Plantation shutters are protective interior shutters that can be adjusted to accommodate purpose, allowing the owner to regulate light flooding, visibility and airflow. These types of shutters are usually hinged on either sides of the window and are seemingly popular in countries with warmer climates; they have operable louvres that can vary in size. Louvres, or slats, can be operated using a tilt rod, allowing the slats to be ‘opened’ or ‘closed’.
As well as giving you the ability to retain heat during winter months and promote airflow and light during warmer seasons, plantation blinds also give users the sense of privacy when louvres are flat.
The plantation shutters that we see in homes today were inspired by older versions that could be found in homes of the cotton plantations in South America, hence the name ‘plantation shutters’. It is believed that shutters similar in design to the plantation shutters we have in modern day circulation can be dated back to the times of ancient Greece. These earlier versions of the modern classic would have most likely been constructed from natural stones, such as marble.
Modern-day plantation shutters were introduced into mass production and manufactured in Australia in the 1980s, and quickly spread through Europe. The original Australian versions, which birthed the wide range of plantation shutters that are currently available on the market, were produced using cottonwood or pine – a step up from the marble prototypes of ancient Greece. In the 1990s, the use of PVC was introduced into Australian shutter production – offering a cheaper alternative to wood shutters. This was quickly followed by the use of aluminium, plastics and composites at the turn of the century – the introduction of new materials gave the shutters a wider range of colours, styles, durability and price.
