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How To Choose Between Plantation Shutters, Window Blinds, And Window Shades In Philadelphia

August 12, 2022

Shades, blinds, and shutters–oh my! The many different window treatments available might feel overwhelming when you need to choose one for your Philadelphia home. Grasping the differences between each variety will assist you in deciding which products will function and look best on the windows you have. We can help by exploring the benefits, drawbacks, and top spots for plantation shutters, window blinds, and window shades in Philadelphia.

The Pros And Cons Of Interior Shutters

White Polywood shutters in a living room

Plantation shutters are constructed of hardwood or a highly durable composite and go into your residence where they affix permanently to your window with the shutter’s frame attached to the window’s frame. Easy-to-move panels inside the frame smoothly glide open for complete light and an unobstructed view or shut tightly to blanket your window for a dark, private interior. Whenever the panels are secured, you may also turn the louvers for partial sunlight and adjust them to divert light where it needs to go.

The Pros

Louvered shutters rise above other options because of their specialized design. They not only look quite different but offer various remarkable bonuses for Philadelphia properties:

  • Elevate your home with enticing architectural style

  • Find them in neutral tones to blend with your interior at the moment and later if you change your home’s look

  • Offer complete privacy and nearly full darkness when secured

  • Open quickly for light and a view

  • Fit any uniquely shaped window like circles and sunbursts

  • Move sun glare with the slats

  • A cinch to dust off

  • Deliver an amazing degree of energy efficiency

  • An enduring feature that adds to your Philadelphia house’s value

  • Many customizable possibilities to create the look you would like and meet your unique needs

Along with these perks, faux-wood Polywood® shutters feature their own noteworthy benefits: 

  • Unrivaled toughness with resistance to damage that comes with extreme temps, moisture, and the sun

  • Last a lifetime without distorting, cracking, or chipping

  • Innovative weatherstripping for exceptional energy efficiency and lower utility bills

Really, Polywood shutters are able to do any job you ask a window covering to do, from enhancing your window’s beauty to stopping cold breezes and harmful UV rays. They also operate and look just as great decades later as the day you have them installed.

 

The Cons

Interior shutters’ one downside is that they can only be found in neutral tones. Although their versatile coloring matches all kinds of designs, you’ll be required to settle for window shades or blinds if you are determined to install window treatments in vivid colors or patterns.

 

How To Use Louvered Shutters

You may incorporate interior shutters on any window in your Philadelphia property. Hand-tailored shutters fit any type, size, and shape of window without forgoing functionality. Put them on rounded, angled, and patio door windows just as effortlessly as normal square or rectangular windows.

You may also place Polywood shutters in any room. Pick them for their longevity and superior efficiency in humid bathrooms, chilly attic dormers, or sunny rooms. Shutters are even a great choice in family places and little ones’ rooms as they don’t use cords that create a safety hazard.

 

The Pros And Cons Of Window Shades

White shades in a corner of a living room.

Window shades can be found in various differing styles, but, by and large, all consist of a piece of fabric hung at the top of your window. You generally pull the shade down or up to uncover and cover your window through a built-in pull bar or cord, but you are able to discover motorized functionality as well.

Window shades don’t use slats to manage sunlight and privacy, but lower opacity or loosely woven natural fiber shades will allow light into darkened rooms while blocking views into your home. Or you might consider top-down/bottom-up shades that allow you to open up the upper region of your window for sunlight while preserving your privacy below.

 

The Pros

Philadelphia homeowners prefer window shades because they can be found in a range of materials, styles, and colors. You’ll see shades with standard colors and vibrant hues, solid color or bold patterns, transparent or blackout opacities, neatly folded fabric or natural fibers, and numerous other possibilities. If you’re looking for a unique accent while redecorating a room, window shades in the perfect color or fabric can enhance your decor and encompass your windows.

The differing window shade kinds have their own benefits too. Roller shades have a sleek look. Cellular shades will boost efficiency. Tumble shades are smart choices for glass doors. And sheer shades offer a pleasant blend of light and privacy.

 

The Cons

Window shades don’t offer the resiliency of firm window treatments and can be challenging to clean. Their materials will eventually fade on account of the sun or might pull apart, develop mold, or get stained. You should anticipate replacing window shades every few years as they break down or you alter your interior design.

Window shades also offer less versatility in balancing light and privacy than plantation shutters. Even drawing them up a bit means you lose your privacy on half of the window and can’t adjust how the sunlight streams in in the open section. And a range of window shades will show your shadow whenever you have the lights on inside at night. And rectangular window shades in Philadelphia compel you to pick between concealing a specialty window’s uncommon size or leaving the window uncovered at all times.

 

How To Incorporate Window Shades

Many Philadelphia homeowners choose window shades if they want specific colors of window products to blend with their interior. They work best in less occupied rooms where they won’t wear as quickly from steady engagement.

You can also employ various kinds of window shades for their specific purposes. Choose cellular shades to help block cool air from entering. Slim roller shades work in spaces where you need to avoid a bulkier window treatment. Blackout shades keep bedrooms dark to get a better night’s rest. Woven fiber shades add a natural element to your home. And of course, custom shades will without a doubt have more appeal and function more reliably on your windows than off-the-rack options.

 

The Pros And Cons Of Window Blinds

Wood blinds in a small dining room area.

Window blinds have long, connected slats constructed with a firm material that you bring down over your windows to cover them. Blinds function with pull cords or cordless functionality. As well as concealing windows with blinds, you are also able to turn the slats open or closed with a wand for more control over exterior light.

 

The Pros

The benefits of window blinds largely depend on on the materials they’re fabricated with. By design, all blinds shield windows to block exterior light and views into your Philadelphia home, but their substance and quality of manufacturing play a big role how effectively they achieve this. You could see light and outlines of people with low-grade vinyl blinds. Metal and vinyl blinds also curve and fracture without much difficulty, leaving unsightly gaps that allow outside light. For these blinds, their low price and short lifespan make them suitable primarily as interim window treatments.

Quality real wood and faux-wood blinds utilize stronger slats that envelop windows more completely. You won’t see through them, and they don’t damage easily. These materials, mixed with the attractive horizontal edges of the slats, have a more sophisticated look too. Top-end real wood and faux-wood blinds come in adaptable neutral shades that go with the decor of any room.

Blinds permit you to control the quantity of light that passes through your windows. You are able to draw them up for an unhindered view and complete sunlight or guide them down for privacy and a dark room. If your blinds are drawn down, you can also rotate the slats for a limited view and the right amount of sunshine.

 

The Cons

Wood and faux-wood blinds look similar to louvered shutters but aren’t nearly as durable. The cords intertwined with the slats can come apart in the long run, and wood slats can warp and splinter from too much moisture or extreme temperature variations. Blinds also include lots of parts that will result in them being difficult to clean, and blinds with pull cords might get twisted up if you make an effort to use them.

Despite the fact that made-to-order blinds will fit your windows in terms of size, they can’t give you the complete protection over the edges that shutters do as they aren’t built into a frame. You’ll also notice that both window blinds and shades in Philadelphia are prone to shift and smack your window if bumped or caught in a gust of air. That motion provides a view to outsiders and permits light.

 

How To Incorporate Window Blinds

Premium blinds are a great choice in any room on square or rectangle windows. Only install water-repellent faux-wood blinds in high-humidity locations like bathrooms and kitchens. And automated or cord-free blinds offer safer products if you have little ones or four-legged friends.

 

Sunburst Has An Incredible Selection From Plantation Shutters To Window Blinds And Shades In Philadelphia

Would you like to know more about the the variances between plantation shutters, window blinds, and window shades in Philadelphia? Sunburst Shutters Philadelphia offers the most incredible lineup of premium window treatments around and will is pleased to answer whatever questions you have. We conduct complimentary in-home consultations to display our choices and let you determine which window treatments look best in your property. Arrange yours by dialing 215-874-4897 or submitting the following form.