Finest Quality Plantation Wooden Shutters

Shutters - what are they made from?

Shutterly Fabulous use only high quality solid hard woods to make our plantation shutters. We 'don't do' MDF shutters! (see below). Our shutters are made using only the best available kiln dried wood, manufacturing from either Yellow Poplar or Elm. Shutters made from these wood types are equally hard wearing and durable but result in different looks for your shutters, depending on which wood shutters style you prefer. Shutters made by Shutterly Fabulous are manufactured from hard wood sourced from FSC certified forests.

Why are your Shutters made using Yellow Poplar and Elm?

Shutters made using Poplar hard wood are chosen by most Shutterly Fabulous customers but Elm Shutters are growing in popularity in the UK, especially for customers buying wooden shutters but opting for a wood stain as opposed to popular shutter colours such as painted white shutters.

Wooden shutters made from either Poplar or Elm are equally good in terms of quality. Shutterly Fabulous shutters are available in 2 different wood types to give you a choice of grain types for your shutters. More information about the differences of these wood types for shutters manufacture is given below.

Shutters sold by us have always been available in Yellow Poplar. Poplar is a very fast growing tree which makes shutters made from this hard wood great from a sustainability viewpoint. Wooden shutters made from Poplar have nice straight grain which ensures the strength of your wooden shutters is constant throughout the wood, with no weak points or knots formed within your shutters.

Poplar is also a lovely wood to work with when making wooden shutters. Shutters are a very skilled product to manufacture and the finish of our wooden shutters is second to none. Therefore having nice clean cuts, a smooth sanded finish and precisely drilled holes ensure the finished shutters product is unrivalled in terms of quality and appearance.

Our shutters have always been offered in 2 different woods, the second of which was, until 2006, Oak. Oak has a lovely deep grain and is well suited to certain homes. We changed from making Oak shutters to making Elm shutters in 2006 as we found a reliable FSC certified source for this wood at a cost effective price. Shutters made from Elm have a very similar appearance to Oak with the stain soaking into the deep Elm grain to give your shutters a fantastic, rich appearance.

Whichever wood you choose for your shutters, be it Poplar or Elm, we assure you our uniquely manufactured shutters are built to look fantastic and last a lifetime.

Other Shutters Companies Sell MDF Shutters. Why don't Shutterly Fabulous sell MDF Shutters?

MDF Shutters can be found online from many companies selling shutters, who buy from the same shutters importer. MDF shutters (also called LDF shutters (light density fibreboard) are marketed under different names to gloss over the fact that the shutters are made from MDF.

MDF / LDF is a great material for many applications - but not for making shutters. Formed through compressing sawdust, glue and formaldehyde it's an ideal material for solid items that don't have much movement - skirting boards for example - but not for quality wooden plantation shutters. Not only is MDF exceptionally heavy, but the continual opening and closing of the shutter panels and shutter slats is not conducive to ensuring your shutters last a long time. Over time, joints on the shutters can split. Significantly, MDF shutters are not painted with a regular paint finish but instead are sprayed with a coloured plastic coating (not a true paint finish) which can peel from the MDF after a period of a few years and is not easily repainted or retreated.

Are MDF shutters slightly cheaper than real wooden shutter? Yes - but not by much. Will my MDF shutters last? That's something you can find out for yourself.... Quite simply shutters made using quality hard wood last. Buying shutters is an investment which you should do once and not have to replace your shutters after only a few years. That's why Shutterly Fabulous 'don't do' MDF shutters.

Poplar Shutters? - What is Yellow Poplar?

Yellow Poplar Shutters are made from wood harvested from the Poplar tree. It is often used in the manufacture of quality shutters in North America and has been for a number of years. The poplar tree is very fast growing which ensures that the grain is smooth and consistent, ensuring your shutters are strong throughout. Wood shutters made from poplar have a lovely smooth finish with minimal marking as poplar is a great wood to work with and machine. All our shutters are made from wood that is sustainably sourced.

Elm Shutters? - What is Elm?

Wood Shutters made from Elm are very similar in appearance to Oak Shutters. The detail of Elms' grain is very similar to oak with a deep grain. Shutters made with this wood option are offered for customers who prefer to see a more detailed grain within their shutters. Most customers choosing elm shutters will opt for a stained finish, which really shows a stunning depth of grain when your shutters are installed. While Elm is the wood used to make your shutters you can choose a wide variety of different colour stains for your shutters.

Poplar Shutters or Elm Shutters? Which material should I choose for my wooden shutters?

It's entirely up to you. There is no right and no wrong, it's just down to your aesthetic preference and which look you prefer for your wooden shutters. Both types of wood shutters are equally high quality. Elm shutters are slighltly more expensive than poplar shutters but this does not reflect any difference in quality.

Are MDF shutters cheaper than solid hard wood plantation shutters?

MDF is a cheap material as it's essentially a waste byproduct, therefore MDF shutters are slightly cheaper than wooden shutters. However, the cost difference between MDF shutters and wood shutters is very, very small. Shutters are an investment and saving a small amount of money to buy an inferior quality product is, in our opinion, false economy.

What other materials are plantation shutters typically made from?

Shutters in the UK have grown in popularity over the past few years and as such many new shutters companies have entered the market. However, spend some time looking through these shutters websites and you will find many of these shutters companies are selling exactly the same shutters.

Shutters companies offering craftwood (MDF or LDF shutters), phoenix wood, locke wood, MDF, basswood - to name but a few - are generally selling exactly the same shutters. We've already mentioned above why MDF is not suited to shutter construction but in our option and research, materials such as basswood (the same wood used to make tea chests) is too fragile for shutter manufacture. Poplar shutters and elm shutters have proved an extremely high quality wood material for the manufacture of wooden shutters over our many years of business and shutter manufacture.

All Shutterly Fabulous shutters are made from premium grade kiln dried sustainably sourced hard woods. We do not change the woods we use to make our shutters on a regular basis as we know Poplar and Elm are both extremely stable and strong woods to use for making plantation shutters. For wet rooms or particularly harsh moisture environments, we also offer a fully waterproof polyvinyl shutter product.

What slat sizes do Shutterly Fabulous offer?
Our shutters are available in a wide variety of slats sizes. Choose your shutters with either a 47mm (1 7/8"), a 64mm (2 1/2"), 89mm (3 1/2") or 114mm (4 1/2") shutters slat option.

We no longer offer shutters with 32mm slats as most customers buying shutters found this slat size overly fussy. The cost of producing such a small volume of these plantation shutters became uneconomic. 32mm shutters slats also block out too much light from the room. The basic principle of good shutter design is to keep it simple - less wood, everything in proportion and keep true to the design and style of the window.

All our wooden shutters are made with the slats being 'true size' meaning the slats have a good half inch overlap ensuring maximum privacy and minimum light intrusion at night when the shutters are closed.

Our shutters are available with a hidden tilt rod system called 'Open Sky'. Shutterly Fabulous was the first company in the UK to offer our shutters with a hidden tilt rod system. To this day we offer our shutters with either a regular push rod or a hidden push rod as a no cost option.

Do you make solid shutters?

Yes - we offer 2 different types of solid shutters. Solid shutters are best suited to Victorian or Edwardian sash type windows which may have had solid shutters on them originally. Solid shutters are available as a solid raised panel which has molded detail to give the appearance of the shutters that would have been installed originally. These solid shutters have a slight beading detail.

Solid shaker shutters are the other style of solid shutters that are available from Shutterly Fabulous. These solid shutters have a flat insert panel and are suited to customers buying solid shutters who want a less busy look.

All solid shutters are available in either poplar hard wood or elm hard wood. When buying solid shutters in a stained finish the cost is slightly higher, due to the cost of sourcing solid pieces of wood in the size required to make solid shutters.

How often do I need to repaint or stain my shutters?

Due to the high quality paint and stain process our shutters receive, your shutters will not need retreating for a period of around 7 - 10 years. Of course this varies depending on how well you treat your shutters, but so long as you treat the panels with respect, your shutters will last a lifetime!

Shutters are available from lots of companies on the web and in magazines. They offer shutters in 3 different ranges and many websites have the same shutters photos. Why is this?

Shutters have grown in popularity considerably in the UK with many new upstart companies entering the market, selling identical shutter products. Most of these shutters are made by Nienmade in China, sold to an importer in the UK and then sold to small shutter companies who sell the product onto you.

Shutterly Fabulous shutters differ from all the rest. From our inception we have focused on quality shutters and see no sense in offering you an inferior quality product to save a small amount of money. By controlling all aspects of our operation directly, our service is second to none and all interactions you have are directly with Shutterly Fabulous - not with a sub contractor installing your shutters or a shutters importer.

Despite the high quality of our wood shutters and our service, our shutters are very good value. We don't sell an inferior quality MDF shutters or offer lower grades of wood. All shutters we offer are premium quality and expertly installed.

We also don't supply inexperienced companies therefore you can be safe in the knowledge that when having a Shutterly Fabulous shutters consultation, you'll be seeing genuinely unique shutters.

Shutterly Fabulous shutters are exclusive to us and our shutters are not sold via any other full service shutters company in the UK. Call us on 0845 644 2873 to discover why we're unique!

Shutters are for sale via a local blind company. Should I buy my shutters from them?

We are focused on plantation shutters and there is much more involved in measuring and installing wooden shutters, versus blinds. Our Shutter Technicians install shutters every day therefore have a level of experience and expertise that you won't find in your local blind shop.

Shutterly Informative - All you need to know about shutters

We are the plantation shutter experts with thousands of satisfied customer - giving you peace of mind your shutters will be second to none!

Who measures and installs Shutterly Fabulous plantation shutters?

Our approach to shutters stands out from other companies in that our entire team is exceptionally knowledgeable about shutters. You will be visited by In House Consultant who has extensive knowledge about good shutters design and has a clear understanding of the different methods of shutters installation. This person will often be one of the Company Directors who started the company several years ago. They are experienced in quality shutter design and will give you a host of shutters design options for you to think about and decide which works best for you.

Shutters are installed directly by a Shutterly Fabulous Installation technician, all of whom are carpenters by trade. Installation of our wood shutters is not outsourced, which many other shutters companies seem to deem appropriate.

Everything we do from start to finish is simply Shutterly Fabulous!

Again, we stress the point that when buying our shutters, all staff are direct members of the Shutterly Fabulous team. Shutterly Fabulous do no outsource any aspect of our business when you are buying your shutters. Your shutters design consultation is undertaken directly by our own non commission driven team and your plantation shutters installed by our own carpenters.

Are the merits of Shutterly Fabulous and their plantation shutters recognised by any professional body?

Our shutters, service and overall operation was assessed by The Guild of Master Craftsmen and we were one of the first UK shutters companies to gain accreditation from this trade body. Our entire business has been scrutinised by the Guild to ensure that our wood shutters and shutters installation service meets the exactingly high standards set by the organisation. For more information visit the guild website.

The comments from customers who have had your wooden shutters installed are great. However, how can I be sure they are genuine?

With access to information so easy nowadays there is no point in trying to cover up the truth if your company provides bad service. If our service was poor or the quality of shutters bad, there would be some pretty negative comments posted around the internet in a short space of time and our shutters and service would have a bad reputation.

We can therefore assure you that all comments about our shutters and the service we provide UK shutters customers are genuine.

However, at Shutterly Fabulous we have gone one step further to enable folks buying shutters to have assurance that our service and shutters is second to none. We are members of Checkatrade - a professional body, completely independent of Shutterly Fabulous. Checkatrade vet and monitor all company's part of the Checkatrade organization to ensure the services offered meet their high standards. Here's how it works.

When Shutterly Fabulous installs shutters for our customers we leave a feedback form for our customers to complete. This form asks questions about our service, the overall customer experience, our shutters, our cleanliness, value for money of our plantation shutters - basically an opportunity for our shutters customers to give open and honest feedback completely independent of ourselves.

The results are sent freepost directly to Checkatrade who post the full results, warts and all, on the website. We encourage all prospective customers buying shutters to read over the reviews at checkatrade.

In our view, the measure of a company is not only how they handle things before the sale, but how they deal with things afterwards and resolve any issues that may arise. We hope that reading the information about our wood shutters and service gives you comfort that you are dealing with a Shutterly professional company!

In summary, why are you and your shutters Shutterly Unique?

We have a passion and a love of shutters (really!) and belief in our product that has propelled us to become among the most successful shutter companies in the UK. Our shutters themselves are unique to us, made to the highest quality standards using only the finest available materials.

All provided by our Shutterly dedicated shutter experts!

Call us on 0845 644 2873 and we're sure you'll agree - we're simply Shutterly Fabulous!

Please use this website as your first resource. To receive a quote, please click here and if you have any questions not answered on this site, please contact us and our team will be happy to help.