Plantation shutters in both the hardwood style and the composite or vinyl style are exceptionally beautiful and timeless. Indoor shutters also give you many choices on configurations from which to choose.
How to Choose the Best Shutters for Your Windows
You have many different choices when it comes to choosing indoor shutters. There are many styles that all look different and they also can operate differently depending on how they are installed.
What are Window Shutters?
Window shutters may be interior or exterior. Exterior shutters are usually non-functional and are for adding some color to the exterior of a home on either side of a window. Interior shutters all have a frame with sections of vertical stiles and horizontal rails in them. The shutters can be louvers as the most popular option, solid panels, or any other item that can be mounted inside the frame. Interior shutters provide a great aesthetic for any room no matter what decor or style you have. They are also energy-efficient and provide security and privacy as well as protection from weather or unwanted intrusion as well as damages.
Types of Commonly used Window Shutters
Three main types of window shutters are commonly used in homes. They are:
- Interior Shutters
- Exterior Shutters
- Plantation Shutters
Interior Shutters
Interior shutters are usually solid raised shutters. They appear as solid sheets of wood or composite or vinyl material. When they are closed, your view outside is blocked entirely. They may be installed with one panel covering the left half of the window and another covering the right half of the window. This allows you to open and close each half independently of each other to allow some light into your rooms. Interior shutters can also be installed with a set of two panels made of two panels each and this style opens in an accordion-style or a panel track door.
Exterior Shutters
Exterior shutters are mounted on the outside of your home for lovely curb appeal. Most often, they are not functional, meaning they do not close but are stationary on your home on each side of a window. It would be quite a task to open and close your exterior shutters to go outside every time you want to close shutters or open them. Interior window treatments are much easier to operate. Operable exterior shutters may be used to close them and protect your windows from damages in the case of a tornado or hurricane.
Exterior shutters most often are found in bright colors to add to the overall style of your home‘s exterior walls and create a cozier atmosphere. They can also be used to create a contrast to the exterior of your home’s siding and match the trim of your home.
Exterior shutters need attention quite often to keep them looking nice. since they are exposed to all the outdoor weather of wind, rain, humidity, and sunlight, they need to be maintained to keep their new appearance so they don’t warp, swell or rot.
Plantation Shutters
Plantation shutters are also interior shutters. Instead of being a solid panel though, they are made to be fully adjustable for all of your uses. Plantation shutters have frame like interior shutters and inside the frame, there are a series of slats and rails that are adjustable much like window blinds. Plantation shutters, such as window coverings in Maui don’t open fully upward like blinds, but instead, the panels swing open away from the window to give you a perfect view of the outside world without any obstructions. You may decide to open a portion of the shutters independently of each other or leave them all closed. You can adjust the slats to any angle you wish for great control of your lighting, privacy, heat gain, and view.
Plantation shutters are very customizable in the manner they are mounted to give you several different appearances when you open them. You may have two panels per window with each covering half of the window vertically. The tier-on-tier formation includes a set of two panels covering the top of the window and an additional set of two panels covering the bottom of the window. If you have a window that doesn’t get a lot of sunlight in it, you may choose to have cafe-style shutters in which only the bottom half of the window is covered by two shutters. Some homeowners love this style and will add a valance at the top of the window in a patterned fabric to add some softness to the room and soften the lines.
When you choose plantation shutters, you are choosing a great energy-efficient window treatment in Maui. The slats on the shutters are much thicker than window blinds are, so when they are closed entirely, they insulate your windows very well and trap the warm summer air next to the window. Not allowing the warm air into your home allows you to use less air conditioning to cool your home in the warmest of months. When closed, plantation shutters give you complete privacy as well.
Choosing the Best Shutters for your Home
The best Maui shutters for any home are plantation shutters. Custom plantation shutters can be made to fit any window size and even specialty-shaped windows. You can choose between hardwood or composite wood or polyvinyl for a lovely feel in any area of your home. The composite wood and polyvinyl choices are great for areas of high humidity, such as bathrooms, kitchens, and laundry rooms as they resist warping, peeling, breaking, or splintering as wood does in high humidity. These two choices are also as beautiful as real wood and you can have them painted or stained in any color you wish to match the decor in every room of your home.
Plantation shutters can also be installed on any type of windows you may have including sliding glass doors, French doors, bay, and bow windows to give you a lovely signature style throughout your home or rental property.
Plantation shutters can also have a locking mechanism on them to protect your home from intruders. Burglars often use a window as a point of entry to your home or rental home when it looks unoccupied. The shutters will catch broken glass but still not allow an intruder into your home. In the case of a bad storm and you have a window that breaks, it’s the same idea to keep the broken glass from scattering all inside your home and creating a danger to you and your family.
Choose the Best Plantation Shutters in Maui
At Nakas Drapery in Maui, we are highly experienced in creating beautiful plantation shutters to your exact specifications. We are also a Hunter Douglas approved dealer and we specialize in shutters for waterfront properties and vacation homes on the island. The Palm Beach Polysatin line of plantation shutters has a breezy and beachy appeal. They are made with UV-resistant Polysatin material and these shutters will never crack, warp, chip, peel. fade or discolor in any manner. These are the best of the best. Contact us today to get started on your new appearance with lovely interior plantation shutters.
