With summer having well and truly ended, and the autumn chill starting to bite, the benefits of high quality plantation shutters change from keeping heat and the glare of the sun out of the room and keeping the warmth in.

Shutters are ideal for this because their relatively thick frame helps to create an additional barrier to stop heat escaping through the window, but this is not the only way they can help in winter.

For example, with condensation, damp and mould a concern for many over the winter months, ways and measures to reduce condensation forming on the windows are ideal, and shutters can really help in this regard.

For example, it is important to ensure that air is circulating around the home as much as possible to avoid condensation, but the potential for a sudden chill can often give homeowners pause.

A louvred shutter solution gets around this by providing an added layer of protection, allowing you to open your windows slightly without worrying about the cold. Allowing just a tiny amount of air can make all of the difference when it comes to air quality, condensation and avoiding mould.

Additionally, having a relatively consistent indoor temperature avoids the cold snap conditions that can cause a lot of condensation to form, and this is something that well-fitting shutters can help with.

They work in the same way as a draught excluder, stopping heat and energy from easily escaping, which not only helps to prevent condensation and by extension damp, but also helps to reduce heating bills in the process.

Finally, unlike curtains and cloth blinds, shutters are made from strong solid materials with moisture-resistant coatings, meaning that a simple wipe is sufficient to effectively maintain them.

Curtains and cloth blinds can get damp and can even potentially develop mould in particularly suboptimal conditions, which generally means they need to be replaced.

You don’t have to venture overseas to see café-style shutters, although you will undoubtedly encounter them many times in some continental destinations. But you can see them here too; after all, it adds to the vibe of many a Sussex seaside café.

If you are a café owner, you may think of installing them to add style and character to your establishment. But there is no reason to assume they are only for cafes. They can look great in homes as well and also have lots of practical benefits.

By allowing unobstructed views (and light) through the upper window but enabling you to restrict these (or eliminate them altogether) lower down, it is great for managing privacy.

This can be particularly useful for a ground-floor window that faces straight out onto a main road, with a lot of people walking or driving past, especially in a densely populated area like the central parts of Brighton and Hove.

With these in place, you won’t have to worry about strangers peering through the window, which may also aid home security. It’s an extension of the same principle that someone eating or drinking in a café won’t want strangers disturbing them from the street outside.

Because café style shutters are also extremely stylish, they are also versatile in the sense that they look great in all windows. And with this comes practicality too, as they can be installed in just about any configuration, from bay windows to flat ones, from tall to square.

None of this alters the historical reality that cafe-style shutters were originally invented for exactly that reason. But when you have something this versatile, why restrict it to just one setting? Many householders who have them in their homes will agree that you don’t need a till, tables and a selection of cakes in the room to it suitable for them.

If you are looking for new panel shutters, you will, we hope, be impressed with the quality and appearance of the different products on our website. But you may be wondering what materials to go for.

A choice between basswood and polyvinyl (PVC) panels is certainly a good one to have between two very durable and high-quality materials. But what are their relative qualities?

Basswood is a hardwood with a light colour, smooth texture and fine grain. Timberblogger describes it as a “lightweight yet durable wood that is often favoured by woodworkers and craftsmen for its unique qualities.” 

More specifically, it is easy to carve and shape and is well suited to being used in furniture, cabinets and panels – in short, just what you would need in blinds. While not the most durable wood, it is light in weight, which is a highly desirable quality for a moveable and flexible window covering. It is easy to paint as well.

Polyvinyl, or PVC, is a form of plastic with a very wide range of applications. Durable and long-lasting, it is waterproof, a good insulator and has long been used as an alternative to wood as a material in windows and doors, as well as shutters.

The British Plastics Federation stated: “Unplasticised PVC is one of the stiffest polymers at normal ambient temperature and shows little deterioration after many years in service.”

Overall, what this means is that the PVC panels will have the edge in durability while still offering high quality, lasting for many years and providing good insulating qualities.

Basswood will provide a more natural look with its fine grain and may fit well with a general décor with a lot of wood. Like any wood, it is a good insulator.

This goes to show that there is plenty of choice and quality on offer, ensuring you can find the best shutters to suit your home and its decor.

There is a fine line between a beautiful hot summer’s day and an unbearable heatwave, and in recent years a lot of homeowners have struggled with the latter.

A heatwave, in particular one that pairs high temperatures with high humidity, can quickly go from highly enjoyable to painful or even dangerous, particularly if you live and work in a place that gets especially warm in summer.

However, respite can come from an unlikely source in the form of your wooden shutters, regardless of the form they take.

Part of the reason for this is the same reason why the right shutters can help you sleep better at night; they block out light and heat.

Contrary to conventional wisdom, it is best to keep windows and shutters closed during the hottest points of the day and then open windows in the evening to allow cool air to circulate at night.

However, naturally, this should not mean sitting in darkness, meaning that the controlled light of louvred shutters can avoid glare and oppressive heat whilst letting the sunshine in.

Alongside this, many shutter designs are white, off-white or an otherwise light pastel colour, which makes them perfect for reflecting sunlight back rather than absorbing it, further reducing the heat coming into a room.

The materials conventional shutters are made from as well are a surprisingly important factor and can make shutters worth it on their own.

Wood is a natural insulating material, and this not only means that it helps to keep homes warm in winter but also absorbs heat during the summer without conducting and transferring it to the rest of the room they are installed in.

The thicker they are and the higher quality wood they are made from, the better they will be at this, and this not only will make homes more comfortable, but they will also reduce energy bills.

There are many kinds of shutters in the market and these provide lots of choices for your windows. While personal taste may be a factor in your decision-making, the location of your property and the design of windows can be major factors that make particular designs and styles more appropriate than others.

A prime example is the use of tier-on-tier shutters, which are ideal for the sort of bay windows that are abundant in Brighton, especially in Regency homes.

There are three reasons for this. Firstly, Regency sash windows, being period properties and also homes owned by those with the means to cope with the ‘window tax’ levied in the Napoleonic Wars, are tall and designed to let a lot of natural light into the room, pre-dating as they did the invention of electric lighting.

That provides the opportunity for householders to add shutters that, on the one hand, allow lots of light in through the upper tier, especially in summer months when the sun is high and the light can be maximised.

A second factor is that while Brighton has some wonderful architecture, it is not nicknamed ‘London on Sea’ for nothing. Because the inner city has some very densely-populated areas reminiscent of those in the capital, those living in homes with big Regency windows will similarly be close to crowded streets.

For that reason, it is very convenient to have shutters that will allow in lots of light higher up, away from prying eyes, while staying closed at appropriate times lower down.

A third reason is that such shutters are elegant and stylish in a way that fits perfectly with Regency windows. Shutters can be designed to work with bay windows and the combination they create provides a great aesthetic.

Put together, these factors make tier-on-tier shutters a wonderful option for a classic Brighton home.

If you are looking for new shutters or blinds here in Brighton, you may find alternative companies to ourselves online or on the high street. But we have always set out to offer the communities we serve here, and across Sussex, with something more than just excellent products.

Of course, we do offer a wide product range, with high-quality blinds and shutters to suit a wide range of tastes and windows of all shapes and sizes, from modern homes to historic Regency-era villas.

Ultimately, however, we are not just another shutter company in Brighton; it is the high level of our service that sets us apart, making sure that you don’t just get products that you love, but that you have them fitted professionally, at a convenient time, with minimal fuss and highly-skilled craftsmanship.

However, don’t just read us blowing our own trumpet; the reviews we get from customers tell their own story.

For example, the reviews we got from Trustpilot in 2023 all gave us five stars, which is a great feather in our cap to begin with. But what people wrote was even more heart-warming to hear, both for us and no doubt for anyone looking to us to supply and fit their blinds or shutters.

Reviewer Lauren said of us: “From start to finish the service we received from the Brighton Shutter company has been incredible.”

Another review, by Susannah Easy, commented that our service was “nothing short of fabulous”. She explained that after the initial blinds fitting took place in 2021, a problem arose two years later that we came and fixed.

“I would not hesitate in recommending them, competitive price, great product and wonderful, note-worthy customer service,” she exclaimed.

Then there was Julie Foster, who said we had been “fantastic from start to finish” and the installation had been a “hassle-free project”.

None of these are our words, but we are proud of them. We always seek to give the very best service. Now we just hope that our 2024 reviews will be as good as were delivered last year.

Having full height shutters is a great way of making any window look stylish, especially the tall ones that characterise many older Regency-style buildings in Brighton and some other Sussex towns. But there are some variations you can consider.

Not everyone will go for full height shutters, of course, as some may prefer split shutters for a more flexible approach. But there are other questions too, such as what colour they should be painted.

This is an important question in a place like Brighton. If you do live in a Regency building, the outside colour scheme is uniformly white, which means any shutters that are not – at least on the outward-facing side – would stick out like a sore thumb.

However, you do have some options to consider. For example, you may want to have insides that are coloured in keeping with either the latest fashion or the colour scheme you have chosen for the room.

These are two things that may differ markedly. What is fashionable in any given year is a fickle matter, not least when some will follow prompts such as Pantone’s annual Colour of the Year, which in 2024 is a shade of pink known as Peach Fuzz. Last year was a darker pink called Viva Magneta.

All that may suit someone who loves pink. But other years will bring very different Pantone colours of the year. 2022 brought a bluebell-coloured Very Peri, one of many blues to feature in recent years. 2021 brought grey and yellow, while 2013 and 2017 were shades of green.

Rather than repainting your shutters every year, a better idea might be to choose a hue that fits well with the internal décor. After all, nobody wants to spend the time and effort redecorating every year to fit with what’s ‘in’. Instead, the choice should be something that fits your own colour and style preferences.

Of course, not everyone in Brighton lives in the same kind of home. While some might live somewhere that epitomises style and tradition embedded in stucco plaster, others may have a modern home that suits more variation. You should make your decisions on what looks good, not be a slave to fashion.

It is not often we have scorching hot days in the UK, but when they do come, most of us don’t know how to cope with them. As our homes are not built to remain cool in soaring temperatures, they can heat up quickly, making them uncomfortable and stuffy places to be. 

Wooden window shutters can help regulate the heat by limiting the amount of sunlight entering the house, which stops it from overheating. So you can open your windows and keep the shutters closed at the same time, preventing the strong sun rays from warming up the property. 

The question is though, is it best to keep your window shutters open or closed on a hot day?

Though it is important to get some ventilation through the house in the summertime, the best thing to do is open the windows and shutters in the morning and close them when it begins to get warmer. You can then open them again during the cooler evening. 

Doing this means the hot air and strong sunlight will be kept out during the hottest part of the day, while the cooler morning and evening air will be trapped in the house during this time. 

This is particularly important for rooms that get particularly hot, with the NHS advising: “Close curtains on rooms that face the sun to keep indoor spaces cooler, and remember it may be cooler outdoors than indoors.”

Therefore, it is sensible to open up your windows once the temperature begins to drop outside to let some fresh air in. 

The good thing about shutters is you can open your window at night to let the colder air circulate while keeping the slats closed so your room doesn’t become too bright.

Whilst there is no accounting for taste, particularly when it comes to interior design, a recent opinion piece that collected the views of interior designers on solid wooden shutters made some claims about the popular louvred shutter design that seemed to be misinformed.

The article in Homes & Gardens has a lot of interesting viewpoints that explore the various practical and aesthetic benefits of shutters, ultimately concluding, as we do, that shutters are a “timeless fixture”, there were some criticisms that merit discussion to see if there are any weight to them.

One measured response argued that whilst they are “classic”, it is important to consider where they are being placed to ensure you let as much light in.

Another designer thought they were perfectly fine outside of the name, but another more critical voice was emphatic in her dislike of shutters.

She claimed that they should only be used in warmer regions, specifically citing Florida and Hawaii, felt they looked out of place anywhere else, were bulky and imposing in design and blocked a lot of light.

It is difficult to know where the tropical climate argument comes from outside of history. Wooden shutters have been used to keep heat in and control light for centuries before the plantation shutter. They also have a lot of colour options for harmonising with different design styles.

The claim that they are bulky in design can depend on the shutters in question, but if anything they tend to be the exact opposite. They are minimalist, easy to operate, easy to open and close entirely if you like and far from imposing. 

They also offer a fantastic level of light control, with a comfortable level of light just a simple tug of the louvre away, with versatility for a wide range of styles.

Ultimately that control, freedom and flexibility are why they have been in style for so long and will likely continue to be a timeless touch.

Much has been said about the growth of panel shutters as a design trend, with louvred shutters in particular providing an elegant, hard-wearing alternative to Venetian blinds or curtains.

A key question for many homeowners hasn’t been whether or not to get them but whether they should be fitted to the inside or the outside of the window frame.

Ultimately, the right answer depends on the type of window, the type of shutter and the type of house, but there are certainly ways to make interior or exterior shutters work for your home.

Exterior shutters with louvres are often added as a rustic feature, particularly for coastal cottages to add to the breezy seaside aesthetic. They also serve as an effective security system by locking off access to the window frame at night and can more effectively protect the house from stormy weather.

The big problem with exterior shutters is that they are very architecture-dependent, and it is much easier to create a stylistic clash with shutters fitted to the outside than to the inside.

If you have a rustic, more traditional-looking home that would suit panel shutters or a Mediterranean-style home that would benefit from outdoor louvred shutters, then external shutters are the way to go. 

A more conventional suburban semi-detached might look a bit out of place unless you pick a perfect combination of styles and colours.

As well as this, external shutters require a lot more maintenance to protect against storm damage.

By contrast, internal shutters are relatively low-maintenance, there are a huge number of options for colours, styles, fixtures and fittings, they can more easily fit an interior design style than external architecture, and the lack of risk of them being damaged by the rain means you have more options for materials.

They also help to keep the home more effectively insulated.