Korean combi blinds (zebra blinds)
In many BTO living rooms, the main window faces another block across a carpark. During the day you want light and some view, and in the evening you want to close up without the room feeling like a box. Korean combi blinds, also called zebra blinds, let you shift between the two with a pull of the chain. Curtains SG supplies them in a range of fabrics, measured at a home visit.
Get a quoteHow Korean combi blinds work
A combi blind is a roller blind with two layers of fabric looped around the tube. Each layer has alternating horizontal bands, one sheer and one solid. When the sheer bands line up, light and view come through in stripes. Move the fabric a short distance and the solid bands cover the sheer ones, closing the blind while it stays down.
You can also roll the blind all the way up like a normal roller blind. So you get three positions from one product: open stripes, closed bands, or fully raised.
Privacy by day and by night
During the day, when it is brighter outside than inside, the sheer bands let you see out while people outside see very little. Closing the solid bands gives good privacy.
At night the situation reverses. With the lights on inside, anyone outside can see through the sheer bands if they are lined up. Even with the bands closed, the solid stripes are thinner than a full blackout panel, and some fabrics let a faint outline show through. If your window faces a block close by, look at the fabric sample with a lamp behind it before you choose. For bedrooms, a blackout combi fabric or a blackout curtain in front will give more cover.
Fabrics and options
Where they work in HDB and condo homes
Korean blinds are popular in HDB and BTO flats because they fit neatly inside the window reveal, look tidy from outside, and suit living rooms, bedrooms and study rooms alike. They work well on standard casement windows where curtains would clash with the window handles or a bed.
Compared with a plain roller blind, a combi blind gives you finer light control without raising it. Compared with a venetian blind, it is easier to dust because there are no slats. Compared with curtains, it takes less space but gives less softness and less blackout. Keep combi blinds out of kitchens near the stove, where the double layer collects grease.
For care, run a vacuum with a soft brush head over the fabric every few weeks and spot clean marks with a damp cloth. Do not soak the blind or try to wash it whole.
Korean combi blind prices
Korean combi blinds cost $6 to $8 per square foot, installed, with a 20 sq ft minimum per blind. A motor adds $150 to $250 per blind.
Combi blinds cost a little more than plain roller blinds, which are $5 to $6.50 per square foot, because they use a double layer of banded fabric. The table shows typical window sizes.
- Blind size calculatorWork out square feet from your measurements.
- Blind prices guideCombi blinds against roller, venetian and zip blinds.
| Blind size (W x H) | Area | Installed price |
|---|---|---|
| 120 x 150cm | 20 sq ft (minimum) | $120 to $160 |
| 150 x 150cm | About 24 sq ft | $145 to $194 |
| 180 x 160cm | About 31 sq ft | $186 to $248 |
| 240 x 150cm | About 39 sq ft | $233 to $310 |
| Motor | Per blind | $150 to $250 |
HDB Korean blind packages
For a whole flat, our HDB Korean combi blind packages price the windows together. See the packages page for what each one covers.
Some owners mix: combi blinds in the bedrooms and study, curtains in the living room. HDB curtain packages start at $378 for a 2-room flat.
Packages suit owners who want the same blind in every room. If the master bedroom needs blackout combi fabric or a motor, tell us and we will quote the difference.
- 2-room flatKorean combi blind package, $398.
- 3-room flatKorean combi blind package, $578.
- 4-room flatKorean combi blind package, $678.
- 5-room flatKorean combi blind package, $778.
- Planning a BTOWhich rooms suit blinds and which suit curtains.
Choosing a combi fabric colour
Colour changes how a combi blind behaves as well as how it looks. White and cream keep a room bright with the bands closed, but they glow when the sun is on them and show more of the room from outside once your lights are on.
Greys, taupes and browns cut glare and look more solid from outside, but the room is darker with the blind down. In a west-facing living room, a mid-tone often balances the two.
Hold the sample against your wall paint and floor in daylight, then again with a lamp behind it in the evening. We bring samples to your window at the measuring visit.
Band width and colour work together. Wide bands in a dark colour give a strong striped look across the window, while narrow bands in a pale colour read almost like a plain blind from across the room.
- Curtain and blind finderA few questions to narrow down blinds or curtains.
- Types of blindsEvery blind type we supply, compared.
Measuring and fitting combi blinds
Combi blinds roll into a slightly larger head than a plain roller, because the fabric loops around the tube in two layers. In a shallow HDB window reveal, this can decide whether the blind fits inside the recess or needs fixing on the wall above.
We check the reveal depth, window handles and any grilles at the visit. Inside fixing looks tidy and leaves the wall clear. Outside fixing overlaps the frame and leaves smaller gaps at the sides.
Wide living room windows are often split into two or three blinds. Each one is set separately, so you can leave the bands open on the side away from the next block and closed on the side facing it.
On a window above a bed or in a child's room, keep the chain out of reach, or choose a motor.
Combi blinds compared
A combi blind sits between a sunscreen roller and a dim-out roller. This is where each option fits, with our installed prices.
Pick a combi blind when you want to see out during the day without raising it, and you can live with a less dark room at night. Pick a blackout roller when sleep matters most. If you want both, a combi blind with a night curtain in front gives daytime control and evening cover.
- Roller blindsOne fabric, for simple blackout or glare control.
- Venetian blindsSlats for kitchens and studies.
| Option | Price | Daytime | Night |
|---|---|---|---|
| Korean combi | $6 to $8/sq ft | Light through sheer bands | Fair; blackout combi better |
| Dim-out roller | $5 to $6.50/sq ft | Soft glow, no view | Good privacy |
| Blackout roller | $5 to $6.50/sq ft | Dark when down | Darkest blind |
| Aluminium venetian | $5 to $7/sq ft | Tilt slats for light | Fair |
| Day and night curtains | $110 to $140/m | Sheer layer | Good with blackout |
Ideas for combi blinds and the rooms around them
Bedrooms, studies and living rooms in HDB and condo homes. Tap a photo for more.
Common questions
Are zebra blinds see-through at night?
With the sheer bands lined up and lights on inside, yes. With the solid bands closed, privacy is much better, but some fabrics still show a faint outline. Check the sample with a light behind it.
Korean blinds or roller blinds?
A roller blind is one fabric, either open or closed. A Korean combi blind lets you let light in through stripes without raising it. If you want simple blackout, a roller blind is easier; if you want daytime light with some privacy, choose combi.
Can Korean combi blinds be blackout?
Some combi fabrics use blackout material in the solid bands. They darken a room well, but light will come through the edges and the sheer bands overlap, so a bedroom may still need a curtain for full darkness.
Do you install Korean blinds in HDB flats?
Yes. We measure at a home visit, which needs a $50 deposit credited to your order when you buy. WhatsApp +65 9071 3976 with photos of your windows to start.
Tell us about your windows
Send photos and rough window sizes on WhatsApp for an early quote. When you are ready, we measure at your home and bring fabric and blind samples. The visit needs a $50 deposit, credited to your order. Found a lower quote for the same curtains? We price match. See the price match terms.