinking room by room means you only pay for the control each room actually needs, and the house still looks consistent from outside.
From First Visit to Finished Room
Ordering window treatments for Taunton houses follows the same plain steps whether it is one parlour or a whole colonial.
- Get in touch through the call button or the form and ask for a free quote. Tell us about the house and which rooms come first.
- A specialist visits to measure each window in place, noting the frame depth, the ceiling height, any hardware to clear and the direction each room faces.
- You pick the fabrics, slats, louvres and controls, either from samples brought to the house or at the Swansea showroom.
- A written quote lists every window, so nothing is left to guess.
- Everything is made to the measurements taken in your house.
- Our installers fit the order, check that each treatment works properly and show you how to use it.
- We keep you informed throughout, and any later question comes back to the same store.
Drapes, the Store’s Specialty
Drapes and curtains are what Window Works is best known for, and Taunton’s tall rooms show them off. A lined drape in a heavy fabric adds warmth and quiet to a Victorian front room. Sheers on their own keep a ranch living room bright. Both together, on a double rod, let you switch between day and night with one pull. The heading style, from pinch pleats to grommets, changes the way the folds fall, and the length is set to the room: to the floor, just above it, or pooling slightly for a softer look. See the custom drapes page for more.
Fabric does not have to stop at the window. Pillows, duvet covers and some upholstery in the same or a coordinating fabric tie a bedroom or living room together. That is easiest when it is all chosen at once.
What Sets Window Works Apart
Window Works was founded in Swansea in 1988 and is still a family business, now in its second generation. Taunton is a short drive north, and for over 37 years the store has made window treatments for houses across the SouthCoast and the Rhode Island East Bay.
- A team of window treatment specialists with years at the job
- Measuring in the house and installation by our own people
- A tailored plan for each room, never a stock size forced to fit
- Kept up to date by us until the last treatment is in
- Warranties offered on the products we sell
- Rated 5.0 on Google
Visit the Showroom in Swansea
Choosing window treatments for a Taunton house is much easier with the samples in front of you. At the Swansea showroom you can compare drapery fabrics in daylight, see the difference between a single and double cell shade, try a shutter’s louvres and work a motorized shade with the remote. The Norman range is there to see as well.
If you can, bring the height of your tallest window, a photo of the room and a fabric or paint sample. Those three things make it quick to narrow the choice. You can also read more on our plantation shutters page before you come.
Questions from Taunton
Can you make shades long enough for a tall Victorian window?
Yes. Every treatment is made to the height and width measured at the window itself, so a tall sash near the Green gets a shade, shutter or drape made to its own size.
What helps an old single-glazed window feel less cold?
Cellular shades trap air in their cells against the glass, which helps the room hold its heat. Lined drapes over the shade add another layer on a winter night.
What do you suggest for a slider in an East Taunton ranch?
Vertical blinds or a panel track, measured across the full width of the door. Both draw clear of the handle when the door is in use.
Do I have to do the whole triple-decker flat at once?
No. Many orders start with the front room or the bedrooms, and the rest can be matched later so the windows facing the street stay consistent.
Is the quote free?
Yes, the quote is free. Ask through the call button or the form and we will set a time to measure.
Your Next Step
Begin with a free quote. The call button connects you to the Swansea store, where you can arrange for a specialist to measure, ask about installation or talk through a tricky window. The form works too, and we will get back to you. To see the fabrics and shutters first, the contact page has directions to the showroom. Window Works holds a 5.0 rating on Google.
Window Works serves 25 towns across the SouthCoast and the Rhode Island East Bay; you can see them all on our service areas page.