Extreme Home Makeover with Vinyl Exterior Shutters

The holy grail of home exterior decorating is finding the most dramatic improvement you can make for the lowest cost. Perhaps the cheapest way to bring new life to your old home is to install vinyl exterior shutters.

Exterior vinyl shutters are priced according to the size of your windows and your decorating preference, but most people can decorate 3 or 4 of their forward facing windows for around $300 – a drop in the bucket compared to what it would cost to landscape your front yard.

A question I am frequently asked is “Which windows on my home should I put exterior shutters on?” The short answer is to only decorate the windows that are visible by passers-by.

The long answer will take a little more consideration. For example, if you frequently have friends and family over for a backyard barbeque or for a pool party, perhaps you should consider putting vinyl exterior shutters on your rear-facing windows as well. Another example is houses that have a walkway around the side. If the path is used frequently, perhaps it would make sense to put exterior shutters on the windows that line the walkway.

After you have chosen the windows you wish to adorn, you will need to decide which style of shutter would look best on your home. There are 3 styles of exterior shutters to choose from:

1. Louvered shutters
2. Raised panel shutters
3. Board and batten shutters

Louvered shutters are what come to mind when most people hear the word “exterior shutters”. This is because they are the most popular style of window shutter in use. However, just because louver shutters are popular doesn’t mean they are for everybody.

Raised panel shutters look better than louvered shutters on busy surfaces such as brick or siding with narrow laps. They also can complement interior shutters that have large louvers better than louvered shutters can because installing shutters on the outside with smaller louvers than shutters on the inside would create an unfavorable contrast.

Board and batten shutters work best on cottage style homes, but that is not to say they won’t look great on a home that is more contemporary. These window shutters were originally placed on barn windows, and modern styles have brought back the “Z” to give your home a country feel.

The best way you can decide which style of exterior vinyl shutters will look good on your home is to drive around your neighborhood. Looking at the way houses are decorated in your local area is also the best way to see how your home will look when the new shutters are installed. Pay careful attention to the homes that are constructed similarly to yours.

Exterior vinyl shutters can be ordered online using your credit card and typically take around 1-2 weeks to be delivered because they are custom made after you order them. A great place to find information and purchase exterior shutters online is http://www.shuttercontractor.com/.

After you have installed exterior shutters you will be proud to call your house “home”. Now, if only landscaping were so easy…