The bottom rail is the bottommost part of a blind and is designed to secure the lower ends of the lift cords and/or ladders. On pleated and cellular type shades these rails also secure the bottom of the fabric and are weighted to assist in the lowering of the shades.
Buttons
Buttons, also known as bottom rail buttons, are used on horizontal blinds. These plastic or wood plug-type items are designed to fit into small holes on the underside of the bottom rail. The lift cord and ladder string are secured to the bottom rail with these buttons.
Carrier
Used on vertical blinds, carriers transport the vanes across the headrail via a carrier stem.
Carrier Stem
The carrier stem is attached to a vertical blind carrier on one end and to a vane on the other. The carrier stem is geared and aids in tilting the vanes either direction.
Cloth Tape Ladder
A cloth tape ladder functions the same as conventional string ladder but adds more privacy and color to the blind by using fabric strips. Many blinds can be re-fitted with this decorative alternative.
Clutch Mechanism
The clutch mechanism attaches to one end of a roller shade tube and causes the shade to raise or lower through the use of a cord loop or beaded chain.
Control End
The control end is located on one end of a vertical blind headrail and has the tilt rod connected to it. It aids in rotating each vane. Some control ends also house a draw cord, which draws all vanes to either the left, right or center stack position. Cord Lock Lift cords are routed through a cord lock, which releases or secures the lift cords when raising or lowering certain blinds or shades.
Cradle
Cradles are located in the headrail of horizontal blinds and support the drums. They are designed to allow for ladder string/cloth tape and lift cords to be routed through them. Sometimes they will contain a small roller for ease of lift cord operation.
Draw Cord
The draw cord, a component of the vertical blind, opens and closes the vanes from the left, right or center stack position.
Drum
Drums are located in the headrail of horizontal blinds where they rest on a cradle and are attached to a string or cloth ladder. The tilting motion of the slats is initiated from the tilt mechanism and controls the direction of the drums rotation, which in turn causes the slats to tilt in one direction or the other.
Headrail
The headrail, or top rail, is the top portion of the blind that stores many of the key parts of the blind such as the tilt mechanism, cord lock, cradles, drums, etc.
Idle End
The idle end unit is located on the opposite side of the control end on a vertical blind headrail.
Ladder
The ladder, composed of either string or cloth is used on horizontal blinds. It is attached to the drum which is located in the headrail and hangs vertically to the bottom rail. Each 'rung' of the ladder supports a slat and helps to control the slats when raising, lowering or tilting the blind.
Louver
Refers to the angled set of slats on a plantation shutter,
Louver Pin The louver pin attaches to both ends of a plantation shutter louver or slat. One of the two pins will sometimes be spring loaded for ease of louver slat replacement.
Master Carrier
The master carrier is a vertical blind component similar to a regular carrier, but with the addition of a wand control. Middle Rail
Used in top-down, bottom-up shades (TDBU), the middle rail allows these shades to operate in an unique fashion as the name implies.
Stack Position The vertical vanes move to left, right or center stack when the wand or draw cord is used to open the blind.
Tilt Mechanism
The tilt mechanism, or tilter, sits in the headrail and is connected to a tilt rod. It operates the opening and closing of the slats. This unit is normally controlled by a tilt wand or cord.
Tilt Rod
Located in the headrail and nearly as long as the headrail, the tilt rod is controlled by the tilt mechanism which in turn rotates the drums (or carrier stems on a vertical blind), causing the slats or vanes to open or close.
Top Rail - See HeadRail
Vane
Sometimes referred to as a slat, vanes are located on vertical blinds. They are attached to the carriers with a geared carrier stem.