With a long-running reputation for energy efficiency, we couldn’t help but brag on our cellular shade collections. These window coverings do some of the hardest work at the windows, but they do it with style and class, adding sophisticated organization to the look of your home.
But not every cellular shade is designed the same way. Hunter Douglas offers three distinct collections—Duette® Honeycomb Shades, Applause® Honeycomb Shades and Sonnette® Cellular Roller Shades—with different features, styles and levels of customization. Which cellular shade collection would fit you best? Let’s break it down…
What Are Cellular Shades?
Well-known for their honeycomb-shaped pockets, cellular shades have earned their place as protectors of the home. The cellular construction creates an insulating barrier at the window, helping reduce heat transfer during warm weather and chilly drafts during colder months. In addition, cellular shades can help absorb sound, soften glare and protect interiors from harsh UV rays.
Cellular shades and honeycomb shades refer to this same general style of insulating window treatment, but the available fabrics, operating systems and specialty features vary significantly by collection. Choosing the right one depends on what you want your shades to accomplish and the types of windows and doors you’re covering.
Duette® Honeycomb Shades: Maximum Customization
For decades, Duette® Honeycomb Shades have led the industry in energy-efficient design. Their cellular construction creates an insulating barrier at the window, while an extensive selection of fabrics, opacities, operating systems and specialty features makes Duette the most customizable cellular shade collection from Hunter Douglas.
Homeowners can customize Duette shades with options for light filtering and room darkening, Top-Down/Bottom-Up operation, Duolite® dual shades and PowerView® Automation. The collection can also accommodate many of the windows that are traditionally difficult to cover, including arches, angles, skylights and select doors.
Specialized Duette options extend the cellular design even further. TrackGlide™ keeps shades aligned with the glass on windows and doors where a traditional free-hanging shade isn’t ideal, while Vertiglide™ turns the familiar cellular construction vertically for wide expanses of glass and sliding doors.
Specialized Duette options extend the cellular design even further. TrackGlide™ keeps shades aligned with the glass on windows and doors where a traditional free-hanging shade isn’t ideal, while Duette® Vertiglide™ turns the familiar cellular construction vertically for sliding glass doors and wide expanses of glass.
If you’re looking for the widest range of cellular shade features, fabrics and solutions for specialty windows and doors, explore Duette® Honeycomb Shades for a closer look at the complete collection.
Applause® Honeycomb Shades: Streamlined & Versatile
If you love the insulating design of honeycomb shades but don’t need the extensive range of choices available with Duette, Applause® Honeycomb Shades offer a more streamlined alternative. A carefully edited selection of pleat sizes, fabrics and colors makes it easier to narrow down your choices while still enjoying the comfort, light control and clean appearance that make cellular shades so popular.
The streamlined collection doesn’t mean giving up the features that matter most. Depending on your window and selected configuration, Applause shades offer options for privacy, light filtering and room darkening, along with convenient operating choices and solutions for specialty windows.
Applause can be an excellent fit when you want a versatile Hunter Douglas honeycomb shade with a more focused range of design and customization choices. Explore Applause® Honeycomb Shades to see the available fabrics, operating systems and specialty options.
Sonnette® Cellular Roller Shades: A Different Take on Cellular Design
You’ve heard the famous line, “Necessity is the mother of invention.” Evidence of this is no more apparent than with the unique design of Sonnette® Cellular Roller Shades. Combining the insulating cellular construction of honeycomb shades with the simple profile and operation of roller shades, Sonnette offers an entirely different look from traditional pleated cellular shades.
Pockets of insulation create a barrier at the window, but instead of stacking in gathered pleats when the shades are opened, the fabric rolls neatly into the headrail. It’s a great option for homeowners who appreciate the performance of cellular construction but prefer the clean, uncluttered appearance of a roller shade.
Sonnette shades are available in a curated collection of fabrics and light-control options, along with operating choices that make them easy to incorporate throughout the home.
Bring Light Inside with Aura™ Illuminated Shades
One of the most distinctive options available with Sonnette is Aura™ Illuminated Shades. Instead of relying solely on natural daylight, Aura integrates illumination into the window treatment itself.
Aura makes it possible to close the window shades for privacy while illuminating the interior with integrated LED lighting. You can adjust the color temperature and intensity to complement the time of day, the atmosphere of the room or your mood.
If you want cellular performance with a softer roller shade profile—or you’re interested in the unique possibilities of Aura—explore Sonnette® Cellular Roller Shades to learn more.
Duette vs. Applause vs. Sonnette: What’s the Difference?
All three collections bring the benefits of cellular construction to the window, but they aren’t interchangeable. The easiest way to narrow your choices is to think about which qualities matter most in your home.
- Choose Duette® when you want the widest range of fabrics, light-control options, operating systems and solutions for specialty windows and doors.
- Choose Applause® when you want a streamlined honeycomb shade collection with versatile options for everyday windows.
- Choose Sonnette® when you want the insulating qualities of cellular construction with the clean appearance and rolling operation of a roller shade.
Your windows may also point you toward a particular collection. Specialty shapes, skylights, sliding doors and other challenging openings can require different solutions than standard rectangular windows, while bedrooms, living rooms and home offices may have very different requirements for privacy and light control.
Which Cellular Shade Features Matter Most?
Once you’ve narrowed down the style of cellular shade you prefer, think about what you need the window treatment to do. The right combination of features can make just as much difference as the collection itself.
Energy Efficiency
Insulation is one of the biggest reasons homeowners consider cellular shades in the first place. The honeycomb pockets trap air at the window, creating an additional barrier between your home’s interior and the glass. If improving comfort is your primary goal, learn more about our energy-efficient window treatment solutions.
Natural Light & Privacy
Sometimes you don’t want to choose between a bright room and privacy. Top-Down/Bottom-Up shades can bring natural light across the ceiling while keeping the lower portion of the window covered. It’s an especially useful feature in bedrooms, bathrooms and street-facing living spaces.
Light Filtering & Room Darkening
Consider how much light you want entering each room. Softly diffused daylight may be ideal for a living room or kitchen, while bedrooms and media spaces often benefit from stronger room-darkening capabilities. Different cellular collections and fabrics offer different levels of control, making opacity an important part of your decision.
Motorized Operation
For tall, hard-to-reach or frequently adjusted windows, automation can make your shades much easier to use. With PowerView® Automation, compatible shades can adjust with a remote, app or smart home system and can be scheduled to move throughout the day.
Specialty Windows & Doors
Arches, angles, skylights, French doors and sliding glass doors don’t always work with a standard window shade. If your home has unusual openings, consider those windows early in the selection process. Duette in particular offers an extensive range of configurations, including TrackGlide™ for select windows and doors and Vertiglide™ for sliding glass doors and wide openings.
Find the Ideal Cellular Shade Collection
So, which cellular shades are right for your home? If maximum customization and specialty solutions are at the top of your list, Duette may be the best place to start. If you’d rather choose from a more streamlined honeycomb collection, consider Applause. And, if you love the idea of cellular construction but prefer the clean look of a roller shade, Sonnette offers the best of both worlds.
At Skyline, our window covering designers meet with you one-on-one to help narrow down the collection, fabric and feature options that fit your windows and the way you live. Stop by one of our local showrooms to see the cellular shade collections close-up, operate the shades and compare the differences for yourself. Or, get in touch with us for your free in-home consultation.
