If you're updating your home's interior décor, plantation shutters make a stylish, practical, and easy to maintain choice of window dressing. There are lots of different styles available, so how can you be sure of choosing the best shutters for your home? Read on for a helpful buyer's guide to the different types and styles of plantation shutters that are available.
Shutter types
Plantation shutters are generally solid or louvered. You can use them either as one style or in a combination of both, depending on your needs.
Solid shutters--As the name suggests, solid shutters are completely filled in. This makes them ideal as insulation and in rooms like bedrooms where you don't want too much light to filter in.
Louvred shutters--Louvred shutters are fitted with fully adjustable slats. This gives you total control over the amount of light and ventilation you allow into your rooms.
Shutter styles
Regardless of the shape and style of your windows, you can buy custom-made plantation shutters to fit. In addition to the standard square and rectangular styles, triangular, arched, hexagonal, circular, and octagonal forms can also be made to measure by a good shutter supplier.
If you have large picture windows, you might want to go for several pairs of full height shutters in a bi-fold or tri-fold design, consisting of two or three panels with hinged joins. Another option for really wide windows is multiple panel shutters fitted with wheels which run along glide tracks. These shutters are hinged so that you can fold or extend them, concertina-style.
Long, slim windows look good fitted with café style shutters which only cover the lower part of the window. Another popular option is tier-on-tier shutters where two shutters are mounted on top of each other, both working independently.
Construction materials
The best quality shutters are made from hardwood. Hardwoods like cedar, teak and mahogany are very rot-resistant and won't warp like some cheaper, softer woods. Hardwoods are also high in tannin, and this makes them termite resistant.
However, if you're planning on fitting plantation shutters in your bathroom or kitchen where moisture levels are high, you might want to consider composite shutters as alternative to hardwood. Composite shutters are made from an engineered wood product that is then coated with a synthetic material. This finish makes the construction resistant to twisting and warping and is much less likely to be damaged by dampness than natural wood shutters that could succumb to the effects of water damage over time.
Finish
When it comes to the finish you choose for your shutters, the choice is entirely yours, depending on the décor you've chosen for your rooms. You could keep wooden shutters completely natural by using lacquer, wood stain or natural oils. This looks great if you want to show off the wood's natural grain and colour.
Alternatively, you could choose to paint your shutters to complement the interior colour scheme you've chosen. Composite shutters generally come in white, but they can be painted if need be.
In conclusion
Plantation shutters make a versatile, stylish and practical choice of window dressing for your home. Use this guide to help you pick the best option for your chosen look.
Share16 November 2015
Hello. My name is Dean and this is my home and garden blog. Last year, I decided I needed to improve the look of my home. I visited several home and garden centres and various different shops but I just couldn't find the items I wanted. I had this dream of creating a really cool and funky look based on an African design I had seen. My friend suggested that I customise the items to create the look I wanted and began to give me some lessons. I really enjoyed the process and I learnt a lot about how to improve your home and garden.