Best Alternatives to Vertical Blinds

Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025

Sliding glass doors make an excellent transition from the inside of your home to an outdoor living space. Vertical blinds are the standard choice for covering sliding glass and patio doors, but if they aren’t your thing, we think you’ll enjoy these alternatives to vertical blinds.

Living room with patterned curtains, sofa, gold lamp, and succulent plants.

A Few Things to Consider

Before you decide which alternative to vertical blinds is best for your sliding glass doors, remember a few things.

  • If there are other windows in the room, you’ll want the window treatments on your door to coordinate with them.
  • For the best look and ease of use, your window treatments should ideally open in the same direction as the doors.
  • Since all doors in a home tend to be in high-traffic areas, make sure the window covering you choose can stand up to daily use.

Skyline® Gliding Window Panels

Instead of the usual vertical slats, panel blinds are made using flat vertical panels of fabric that slide on tracks. Skyline® Gliding Window Panels have a sleek style and stack tightly when open to give you the best view of the great outdoors. An interlocking bottom weight guarantees an operation that’s smooth as butter. These panel blinds are available in hundreds of color and fabric options, including selections from the exclusive Alustra® Woven Textures® collection. Control your panel track blinds using a cord loop, wand, or the ultra-convenient PowerView® Automation.

Duette® Honeycomb Shades

Since windows are responsible for a significant portion of your energy costs, it makes sense to cover the large panels in glass doors with cellular shades. Duette® Honeycomb Shades have an innovative design that uses dual panels of fabric to create interior cells. These cells hold air to provide insulation and absorb sound. The honeycomb style works the same for standard windows and glass doors, with the cells running vertically on doors rather than horizontally. Customize your cellular shades with various opacity options and hundreds of fabrics. If you have standard windows in the same space, Duette® Honeycomb Shades are an excellent solution to have all your window coverings match.

Shutters

What? We must be joking. Not at all. Heritance® Hardwood Shutters not only offer timeless style, but they are also a fantastic way to cover the large panels of sliding glass doors. Natural wood offers character and warmth without being too loud. Go with the 4.5” louvers for the broadest view of the outside. If you have a busy household, you may want to consider Palm Beach™ Polysatin™ Shutters. This vinyl option can look like hardwood with the durability of synthetic materials. Vinyl shutters are easy to clean and will not warp or bend with heat, humidity, or moisture exposure. A caveat to using shutters in vertical applications is that a portion of your door will always be covered even when your shutters are slid open. You can chat with one of our window treatment specialists about ways to extend the shutter tracks beyond the door to give you a clearer view.

Drapes

No application isn’t suited for drapes. Drapery gives your doors an elegant, polished appearance and delivers exceptional light blocking and privacy. It’s also easy to conceal sliding glass doors if you’d rather they not be on display. Design Studio™ Side Panels & Drapery can be tailored to any existing decor with hundreds of fabrics, colors, and textures. Better yet, drapery can be equipped with PowerView® Automation to make opening and to close large sets of drapes a breeze.

Contact Us

Contact Blinds & Shutters Design Center today to explore the best alternatives to vertical blinds. We can provide expert measuring and installation services; estimates are always free. We serve the North Atlanta Metro area, including Alpharetta, Milton, and Johns Creek, GA.

Sunlit living room with gray shuttered windows, blue rug, and seating.

Are Painted Shutters or Stained Wood Shutters Right for Your Home?

By Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025
Whether you live in a coastal cottage, a Southern Victorian, or a modern Georgian home, wooden window shutters can add distinction, charm, and elegance to any window setting. These beautiful window treatments come in a wide array of styles, colors, and designs, but one of the biggest choices that can make a huge difference in the look and performance of these shutters is whether or not they are stained or painted. Both options work, but each comes with its own unique set of visuals and benefits. 
Bay window with built-in shelves displaying blue and white vases. The window has shutters and overlooks a green landscape.

What Is a Plantation Shutter?

By Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025
No window treatment is more reminiscent of the American South than interior plantation shutters. Plantation shutters are a classic window treatment that will add instant sophistication and charm to your overall home’s design. Their durable construction and versatility makes them a great fit for a variety of uses. 
White wooden blinds with beige fabric tape and pull cords.

Try These Solutions for Porch Enclosures

By Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025
Enclosed porches, patios, or sunrooms are perfect places to enjoy the gorgeous Georgia sun. These flexible spaces allow homeowners to enjoy the best of both worlds while remaining out of the heat and humidity. If you’re looking for a quiet, shaded spot to sit back and enjoy the view, you can add light control, charm, and comfort to your porch or patio with new window treatments from Hunter Douglas. 
Three white roller shades covering windows; two patterned armchairs face a small table.

Protect Your Home from Excessive Sun with Screen Shades

By Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025
No matter what time of year it is, as a proud homeowner in the Alpharetta area, you want to ensure your belongings stay protected from the sun. While bright light enhances your home with its glow, the sun’s harsh UV rays can damage your floors, furnishings, and art. It can also produce annoying glares that make it challenging to complete computer work or view a movie on your TV screens. No matter what time of year it is, as a proud homeowner in the Alpharetta area, you want to ensure your belongings stay protected from the sun. While bright light enhances your home with its glow, the sun’s harsh UV rays can damage your floors, furnishings, and art. It can also produce annoying glares that make it challenging to complete computer work or view a movie on your TV screens. 
Two wicker chairs facing each other in front of a window with white shutters, beneath a wood beam.

Window Treatment Ideas for Your Sliding Doors

By Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025
Now that the beautiful Georgia spring is here and summer is on its way, your sliding doors are primed to take center stage as your home's central portal to the great outdoors. Since your patio doors can be such a busy exit and entrance, their window treatments can often take a lot of the wear and tear during this busy. That's when we can step in to assist with durable and stylish window treatments. Our team of design experts at Classic Blinds & Shutters Design Center is delighted to discuss some sliding door blind ideas from Hunter Douglas for a pop of summer aesthetic, including plantation shutters for a long-standing classic look that will turn your sliding doors into an architectural feature.
A modern living room with large panel blinds, a sofa, coffee table, and floor lamp.

Modernize Your Home Hunter Douglas Motorized Shades

By Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025
Some interior design trends stand the test of time, while others come and go throughout the years. Modern motorized window treatments from Hunter Douglas are one lasting choice that offers both style and the latest in technological advancements. These modern shade, blinds, and shutters are an aesthetic upgrade for any Georgia home regardless of its interior design while at the same time featuring classic styles any homeowner will love. 
Craft room with craft table, storage, and windows with blinds; orange chair.

Classic Blind, Shade, and Shutter Choices from Hunter Douglas

By Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025
The new year is a good time to reflect and take some steps to refresh, recharge, and set yourself up for a great new year. One surefire way to breathe fresh air into your home during a Georgia winter is by outfitting your home with new window treatments. Here at Classic Blinds & Shutters Design, we are proud to carry Hunter Douglas blinds, shades, and shutters that will offer aesthetic appeal and functionality to your interior décor. Here, we have carefully curated some of our favorites from each style to help you find the perfect choice to freshen up your home. 
White vertical blinds on large windows, interior with ottoman, artwork, and decorative items.

Lasting Drapery Solutions For Your Modern Home

By Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025
Selecting window treatments for your modern home can be daunting with the many options available. But one option that can accent all kinds of modern interiors is drapery. Drapery has long been a classic choice for adding dimension and drama to your windows. Our Classic Blinds & Shutters team is eager to share a few Hunter Douglas drapery solutions to combine with your modern home to create a cohesive design that exudes elegance. 
Living room with large windows, light-colored blinds, beige rug, and modern furniture.

3 Reasons Why Cellular Shades are a Great Investment

By Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025
Maybe you've been thinking about giving your windows a new style by updating your window dressings. The world of window treatments is vast and wide, making deciding what style is best for your home is difficult. Shutters, curtains, blinds, shades, what have you. One thing to think about is Georgia's fluctuating weather patterns. Summers are hot and humid, and winters are cool and rainy. Selecting a window treatment with excellent insulating properties, aesthetic style, and functionality is your best choice. Here at Classic Blinds & Shutters, we proudly carry Hunter Douglas Duette® Honeycomb Shades, which meet all these criteria and more. 
Living room with white shutters, a woman looking out, and white furniture.

Best Window Treatments for Blocking Out Heat

By Classic Blinds & Shutters • September 23, 2025
Natural sunlight is stunning, and it can help our homes and moods feel so much brighter. Sometimes it feels like we can never get enough, but during the hottest and brightest summer months, that’s probably not true. In the heat of a hot summer, it can be hard to find a place out of the scorching sun where one can cool off for just a bit.