"After several years of a love affair with dark, rich woodwork we are having several requests to help homeowners “lighten up” a room with there plantation shutters. Given the size of investment made when purchasing a plantation shutter, there is often a concern of future regret by the homeowner. My professional opening on that matter can vary depending on the room itself, but I will say with utmost confidence that it can be done — and in a very tasteful way. There are a two methods to do so: Cover up casing with a new shutter and casing frame
Cafe Style Shutters, thus eliminating any direct contrast of dark casing and painted shutters. The casing stays in place, so if the shutters ever come down, the original mill work design is still in tack (albeit with a few screw holes to touch up). Make the transition obvious and intentional. This works best when the painted shutter is chosen in a color to complement the existing trim. For instance, if you have rich, warm dark brown trim- choose a paint color with complementary undertones, such as a nice cream color as opposed to a stark, pure white. Then you will find the shutters look as if they were part of the design plan from the beginning. Of course, since we custom color match at goodwood Shutters, your options are only limited by your imagination. If you are building a house, you may have the opportunity to tie in other painted elements in the home so that the mix reads thoughtful and intentional. Below shows a breakfast nook with beautiful stained mill work, and gorgeous painted goodwood Shutters. This photo goes to show that with just a little forthought, you can have shutters that compliment your homes design, even in a different finish! This post addresses one of the more complicated installations of shutters in rooms with wainscoting, since the wainscoting and chair rail actually wrap into the window jamb itself. Although a gorgeous look overall, this millwork package does nothing to compliment most inside mount window treatment installation. Plantation window before How did we arrive at shutters, and could we have done other window treatments? If we were to do, for instance
Wholesale Plantation Shutters, a wood blind or honyecomb in this window we would have the option of ordering the blind with a cut on each side so that it woudld fit around the trim work in the lower area, and be the correct width above the paneling too. Most all other hard treatments would have to be ordered to the narrower width in between the paneling and would be unsightly when lowered. Not to mention that the arch portion of the window would still be exposed. There would be so many limitations to the fit of the finished product te homeowner would have ordered a custom product, but not had a very custom looking finish. Drapery might look nice here, perhaps on medallions, but as light control was an issue in the office, is still not the most functional option. So back to the fit! The customer chose a decorative z frame that we call a CZ. The CZ frame is gorgeous, but necessitates modifation for both the face sider of thethe paneling and the part that wraps into the window. Here is how we did it: goodwood undersized the shutter unit by the thickness of the paneling (3/4″) on each side. We then made filler strips that would install above the wainscotting, in effect bringing the jamb of the window in on both sides 3/4″ and providing a uniform look from the streetside (no unsightly gaps when you are walking up to the house). Next, we handled the front(or flange of the frame) the same way, making filler strips to install above the wainscotting. You can see the seam of the filler strips in this close up. It was important to send filler loose so that it could be cut to fit nice and snug on site as this seam would be highly visible. Once onsight the chair rail was shortened by our installers to where it finishes nicely right at the finish of our shutter frame." "Our dealer in Southold
Sliding Shutters, NY at Wallace Home Design recently sent us these photos of a goodwood Shutter project he did that had some unique challenges to it. The customer wanted the openness of a 3 1/2″ louver, but also loved the clean lines of her casing. The window had limited depth, and operable window cranks created obstructions. This made it impossible to mount the shutter flush within her existing window jamb as was her preference. She was adamant she did not want any projection past her window casing so we devised a unique solution for her windows. The shutter was built into its own frame (or jamb), then mounted inside the window jamb. This frame allowed us to create the extra projection that was needed for the louvers to operate and the unit to clear all obstructions. To eliminate the look of any shutter projection beyond the casing, goodwood Shutters made custom sized casing pieces, that matched the layout of her window casing. These loose casing pieces were then applied onsite by Mike and his crew over the existing casing. The finished result? A look that allows the customer to have the larger louver, hidden tilt rod and simple clean lines she desired. If you have challenging windows, a unique project, or just wanted a fine quality shutter built and installed with the eye of a craftsman, please contact goodwood Shutter at 800-416-6455 or use our dealer locator to find a dealer near you. Being a home builder can be so rewarding
Bi-fold Shutters, yet it takes a lot of decision making to finish building an outstanding home. There are a lot of choices you have to make to please your customers and if you’ve chosen mahogany shutters, you’re next home building project will be complete with this high-end treat. The African quarter sawn mahogany used by goodwood? to create our mahogany plantation shutters ensures the highest quality finish. The challenging part for some home builders can be decorating the rest of the house with the finesse necessary to highlight the custom work. Since the natural color of mahogany changes with age from pinkish to more of a copper or reddish-brown it may be difficult to decide which complementary wall color to choose. In most cases, mahogany plantation shutters are best matched with other accents around the room such as a color in a tile backsplash in the kitchen or the room’s base trim, crown molding, or interior doors. What any wood lover knows is that the true beauty of the wood definitely deserves to have a background that reflects its character. So how do you choose what you think your customers will love? The truth is that color preferences add a personal touch and while you’ll want to look for colors that will enhance the finish of the wood, this can be done in many different ways. For example, a contrasting light, creamy beige color will draw the eye more to the decorative accents and, of course, to the mahogany plantation shutters. Additionally, light green, earthy tones will provide a maximum contrast. Gray is a very adaptable color with varying shades from the spectrum of cool to warm, all of which can be very relatable to mahogany. So, no matter what your end goal is, whether you want to provide a bold statement or a subtle one, with the right color choice the end result is bound to be stunning and your customer will swoon over your choice of goodwood mahogany plantation shutters."