Thinking about giving your home a facelift? If you feel like it’s beginning to look a little boring from the outside in, you may want to consider this list of 9 different kinds of cafe blinds and window shutters that you can use for your home. Here’s a little 101 about each type:

 

Did you know these are designed with two main goals in mind? The first is practicality. They need to be wind-proof and be able to protect you from prying eyes outside, among other things. The second purpose is aesthetic. In addition to their functions, they definitely have their place in making your home more pleasant on the eye.

 

Before focusing on the different kinds of panels, we first need to make the distinction between interior and exterior window shutters…

• Interior – as the name suggests, these sit on the inside of the glass pane, adjustable from beside the couch, bed, or wherever it may be. These tend to be more focused on privacy, with a whole range of possible customizations.
• Exterior – as these sit , and are a little less easily adjustable, these tend to be geared more towards aesthetic as opposed to functionality. Although they can still certainly help with privacy and weather protection.

Now onto our 9 kinds of cafe blinds…

1. Plantation

An increasingly popular choice for their elegant charms. Plantation involves clean, neat frames with wide blades that can be fully open, fully shut, or angled somewhere in between as needed to channel sunlight and avert prying eyes.

2. Bahama

Coming in both interior and exterior form, the Bahama window shutters are characterized by their top-hinge, making them great for storm protection including hurricanes. They’re made from wood or aluminum, and can be paired with flamboyent panache, vinyl or fibreglass.

3. Louver

Wooden slats overlap each other on a shared frame adding a sort of country-feel. They tend to be rather sturdy with slats similar to the plantation, except with the slats between each frame.

4. Half-louvered

Part louver, with wooden slats, and part solid.

5. Raised panel

A box-shaped design with rectangles distinguish raised panel window shutters. They can be made from vinyl and may just remind you of your kitchen cabinets.

6. Shaker

Also known as the solid panel window shutters, these bear similarity to the raised panel with rectangles, however they have a flatter body and different details.

7. Board and batten

Another type is the ‘board and batten’, which as the name implies, involves wooden boards connected through battens. They are liked for their versatility – complementing various styles of home, including stone, stuccoed, and cottage. They are also long-lasting, being made from durable wood such as Red Cedar.

8. Scandinavian

Are essentially board and batten window shutters, but a little thicker, covering the whole pane, and typically complete with intricate detailing in the form of cutout designs.

9. Cutout

This one’s a little broader. There are different styles of cutouts determined by how much of the pane is covered.

For example, a cafe style refers to traditional plantation panes along the bottom, with finer detailing. These are more typical in Europe. A ‘tier-on-tier’ on the other hand consists of individually adjustable panels on the top and bottom that can allow for different variations and combos of light to be allowed in.

 

Window shutters can come in different shapes, and folds too! Including but not limited too…

• Arch
• Rectangle
• French door cut
• Bread box
• Bi or tri-fold

 

What’s the best material? The most common material these tend to be made from is durable wood such as that from Beech. These are all factors to be taken into account when deciding what to get for your home.