Shutter Design Advice

Solid wooden shutters offer a fantastic solution if you are looking for the more traditional look. Many Victorian properties in the UK featured solid wood shutters which were often built into window recess areas, for panels to fold completely out of the way. Such solid shutters were often made from pine and were not always the most stable of installations.

Solid shaker shutters and solid raised shutters from The California Company ensure you have the benefit of the traditional look of the shutters without the ‘rickety’ style installation which old original shutters may have had! Available in the same range of colours as the plantation shutters, our solid shutters look stunning in the right setting.

Installed using exactly the same techniques as our slatted wooden shutters, solid shutters can be ordered in the same panel configurations as available with the plantation shutters. Ensure you read all details in our shutter measuring guides and also pick up some great tips with our shutter design advice pages.

Naturally, the main difference between louvered plantation shutters and solid shutters is that you do not have the ability to leave the shutter panels closed over and have light still filter through the slats. Solid shutters are intended to be closed over at night and then folded back in the daytime, unless you want the room to remain dark during the day. If you look at many Victorian properties where they have traditional solid shutters, you will see that the shutter panels do not always cover the entire height of the window. Most often they will go to a height of around ¾ height of the window. This option can work if you are looking to leave the shutter panels themselves closed over in the daytime but still allow some light to filter through the top, but generally most customers want the shutter panels folded back, off the window.

One important shutter design difference between traditional / original Victorian pine shutters and the reproduction shutters you can buy through our website, is that on bay windows, we do not advise the shutters being hinged to all fold off the window. Make sure you continue to follow the design guide and measuring guide information to ensure your shutters are installed to function most effectively.

Solid Shaker Style Shutters

Shaker style panels feature a flat solid insert within the shutter panel. There is no detailing in the insert and this shutter design works best for rooms with plain, simple décor.

Solid Raised Style Shutters

Solid raised shutters feature a solid insert that has a raised section in the centre. Essentially offering a little more detailing and slightly better suited to more traditional properties.

All solid shutter designs can be ordered with almost all shutter design options you see on our shutter shopping facility. This means you can choose the stiles with mid rails which are solid horizontal sections within the shutter panels which breaks up the run of with the shaker or solid raised section.

Shutters With Solid Lower Half / Slats on Top

Both shutter designs (raised and shaker) can be ordered with the solid section on the lower half of the shutter only. This works well for shutters on French doors where there is a solid lower section and then a glazed area above. The solid section of the shutter aligns with the solid section of the door and the slats above this area tilt to allow a clear view out of the glass.

If you are interested in solid shutter but are unsure of the best design, why not contact us and we would be happy to offer our design ideas, tips and suggestions to ensure you have a great shutter installation!

Proceed to the Shutter Rods advice page.