Over the last year, we have been spending a lot more time at home, with some of us now seeing working from home as a more permanent thing and considering making some home changes!
Whether you’re in the process of a complete renovation or just looking to add some finishing touches to your current décor, choosing the right window shutters doesn’t have to be a difficult or confusing task! Our Guide To Choosing The Right Window Shutters will help you navigate through the various elements to consider to ensure you make the right decision for you and your home.
Which room are you styling?
Have a think about which rooms you are looking to style and understand whether shutters are the perfect solution for each one. Check out our blog post on The 5 Reasons Why Shutters Are A Great Addition To Your Home for the fantastic advantages to having shutters!
Once you’ve established shutters are the perfect choice for your home, have a think about the style of shutter you would like for your room. You may want a consistent look and feel throughout the house, therefore Full Height or Tier on Tier shutters would be a great solution as they a fantastic versatile feature for every room. If you have a front-facing living room, Full Height or Tier on Tier shutters also enhance kerb appeal for your home, particularly when partnered with upstairs front-facing bedrooms too! Alternatively, you may have different requirements for different rooms. For example, you may want to maximise on light in your living room, so Café Style shutters would be an ideal solution!
Bathrooms are also very easy to style with shutters. uPVC shutters are perfect for conditions where moisture is prevalent, compared to a traditional hardwood or MDF material, ensuring quality and longevity. This is also the case for kitchen windows which are near taps or steam-inducing appliances.
All shutters can be styled alone or with other stylings such as curtains or blinds for added feature in your room. Despite shutters being a great solution to darken rooms due to the various louvre sizes, you may want to add an extra layer of blackout in a bedroom or nursery, particularly for those Summer mornings or lighter evenings. Shutters work perfectly with blackout blinds in order to create the ambience you want and to help create a lovely addition to your decor!
Alternatively, you could also choose a Solid Panel shutter to ensure a complete blackout in your bedroom, which work particularly well for taller windows seen in Victorian homes.
Do shutters work with shaped windows?
The windows in your home may not be consistent throughout. In slightly older properties such as Victorian or Edwardian properties or church/chapel conversions for example, there may be some pretty funky shaped windows that contribute to the character of your home! A lot of our customers are concerned they won’t be able to get a window styling that retains the character of these beautiful windows despite the need for privacy. Shutters can be fitted to almost any windows, from beautiful arches, to small circular shapes to large bay windows, there is a solution for every size and shape!
What style of shutter do I choose?
There are quite a few different styles to choose from depending on what your priorities are. Once you know which rooms you would like your shutters, it will be easier to whittle down which style will work for you. Here is a small breakdown for you:
Full Height Shutters
Full height shutters cover the entirety of the window or door. The operation of the louvres can be split or dividers added to give you the versatility of privacy and light. By closing the bottom section of louvers it gives you the privacy you need whilst still allowing light in through the top. This is particularly useful if bedrooms or living rooms are overlooked.
Tier on Tier shutters
Tier on tier shutters cover the entirety of the window or door. They have independent panels top and bottom that are able to operate separately.
This gives you increased versatility as you are able to open or close each individual tier separately.
Café height shutters
Cafe height shutters would typical only cover the bottom section of your windows. This is to allow for maximum light to come in to the room whilst at the same time giving you full privacy on the bottom section. These work great for ground floor windows where light coming in to the room isn't an issue.
uPVC shutters
uPvc shutters are used in bathrooms and kitchens where water and moisture is prevalent. They are ideal for wet rooms or windows that are in shower enclosures or over baths.
Tracked shutters
Tracked shutters are a great solution for high footfall areas such as across patio or bifold doors. They are also great for windows that are too large for our standard hinged shutters.
Solid Panel shutters
Solid panel shutters are typically used in bedrooms where maximum light restriction is needed. With the panels being solid no light passes through them making them ideal for light sleepers.
Which louvre size do I choose?
There are three different louvre sizes to choose from when selecting your shutters. What you choose will depend on many factors: personal preference, style and décor of your home, the room in which you wish to dress as well as the window itself! Here is a breakdown to help inspire you:
Small – A smaller louvre size will create a more homely and traditional feel. If your living room directly faces onto a walkway or pavement, this louvre size will also help give you additional privacy due to the slightly narrower gaps when the shutter is open.
Medium – A medium louvre size creates a sleeker finish, so these work particularly well in homes with a more modern décor and style. Due to the slightly larger light gap, you are able to maximise light within your room when the shutter is open.
Large – We would normally recommend these for doors and large windows at the back of the house to maximise on light and where privacy isn’t necessarily a top priority if you are facing onto a garden, particularly one which isn’t overlooked. The larger gaps allow for maximum light to enter, leaving your room feeling bright and fresh!
Which colour shutters do I choose?
White shutters tend to be the most popular choice given their versatility and style with almost any décor within your home. However, more recently there is a trend towards coloured shutters such as grey, black and pastels.
With the growing popularity of darker décor, colour schemes featuring the stunning Farrow and Ball Hague Blue or Mole’s Breath as well as the traditional Cornforth White, a darker shutter would complement this décor well and help create a cosy finish to your room. Pastel colours are also great for nurseries or rooms with pops of colour! All our shutters can be colour matched to ensure the perfect match to your colour scheme.
What are tilts rods and which one do I choose?
Tilt rods are a very popular feature on a lot of window shutters and help operate the shutters easily by opening and closing the louvres, whilst reinforcing the traditional look and feel of plantation shutters. These can either feature on the middle of your shutters or to the side, depending on what type of look you want. Having the tilt rod to the side allows a cleaner finish, whilst having it in the middle gives a more traditional stylish look, so whichever you choose is personal preference!
There are also other options, such as Clearview and hidden if you preferred a completely modern and sleek finish with no visible tilt rods. These would mean operating the louvres by hand and a stunning smooth look for your windows.
Shutters help add the finishing touches to your home and with plenty of looks and styles to choose from, you can tailor-make your perfect shutters to fit your décor. Our shutter specialists are here to help guide you through which styles would work best for your preferences and help you choose which is right for you! Contact us now to book a free design consultation.
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