Sunlight: A Challenge Discovered

This spring, people around the world began working remotely to stay safe during the pandemic. Thousands of kitchens, bedrooms, and living rooms were equipped with desks, computer monitors, webcams, and printers to convert into home offices. It can be difficult to acclimate to remote work, with background noise from landscapers, distractions, and families and kids at home.

The shift in the way we work has sparked growth in home improvement, as staying at home gives homeowners perspective on features and upgrades to support their new lifestyle and office space. Many are noticing the impact lighting can have on each room. On the weekend, a living room chair might make a great reading spot. But during the day, harsh lighting can be a disaster for a home office, causing glare on computer screens and a backlit “halo effect” on video calls, making faces hard to see.

In scenic Rhode Island, tech PR firm Caster Communications shifted to remote work in the spring to keep employees safe. President and founder Kimberly Lancaster converted her living room with a water view into her home office space. It had everything right: It was bright, quiet, and spacious enough for a large desk and sitting area. But, as she started working from her new home office, Lancaster faced the same challenges as many: screen glare and bad lighting for video calls.

A Smart Solution, Made Beautifully

Among the soft blue décor, artwork, and beachy features of her Rhode Island home, Lancaster prioritized smarts, with a Control4 automation system for lighting, temperature, and even audio control. After the first few days dealing with home office lighting challenges, Lancaster sought a solution that would beautifully filter the light and complement the interior design. Naturally, she also wanted a smart solution.

Leading window treatment manufacturer Hunter Douglas offers a vast repertoire of shade styles in a range of light filtering to room-darkening options, with thousands of fabric and color choices. Homeowners can choose from over 20 shade styles that can soften glare, provide privacy, and filter the outside view - all with fabrics and colors that suit any home.

PowerView® Automation, which also integrated with Control4, made Hunter Douglas shades an ideal solution for the transitional space. With just four weeks from the measuring to the installation, the positive impact would be felt long before stay-at-home orders would be lifted.

A Transformed Office Space

For her sunroom-turned-office, Lancaster selected the Silhouette® Window Shadings. With S-Shaped vanes that tilt, her home’s exterior view and the incoming sunlight would be elegantly balanced, transforming the room into the perfect workspace and automating easily to be open, filtering or blocking light as part of the entire family’s routine.

PowerView Automation is seamlessly integrated into the home’s Control4 system: The shades lower and tilt as the sunlight pans across the room, protecting the furniture and carpet, as well as shading Lancaster. When she heads downstairs each morning, the shades are set to let in the light, filtered to prevent glare. Throughout the day, they tilt and raise automatically, so Lancaster doesn’t have to leave her desk to move each shade, and she can work and take video calls uninterrupted.  If she needs to make an adjustment, the shades can be controlled from the PowerView App, Control4 App, or using a nearby Alexa-enabled device.

The Silhouette® Window Shadings complement the décor; the soft white fabric is concealed when closed into the soffit for an unobstructed view to the outside. The combination of beauty and intelligence of the automated shades complete the transformation and Lancaster’s new remote work style.