Windows are the new Prada
More than ever our homes are how we express ourselves, says Adrian Barraclough of heritage window specialist Quickslide.
There is a train of thought that suggests that, as we have been confined to our homes, we have lost the opportunity to express ourselves through the way we dress, and that need to show off is being channelled through our homes.
Now if you were a committed onesie dresser before lockdown you might disagree with this theory but thankfully, whatever the psychology behind it all, British homeowners have undoubtedly gone mad for upgrading – showing off if you will – their homes, as they have become the object of their entire focus.
And this is something that we should make the most of while the last official shackles of lockdown remain, and caution dictates our return to some sort of normality.
The British are renowned not only for their pursuit of home ownership but also, once on the ladder, for their commitment to perfecting their castles. Never has this been demonstrated more vividly than when, just weeks after we were all confined to our homes during the first lockdown on that fateful day in March 2020, one of the first things we did as restrictions began to lift was buy new windows and doors.
Was there a window maker or installer alive that didn’t stare into the abyss of failure when that first order came to ‘stay home’? So, let’s make the most of it.
Heritage windows are one of the gifts that keep on giving. Housebuilders adding period features to a building, whether they laid bricks 150 or 15 years ago, have created a market of homeowners that generally feel compelled to maintain or even enhance such details in their homes. And, as an industry, we have done an extraordinary amount of work to ensure that windows and doors at least, offer much to tempt the pound from the pockets of those willing and committed customers.
At Quickslide, we were in early by pioneering the first affordable replacements for draughty, failing box sashes, allowing the owners of even modest Victorian terraces to enjoy high performing, draught-free and non-jamming windows while maintaining the increasingly sought after ‘period chic’ of their homes. Since those early days we have spent a great deal of time, effort and money keeping ahead of what is one of the most demanding and perfectionist sub-sectors of our industry.
Our experience drives us to continuously improve and refine the range of vertical sliding box sash and flush sash windows to ensure that that hours of poring over Google will result in them discovering the details such as run through sash horns and deep bottom rails to be found on our heritage frames.
And if ever confirmation was needed of our borderline obsession with such details, retail installers would do well to point their customers towards our study of astragal bars and how these key details define the windows from different architectural periods, to convince them our frames will be absolutely the right choice for them.
One of the latest details to emanate from our latest research into the details that define period windows, is our new milled bead. In place of a mitred bead that remains a standard feature of our welded heritage frames, this new timber-like version is now used in the production of our VS windows manufactured with fully mechanical butt joints. It has been introduced to further enhance the suitability of our products used in Georgian, Edwardian and Victorian properties, whose owners are notoriously picky about such things.
Where once the owners of period homes were grateful to have any sort of affordable replacement that didn’t destroy the fundamental style of their property, now it’s the little things that make the difference between a lost or secured sale. It’s simple, when you know how.