Embracing Minimalism with Window Shutters

I am trying really hard to embrace minimalism this year. Well, as much as you can with two little kids who fill your house to the brim with all their unnecessary toys and clutter. I’m pretty sure that downsizing our family belongings is the key to my mental health for 2017. I wrote more about this here.

We are currently doing a bit of a makeover in the livingroom and giving the space an update. We’ve just taken delivery of a new sofa, I’ve bought some new cushions, a new shelving unit and I’ve got some new artwork and a rug on order. I’m really trying to keep minimalism in mind while we work on it as I do not want to introduce even more clutter into our already overloaded home. You’ll be able to see the full makeover here on the blog next month. It’s been an exciting process but one aspect that still flummoxes me is the window treatment. 

For three years now, I have been struggling with this. Previously, our rented accommodation came with curtains or blinds so we never had to think about it. When we bought our flat, the vendor left the blinds and curtains for us, which was a big help at the time. But, for the most part, they are still there and don’t match anything, and I hate them. We have vertical blinds in the livingroom, which makes me feel like we live in an office. I desperately want to replace them with something that’s more our style and definitely with something more attractive. But what?

Curtains won’t really work. If we had curtains I’d want floor length ones, but the radiator is underneath the window, so closing the curtains would trap all the hot air behind the curtains. A roman blind could work, but the window might be too wide. Also, we have a distinctly industrial feel going on in the living room and a roman blind feels a bit too sophisticated and ornate. Wooden Venetian blinds may work but I’m not sure if the window may be too wide again. I don’t want a roller blind as I don’t really like them for the living room.  So we don’t have that many options really.

One possible option I am exploring at the moment though is wooden shutters. I’m starting to really think that this could be a great solution for us. It would allow us to have the shutters fully open in the day time letting in as much natural light as possible. Then we could close them up in the evening after darkness falls and the minimalist design wouldn’t interfere with the radiator and the heat circulation in the room. Apparently, window shutters are also great for noise reduction and improved insulation. I also think that window shutters would be the perfect solution for our industrial style.

I think I need to look into this more. Shutters really seem to fit in with my pursuit of a more minimal life in 2017. They won’t look too fussy and will be far easier to operate than curtains or roman blinds. Plus I wouldn’t have the issue of cords hanging down, which is always a worry when you have small children.

In fact, the more I think about it, perhaps window shutters would be a good solution for our master bedroom too. We desperately need to sort the window treatments in there as well as the curtains are so cheap and nasty and completely the wrong colour. I want something chic and minimal in the bedroom and I’ve seen lots of lovely images of beautiful bedrooms that feature wooden shutters.

What do you guys think? Are wooden window shutters the way to go? Would they be the best option for my industrial-inspired livingroom? I’d love to hear your thoughts on shutters, especially if you have them in your home. It’s a big decision and I want to get this right!