Solid wood shutters are the best of both worlds in that they provide a distinctive look to your home whilst also effectively improving privacy and allowing you to control the amount of light in your home.

However, there are a few common misconceptions about these versatile solid window coverings that can cause people to get the wrong idea about what shutters can bring to your home.

Here are some common myths about shutters and the truth behind them.

 

Shutters Are Not The Same As Blinds

Perhaps because we talk about louvres for both Venetian blinds and plantation shutters, some have managed to conflate the two types of window covering.

However, they both produce a very different effect in your home even when using the same materials and colour schemes.

Venetian blinds, the closest analogue to shutters, use a series of louvres made of either thin metal or wood that are closed using a roller, whilst shutters are solid panels typically opened and closed using a latch or lever mechanism.

Whilst blinds are a common choice for windows, they can be difficult to operate, too thin and gather dust very easily depending on the design.

 

You Do Not Need A Traditional Looking Home To Have Them

Whilst plantation shutters have been historically associated with certain house styles, they are highly adaptable as a design concept and look great on nearly every home, with colours, louvre sizes, shapes and shutter systems to suit every need.

 

Shutters Do Not Darken A Room

Because shutters are solid and often have a border, there is a misplaced concern amongst some homeowners that they can sap some of the light away from a room.

Whilst they are very good at darkening a room at night when they are closed, rotating the slats provides a lot of light, and the shutter itself can be swung open to get the most natural light possible from a window.

The history of the beautiful solid wood shutters available today spans thousands of years and several fundamental changes in purpose, material and positioning in a home.

One of the most fascinating examples of this is how the first shutters ever made were made in Ancient Greece between 800BC and 500BC using, of all materials possible, marble.

Marble is a heavy, multicoloured stone that is more associated with Greek statues and column construction than it is with window coverings.

The reason for this is that it is especially heavy, requires special mounting points on a house and has louvres that are fixed in place, simply because no mechanical system would make them easy to move.

Because of this, Greek shutters were not really used to control light levels but instead were used to provide ventilation in the hot Mediterranean climate and protect against strong winds, dust and rain that were common in coastal towns.

However, because marble is also very expensive, it was typically only used for this purpose by the upper class and since the blinds were pointed downwards, they did not allow much light in. However, whilst marble was not the right material, the idea did have value in itself.

Either the Greeks or other Mediterranean countries would replace the marble with wood, which was not only cheaper and easier to build with but also allowed for movable louvres, which meant that for the first time a shutter could shut out as much or as little light as the homeowner wanted.

Eventually, as the centuries progressed, shutters would spread across Europe, most commonly in the form of solid panels for security and block out light, switching from helping air to circulate to helping to keep warm air in at night.

As glass would take over as the window covering of choice, shutters changed from being purely practical to being more decorative in nature, and to this day they are still used as a stylish way to control the levels of light in a room.

When people choose window coverings, how much they prioritise privacy will in many cases dictate what drapes they choose.

This is why so many people opt for blinds over curtains; there is a greater control not only over the natural light in the room but how much people outside could see into their home. People who choose solid panel shutters or plantation shutters over blinds prioritise their privacy even more.

However, when you close the louvres of your shutters, which direction the closed shutters are facing matters, as depending on what floor you are on, people can sometimes peer into closed shutters if they have not been closed the right way.

A carpenter did an experiment on social media that showed that if the blinds were closed facing down (where the closest edge of the blind to you is pointing down) and the lights are on, you can see inside a ground floor room from the outside.

However, if the blinds are closed in the opposite direction facing up, all someone will see through the blinds is the ceiling, and your privacy will be assured.

Interestingly, the opposite is true for upstairs rooms, which should face down to stop people from looking inside from below.

Whilst this is a useful hack to know in general, there are potentially interesting implications for future shutters that take full advantage of smart home technology.

There currently exist blinds that can be opened and closed remotely, and whilst these most often take the form of roller blinds, Venetian smart blinds also exist and unless they close completely flush, they need to take into account which direction the blinds are closing in to maintain privacy.

 

It may become the case that when smart shutters are sold to the public, they could need two closing options depending on which floor they are installed on.

The days may be starting to get light again – although it will be some time before anyone notices much difference – but it is certainly cold most of the time. While Britain may have had its warmest New Year on record, the coldest weather usually comes in January and February.

Brighton’s southerly, coastal location means it is hardy vulnerable to the kind of perishing temperatures some parts of the UK may get, or the kind of snowfall seen on high ground, though there may be some flurries in town and plenty of the white stuff up on the South Downs.

Even so, if you have large windows, as many Regency buildings do, that’s a lot of area through which the cold can seep. That’s why solid wood panelling is a great option if you need full height shutters in Brighton.

Herein lies two of the great winter benefits of solid wood panels. Because wood is such a good insulating material, it helps keep the warmth in and the cold out. At the same time, it can have the reverse effect in summer if it gets very hot and you want to keep the room cool in the middle of the day – especially if you have just come inside after being out in it.

The second benefit is the way the opaque panels can keep the sun out. That may be easily overlooked on a cloudy day, but if your window faces southwards a winter day can provide a piercing low sun that gets in your eyes.

If the window faces in other directions, there may be times of day at other points in the year where there is a similar dazzling effect from a rising or setting sun.

While there are those who prefer a little bit of light filtering through, others like a clear all-or- nothing approach. For good insulation, avoidance of dazzling low sun and privacy, solid wood panel shutters are hard to beat.

With summer now a distant memory, it is time to embrace the colder seasons and revel in getting wrapped up and warm, kicking crunchy brown and golden autumnal leaves, and most importantly, getting excited about Christmas and the festive season!

As December gets closer, many people will be figuring out their festive decor for Christmas, if you haven’t already replaced Halloween with Christmas decor, that is! Have you considered how to dress your windows for Christmas yet?

We have a look at some simple ideas on how to dress your windows for Christmas.

 

Themed

If ‘Christmas’ is not enough of a theme already, then you can narrow your decor focus to something particularly, whether that’s a rustic feel, or building your theme on a festive colour, such as green or red.

Whatever you decide, extend your decorations to your windows. Not only will they match the decor elsewhere in the room. But they will reflect the light and create a lovely, warming feel to the room.

If you are thinking about a more rustic theme, why not buy a small wooden basket and decorate it with fir branches, fir cones and stars made from wood or old wire.

 

Lighting

Few things are as inviting as twirling lights at the window, from traditional strings of fairy lights to cascading stars like a waterfall. Battery-operated candle-style lights look great, as well as being safer near wooden window blinds and curtains than real candles.

 

Traditional

Maybe you want to be traditional with your decor, and the window is the ideal place to site a cavity scene, typically consisting of a stable, baby Jesus in the manger, Mary, Joseph, and everyone! Hang a star above the scene, and illuminate with fairy lights.

 

Simple but elegant

Not everyone wants to go over-the-top with their Christmas decor, and sometimes keeping things minimal can maximise the effect. Try hanging a traditional wreath on your window shutters, and use a can of artificial snow around the corners of your windows, with a few stencilled snowflakes on the glass.

 

If you’re looking for plantation shutters in Worthing, talk to us today.

Wooden solid panel shutters are a beautiful aesthetic touch that helps to improve the privacy of a home, whilst allowing greater control of the light of a room compared to other types of blinds.

One other advantage they have over Venetian blinds, for example, is that cleaning the solid wooden panels and slats is so much easier.

Here are some of our top tips to keep your shutters looking superb.

 

Dust Regularly

Shutters are fairly hard-wearing and rarely build up a large amount of dirt, so the main priority of any weekly cleaning or touch-up routine for your shutters is to regularly remove dust.

There are plenty of different options, from feather dusters to microfibre mitts. However, one of the most effective for plantation shutters is to use a paintbrush, as the bristles can get into the mechanism, nooks and crannies of the shutters to get rid of all of the dust.

 

Clean Every Month

Generally, cleaning should be undertaken in moderation using gentle ingredients to avoid damaging the finish or the wood itself. A diluted solution of washing up liquid and warm water, dabbed onto the shutters with a cloth is ideal.

A monthly cleaning regime for indoor shutters is fine, as they are unlikely to build up that much dirt, grime or debris, especially if you are dusting every week. You can also polish the wood, but keep it in moderation.

 

Refinish As Needed

Whilst shutters will last a long time when properly taken care of, if you start noticing chips in the wood or the colours fading, it may be time to strip the old finish off and re-coat it with a new wood stain.

Close The Shutters

As counter-intuitive as it may sound, closing your solid wood shutters is one of the best ways to keep a room cool, especially when the sun is at its highest.

The reason for this is the same reason a greenhouse is warmer inside than outside. Sunlight hits your windows, heats up the room and can actually make your room hotter than the outside temperature.

Closing the shutters and curtains will keep your room cool, and has the side effect of avoiding unsightly glare on your screen. Just make sure to take a break and enjoy the sun.

Use The Ice Fan Trick

In many countries, air conditioning is a standard part of every home, but this is not the case in the UK. However, there are ways to improvise.

Get your fan and pop a bowl of ice-cold water onto the bottom of it. This will create a super-cold breeze that will cool you down very quickly.

Stay Downstairs

Heat rises, so if you have the option, try to spend as much time downstairs as possible.

If you happen to live downstairs or can fashion a downstairs bed, sleeping downstairs can help improve your sleep considerably, rather than deal with intolerable heat upstairs, especially if you sleep in a loft conversion.

Whilst solid wood shutters are primarily known as a window accessory, they actually pre-date the use of glass in windows, making them a trusted, effective choice for providing privacy and blocking sunlight for thousands of years.

The first window openings date back to the 13th century BC, where small openings in the roof were made to allow light to enter the home during the day, and were typically covered with cloth or animal hide at night.

The first shutters were believed to have been created in Ancient Greece, and whilst wood and textiles do not survive that long, we do know that early shutters were made out of marble, although they were also known to have used wooden shutters in Ancient Greece as well.

The reason for the switch was obvious; whilst marble is an exceptionally beautiful and strong material, it is very difficult to make moving pieces out of marble, and so the louvres were solid and fixed to a single position.

Wooden louvres were much cheaper to make, much easier to fit due to being a lot lighter than marble, provided similar protection from sunlight and the tropical climate, and much later advances would enable the louvres to even move, allowing for as much or as little light in a room as you like.

Shutters would spread throughout the Mediterranean and were the standard covering for windows in the centuries before glass windows.

In Tudor England, you started to see glass windows, but as clear glass was expensive and fragile, solid shutters were used for the lower half of windowed openings.

By the time of King Louis XIV of France, window shutters had evolved from being a necessity to a royal accessory.

Given that shutters often need to be designed with particular needs in mind and are commonly made-to-measure, it is important to choose the right material that enhances your room, rather than causing design clashes or long term problems as they get older.

Unlike blinds, which have quite a wide choice of materials, solid wood shutters are the primary solution for most homes, with different types of woods having distinct advantages and disadvantages.

Hardwood is the traditional choice for window shutters going back as far as the era of Louis XIV, who allegedly had them installed into the Louvre palace as a way to watch people on his grounds.

As an older wood, hardwoods such as beech and oak are exceptionally strong, long-lasting and hard-wearing, but this strength also makes hardwood blinds more expensive than most other options.

However, an alternative, known as hybrawood, has also become an option, which provides the look of hardwood with a durable metal core and polyvinyl slats. This maintains the look of natural wood but also a long-lasting core.

Softwoods can on some occasions be used for indoor shutters and they can provide some particularly bright and beautiful textures, although they are also more damage-prone.

Medium-density fibreboard (MDF) used to be the primary material for low-price window shutters because the compacted concoction of hardwoods and softwoods was exceptionally durable for the price it costs.

Outside of wooden shutters, polyvinyl shutters do exist, as do metal ones, although both are primarily used for outdoor shutters.

Shutters are the ultimate option for light control and privacy. Tier on Tier style shutters allow for a versatile approach, which means you will be fully screened from outside view, while still being able to let in a good amount of daylight, and to have a view out of the window.

Full-height shutters can be fitted with separate louvre control, allowing you to close the lower section for maximum privacy, while the upper section can let in enough daylight to avoid having extra light sources.

Bespoke shutters will be designed to fit any window perfectly; in fact, this is one of their great advantages, because they enhance, rather than disguise the shape of the window, and maximise the space in the room. This is particularly effective for classic bay widows, or unusually shaped apertures.

The perfect fit of shutters means there are far fewer gaps for heat to escape from the room, so you may notice that you use less heating and save on energy bills. They are also very durable, not to mention stylish and contemporary!

Blinds are a more affordable solution in most cases, so may be better for those on a tight budget. They also give you more flexibility when it comes to styling, patterns, weight, and so on that will match the rest of your interior décor, and have a more softening effect.

In the end, there are no right or wrong choices; you may even decide to have shutters for some windows, and blinds for others.