Window Film in Wicker Park, Chicago

Storefront Window Film Along Milwaukee Avenue in Wicker Park

Milwaukee Avenue cuts through the grid at an angle, so the storefronts along it do not face a clean compass direction. A shop on the northeast side of the street can get a slab of low sun across its display in late afternoon that the store across the street never sees. Owners usually notice it first on faded mannequins, sun-bleached book spines or vinyl records warped in the window.

For display windows we start with clear UV film, which keeps the storefront looking untouched while filtering out the ultraviolet that drives most of that fading. Where the sales floor itself heats up, a light solar film goes on the upper panes and transoms. Vintage shops, record stores and galleries along this stretch tend to want the glass to stay as clear as possible, and we work to that.

Corner storefronts at the six-way intersection of Milwaukee, North and Damen have two or three exposed faces. Those are worth looking at elevation by elevation rather than with one film for everything. Transoms above the door and corner piers with narrow side panes each get their own measurement. The angled corners also mean sun arrives at odd times.

Security and Anti-Graffiti Film for Wicker Park Retail

Late-night foot traffic from the bars and music venues on Milwaukee and Division means storefront glass takes some abuse. Etched tags on door glass and cracked lower panes are the common calls. Anti-graffiti film is a clear sheet on the outside of the glass that takes the scratches. When it is tagged, the sheet is peeled and replaced, and the window underneath is untouched.

Security film goes on the inside face and keeps a broken pane in one piece. That buys time during an attempted break-in and avoids a sidewalk full of glass. It is not a replacement for a gate or alarm, but it is invisible, which matters to shops that do not want roll-down shutters on the front.

• Clear anti-graffiti film on door glass and lower panes
• Interior security film on display windows
• UV film for vintage clothing, books and records
• Frosted film for fitting rooms and back offices

Home Window Film for Wicker Park Victorians

The streets around the park, Hoyne and Pierce among them, have large 19th century houses, many inside the Wicker Park landmark district. These homes have tall double-hung windows, bay fronts and sometimes original glass with slight distortion. Owners want to protect restored floors and woodwork without changing how the house looks from the street.

Clear UV film and clear low-e film do that. They are applied inside, they are nearly invisible from the sidewalk, and they can be removed later without harming the window. If the original panes are cracked or the putty is loose, we fix that first or skip the window. Reflective and dark films are a poor match for these houses and for the district's design guidelines.

Privacy Window Film Near the Blue Line and The 606 in Wicker Park

The Blue Line runs above Milwaukee Avenue, and apartments over the shops sit at about the same height as the trains. A frosted or one-way film on the track-side windows stops passengers from looking straight into a bedroom or home office. It also cuts the glare off the steel structure on sunny afternoons, which some tenants find just as annoying as the view from the train.

At the north edge of the neighborhood, The 606 trail runs along Bloomingdale Avenue on the old raised rail line. Houses on the Wicker Park side look north toward it, so the issue there is purely sightlines from the trail, not sun. A light frosted or patterned film keeps the soft north light and cuts the view from people walking and biking past at second-floor height.