This is essentially a review of the MagnaView tilt system from Hunter Douglas. As an overview, if you want a very designer look for a reasonable price, this is a good choice. The concept is essentially taking a 1″ blind or a 2″ blind and turning it into a 2″ or 4″ blind. How does this work? The cording system in the window blind is configured to pull every two slats together causing the space between the slats to double its original size. When the blind is tilted closed, the slats come apart from each other and it mimics a normal horizontal blind in that configuration. I know that this is difficult to describe, so please watch the video to see it in action.



Why would someone want to have this product in their home or office? There are a couple of reasons. One of the main reasons that 1″ and 2″ metal blinds have been popular in the past has been their affordability. The same is true for this product, but keep in mind that the technology that is used is proprietary, and therefore has a surcharge. Expect these to be considerably more costly than a bargain basement type horizontal blind. Remember, it does carry the Hunter Douglas brand name. Another reason that this is a popular product is because the size of the gap between the slats so closely mimics so many other products that are popular today. For example, the Hunter Douglas Silhouette shade is offered in a 4″ louver option. The Hunter Douglas Pirouette shade is offered in a 4″ panel option. The Hunter Douglas Vignette roman shade is offered in a 4″ pleat option. The ever popular shutters are offered in sizes right around 4″. So, when we look at the spacing on these products, it is nice to have a “low-cost” option to coordinate with. So often, like in the house that the video was shot in, we paired the 2″ MagnaView horizontal blinds with a more expensive product to create a well-balanced, coordinated look. This gave the homeowner that designer look that they wanted and kept the costs reasonable at the same time.

Now, something to keep in mind on this product. I strongly suggest that you get the “cord-tilt” vs. the “wand-tilt” mechanism. I’ve noticed some problems with the tilt function with the wands, and as a rule, I like the cord version much better. The Hunter Douglas 1″ or 2″ horizontal blinds with MagnaView are also offered with a version called “Natural Elements”, which pairs the aluminum blinds with real wood accents on the valance, the tassels, the tilt-wand and the bottom rail. This is a nice way to soften the look of a traditionally made metal blind, or clean up the look of a standard wood blind.

Overall, I like this product and continue to show it to my clients.