I have never used the pleated shades, and i could be mistaken but I think they have a tendency to flatten since there is nothing in the stringing to keep the pleats equally spaced. Whereas the cellular shades keep their pleats.

This above is pleated on the left and cellular on the right

This is just pleated

This shows the differecne between single and double cellular shades

This is ust pleated

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Beverly,

What would drive a decision to use single vs double cellular?

following bc I also need shades and am lost.

Wow, what a beautiful home! You must be so excited. Are you looking at shades for privacy/light control? I never consider shades/blinds as window treatments. They are a necessity that should not be seen whenever possible.

We have had pleated shades for over 30 years. They have been replaced just one time. Our original ones came from Sears and Penney's. They were very inexpensive. We recently got some for our second home. They were purchased at Home Depot , again very reasonable. They are kept completely up during the day and are pulled down only at night. I greatly dislike the look of shades from the outside because they often look like sheets hanging at the Windows.

I always have curtains at the Windows so that they add warmth and softness.

I think the cellular are supposed to be more insulating. But personally I like pleated.

Will you always want to block that area of the window where the neighbors house is? I'm just wondering if the privacy issue can be resolved with a different approach - furniture.

Your view and architecture are so very beautiful. I'm concerned cellular shades will bring down the look. I've enjoyed cellular shades in previous homes, but I didn't have a view that the open shades would obscure. (Because of the width they stack up to.)

I suggest sorting out privacy with a well placed piece of furniture and opt for nice drapery on rods.

Not sure if this was considered regarding furniture. I was thinking something like a high back settee/sofa that covers the same area and leaves the rest of the view in sight. If it's a privacy issue, sheers on a rod with the drapes are a more elegant solution than blinds, IMO.

I think I'd even prefer plantation shutters on the bottom of the window. You can adjust the louvers to still let in light, but not the view of the school. This avoids the problem of the strings and the stack of shades.