Wooden shutters

If you like old houses and you walk along the side streets admiring them, you will have noticed that many of them have shutters. Unfortunately, this detail that beautifies and distinguishes the houses is less and less common, preferring other ways of protecting and covering the windows.

Small wooden doors for windows

Basically, shutters are a kind of doors that double and protect windows. Their purpose is to protect the house from excessive light or adverse weather conditions (rain, storms, snow). Shutters also ensure the security of the house while improving the aesthetics of the building.

Shutters can be fitted both outside and inside buildings.

Types of shutters

Not all shutters are the same. Some cover the window completely when closed, ensuring total darkness in the room, others are constructed so that light can penetrate partially or completely. They can also be just simple plank tops joined together and attached to another cross plank or window-like construction. Instead of glass there are vertical or horizontal wooden slats that let light into the rooms. The slats can be fixed or movable.

Interior shutters are attached to the window frame inside the room. They open inwards, allowing access to the window and light into the room. They can be one piece on each side or two pieces that open and close independently. They are finished in harmony with the rest of the room, being part of the decor. As they are subject to direct sunlight, lightfast colours are used.

On the outside, the shutters were originally built for light control, privacy and weather protection. Later they also took on a decorative role. They can be simple, austere, made only of wood, hinged to the window frame or special wall-mounted devices, or more elaborate, with openwork decorations and rustic ironwork (large hinges, bolts, ivories for closing).

The wood from which they are made is harder woodwith a tannin content that makes it resistant to insect attack (oak, cedar, mahonteak, acacia), but also pine wood or other resinous. The materials used to finish it must be special to resist the exterior.

The colours of the shutters are specific to the type of house or the location of the house. Old houses have rustic shutters in colours similar to or in pleasant contrast with the doors and windows. Shutters on seaside houses brighten up the house, especially when the walls are painted white. They are painted in the colours of the sea, the sky, or in bright, cheerful colours. In the mountains, shutters become more sober, and are coloured green or dark walnut to blend in with the decor.

Houses with wooden shutters have a kind of understated elegance, of nobility. Wood succeeds this time too in giving beauty, personality and warmth to houses, drawing our attention and delighting our gaze.