santa fe cafe shutters

Shutter Stories

Posted on by Susan Earlam

Hey there, Readers! I’m back after a little Easter break with the first instalment of our Shutter Story.

As you’ve seen over the past few months we have been working on our Dining Room.

If you fancy catching up on the dining room you can go here and here.

You’ve already guessed we really fancied shutters for the windows of this room.

Up until just before Christmas we had Venetian blinds in the four sections of the bay window. They were fitted below the stained glass panes and had been there since before we moved in.

edwardian stained glass bay window

The reason we kept the blinds for over three years is simply because they worked in the space. The dining room is on the front of the house, so privacy is key in this room. The blinds let in the light but still protected our inside space.

I’d seen shutters appearing more and more, as an alternative to blinds. They are becoming more affordable than ever before. So when we needed to get our bay window replaced due to age, (and the fact there were so many layers of paint on the wooden frames we couldn’t open the windows!) shutters started looking like a feasible option.

edwardian curved bay window

We had a local firm sort the windows and we paid extra to have them re glaze the original stained glass panes at the top of the bay. As I’m sure you know we try to renovate our home sympathetically to its age (budget allowing).

Preserving things like the stained glass from around 1928, when the house was built, helps to keep the character and history of the house intact.

Its at this point in the story I’m going to introduce you to Santa Fe Shutters who I’ve partnered with to share my experience of their shutters. From the measuring up and consultation; right through to the fitting and how we live with, and use the shutters in different seasons. I hope to share our experience as fully as possible.

Santa Fe are a Decora brand. Decora have been going for over thirty years and are experts in window solutions. I cant wait to share more with you about this collaboration. This image in particular from their brochure really has me swooning! I want to show off the original stained glass so definitely don’t want to cover the whole window so a shutter that starts lower down would be ideal.

santa fe cafe shutters

The images you see here are after the new windows have been put in, but before the shutters. You can see how close we are to the the footpath and road. People can see right in, so the privacy thing is a big deal for us. I think if the house was raised a little like some period properties are, then I wouldn’t feel as vulnerable. But as it is, with nothing on the windows, we are virtually eyeball to eyeball with passers by.

I’m wondering if any of you have shutters in your home?

How do you get on with them? Do you have any tips?

Or are shutters something you’d love to get, if so, in which room would you install them?

Stay tuned for the story of the shutters!

Published by Susan Earlam

Writer of fiction, lifestyle and home interiors

26 thoughts on “Shutter Stories”

  1. Oooh i do love shutters! Ive wanted them a while but not convinced they will look right in our 70s house. We have really wide windows but not tall.
    Looking forward to seeing the results 🙂

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  8. The shutters are a wonderful addition to your beautiful space. And it’s lovely to see the photographs of the stained glass also, so vibrant and unique. As you say, privacy is one key perk of shutters. And they still let so much light into a room at the same time, giving you the best of both worlds. Your period property is lovely, thanks for sharing.

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  9. I have shutters and absolutely love them! Like you I’m right on the street and neither blinds or curtains could offer me the kind of privacy that shutters do xxx

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  11. Ooo i quite like the way that image uses them halway up the window! So you can still look out at the sky but not worry about people judging you eating popcorn on the sofa at 2 in the afternoon haha! Love your windows hun. Can’t wait to see what you do with them.

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  12. Hoping to have shutters on the windows of our new kitchen, for the same reason as you – main road with pavement right outside and I don’t fancy people peering in at us eating, as the dining table will be in front of the window. Will definitely read your next posts about this! x

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  15. Ahhhh brilliant-yes, we also plan to have shutters fitted to the bottom half of our windows. We also have a bay but it’s a square Edwardian style, facing out to the street. We get lots of light from this side of the house which is really important to keep, so I thought half shutters would work as a way to keep the privacy. Can’t wait to see yours and the 1920s stained glass is just beautiful. x

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  17. Ah, I also did the same with the stained glass windows in my home! I preserved as much as i could. On a road where people knock through the inside wall, I’ve kept mine. I agree with you so much, it’s so important to preserve features!

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