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How To Differentiate Between Plantation Shutters, Window Shades, And Window Blinds In Sacramento

August 12, 2022

Blinds, Shutters, and shades–oh my! The range of differing window treatments out there will often seem too much whenever you have to select one for your Sacramento interior. Grasping how to differentiate between each type will help you decide which ones will look and work best on the windows you are covering. Let’s explore the advantages, drawbacks, and top locations for interior shutters, window shades, and window blinds in Sacramento.

The Pros And Cons Of Plantation Shutters

White Polywood shutters in a living room

Louvered shutters are made of natural wood or a highly durable composite and go within your property where they secure permanently to your window with a shutter frame positioned over the window’s framework. Hinged panels within the frame open up for full light and an unobstructed view or shut tightly to encompass your window for privacy and darkness. When the panels are closed, you may also rotate the rows of louvers for some sunshine and shift them to divert light where you want it.

The Pros

Plantation shutters stand out from other window treatments because of their unique design. Along with their unmistakable look, they also supply several amazing bonuses for Sacramento properties:

  • Give your home beautiful architectural detail

  • Available in neutral hues to blend with your interior in the present and down the road if you redesign

  • Give You complete privacy and near-total darkness when secured

  • Open quickly for light and views to your property

  • Fit any specialized window like arches and angles

  • Shift sun glare with the slats

  • A cinch to dust and clean

  • Deliver an amazing degree of energy efficiency

  • A permanent fixture that boosts your Sacramento home’s value

  • A range of customization choices to create the style you would like and meet your unique needs

On top of these perks, faux-wood Polywood® shutters have their own significant assets: 

  • Unrivaled durability with resistance to distress that comes with extreme temps, moisture, and UV rays

  • Never experiences bending, cracking, or chipping

  • Exclusive weatherstripping for impressive efficiency and lower utility bills

Really, Polywood shutters can do anything you ask a window treatment to accomplish, from enhancing your window’s style to blocking cold breezes and damaging ultraviolet rays. And they function and look just as superb decades later as the moment you have them installed.

 

The Cons

Plantation shutters’ single disadvantage is that they come only in neutral tones. Although their versatile hues match all types of style choices, you’ll be required to opt for window shades or blinds if you have your heart set on window treatments with patterns or bold colors.

 

How To Incorporate Plantation Shutters

You may use louvered shutters on any window in your Sacramento property. Hand-tailored shutters accommodate any shape and size of window without sacrificing functionality. Put them on circular, triangular, and sliding glass door windows just as effortlessly as standard square or rectangular windows.

You may also place Polywood shutters in any room. Choose them for their durability and efficiency in wet bathrooms, chilly attic dormers, or sunny rooms. Shutters even work great in heavily occupied places and little ones’ rooms since they don’t use cords that pose a safety threat.

 

The Pros And Cons Of Window Shades

White shades in a corner of a living room.

Window shades are available in many differing styles, although, in general, all have a piece of fabric hung over your window. You usually pull the shade up or down to uncover and cover your window via the bottom pull bar or corded mechanism, but you are able to find motorized shades too.

Window shades don’t have slats to provide partial sunlight and privacy, but sheer or more freely woven natural fiber shades are able to permit light into lower-lit spaces while blocking the view into your property. Or you might use top-down/bottom-up options that give you the chance to open up the top of your window for sunlight while maintaining your privacy at the bottom.

 

The Pros

Sacramento residents prefer window shades due to the fact they can be found in various styles, colors, and materials. You’ll discover shades with standard colors and vibrant tints, solid color or dramatic patterns, transparent or non-transparent styles, neatly folded fabric or woven fibers, and numerous different choices. If you would like a unique accent while redecorating a room, window shades in just the right color or material will boost your ambience and encompass your windows.

Distinct window shade types have their own benefits as well. Roller shades have a sleek look. Cellular shades are energy efficient. Tumble shades are nice additions to glass doors. And sheer shades offer a pleasant combination of filtered light and privacy.

 

The Cons

Window shades don’t offer the resiliency of solid window coverings and can be difficult to clean. Their fabric materials will in time discolor due to the sun or can pull apart, become moldy, or show stains. You can expect to replace window shades every few years as they wear out or you alter your home’s style.

Window shades also offer less versatility in manipulating light and privacy than louvered shutters. Even drawing them up part of the way means you lose your privacy on half of the window and can’t adjust how the sunlight streams in in the open section. And various window shades will allow shadows to appear whenever your lights are on after dark. And square window shades in Sacramento force you to pick between hiding a non-standard window’s uncommon dimensions or keeping the window exposed at all times.

 

How To Incorporate Window Shades

Most Sacramento residents choose window shades if they are looking for colorful window treatments to go with their interior. They work best in low-traffic rooms where they won’t get damaged by frequent usage.

You can also utilize some types of window shades for their specific purposes. Go with cellular shades to aid in halting outside drafts. Slim roller shades work in places where you can’t use a larger window treatment. Blackout shades keep bedrooms dark to get a better night’s rest. Woven fiber shades bring a feeling of nature to your decor. And don’t forget, custom shades will unquestionably look and work better 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 consist of long, connected slats built from a firm material that you lower over your windows to cover them. Blinds can be used with a cord or cordless lifting mechanisms. Along with concealing windows with blinds, you can also rotate the slats toward or away from you with a bar for additional command over sunlight.

 

The Pros

The virtues of window blinds depend on what they’re made of. In theory, all blinds cover windows to block exterior light and sightlines into your Sacramento interior, but their type of material and construction determine how well they achieve this. You could see sun and shadows with cheap vinyl blinds. Vinyl and aluminum blinds also curve and snap easily, which leaves unsightly gaps that permit outside light. For these blinds, their low price and short lifespan make them beneficial chiefly as short-term window treatments.

Quality natural wood and faux-wood blinds utilize stronger slats that cover windows much better. You won’t see through them, and they don’t damage quickly. The wood or synthetic construction, joined with the pleasant straight contours of the slats, have a more sophisticated look too. Premium wood and faux-wood blinds can be found in versatile neutral shades that look lovely in any area.

Blinds allow you to direct the amount of light that enters through your windows. You are able to draw them up for an unrestricted view and full sunlight or close them for privacy and a dark room. If your blinds are closed, you are also able to rotate the slats for a limited view and a bit sunshine.

 

The Cons

Wood and faux-wood blinds look similar to plantation shutters but aren’t as long-lasting. The cords incorporated into the slats can come apart over the long haul, and wood slats can become misshapen and crack from too much humidity or intense temperature changes. Blinds also have lots of elements that might result in them being difficult to clean, and corded blinds may get twisted up if you attempt to use them.

Despite the fact that made-to-order blinds will suit your windows in terms of size, they won’t have the complete protection over the perimeter that shutters offer as they aren’t built into a frame. You’ll also notice that both window blinds and shades in Sacramento can sway and knock against your window if run into or taken by a gust of air. That moving around opens a sightline to your interior and allows exterior light.

 

How To Use Window Blinds

Custom blinds make sense in any room on rectangular or square windows. Only choose waterproof faux-wood blinds in humid spaces like kitchens and baths. And cordless or motorized blinds are safer choices in the event you have little ones or four-legged friends.

 

Sunburst Has It All From Interior Shutters To Window Blinds And Shades In Sacramento

Would you like to know more about the differences between plantation shutters, window shades, and window blinds in Sacramento? Sunburst Shutters Sacramento has the most incredible selection of high-end window treatments in the area and will is pleased to answer any questions you might have. We offer complimentary in-home consultations to demonstrate our choices and let you determine which window treatments make the most sense for your property. Request yours by placing a call to 916-665-0078 or filling out the following form.