Can you fit Blinds behind Shutters?

Why do some shutter owners consider adding blinds?

Plantation shutters are fantastic as a stand-alone product for privacy, light control, insulation and style to homes, however, one thing that they are not is 100% blackout. This is one thing we always make our customers aware of before purchasing, but over time, they may decide they need a completely dark room. This may be due to changes in routine, such as having young children or changing jobs, where sleeping during the day may be needed.  

Shutters, even when fully closed, allow small amounts of light to enter through the gaps in the louvres and around the shutter frame due to their natural design. A darker room can make a big difference to quality of sleep, therefore we always try and offer the best solution possible for each customer.

Which blinds can be installed behind Shutters? 

Free-hanging pleated blinds: 

If there is sufficient enough space between the shutter panels and the window itself, there is an option to install a free-hanging pleated blind as a separate headrail within this gap. You will need a gap of at least 35mm to clear both the headrail width and your window handles. If the window handles still cause an issue, we can sometimes swap these out for slim-line handles! 

Tru-fit and Perfect fit pleated blinds: 

When there isn’t enough space to fit a blackout blind behind shutters, we offer Tru-fit and Perfect Fit pleated blinds instead as these frames clip on the windows themselves rather than between the shutters and windows. These are a great choice for both reducing heat loss and providing better light coverage, providing an almost identical finish to our Blackout Shutters.  

Benefits of combining shutters and blinds

Installing blinds behind shutters gives you the best of both worlds and provides more benefits than having each product on their own. Here are some of the main benefits of having a dual system:  

Improved darkness – A blackout blind behind shutters can significantly reduce incoming light as most of the small light gaps that a shutter would normally leave, would be covered by the extra layer of the blind.  

Increased temperature control – The combination can help improve window insulation throughout the year. Having both wooden shutters and a honeycomb pleated blind, is a great combination to increase thermal insulation – keeping your home both warm in the winter and cooler in the summer.  

Keep your existing shutters – The most important benefit of putting shutters and blinds together, is that there’s no need to remove or replace shutters that are otherwise working perfectly. There are many options to add a blackout solution to them! With any of these blind options, you can simply raise them during the day, allowing them to sit neatly out of sight. 

Which blinds can be installed behind Shutters?

In some rare situations, it can be very difficult to add a blind behind existing shutters and customers may have to look at alternative solutions to get a better blackout effect.

Common situations that we come across are:

Windows that have very shallow recesses: In this situation where the shutters are too tight to the window, there is little room to add a blind even with smaller handles.

Sash windows: The options with sash windows are limited when it comes to adding blinds. Due to the way sash windows operate, a free-hanging blind behind the shutter panel is the only solution they can have. This means if there isn’t enough room between the shutter and window, unfortunately these customers will have to look at an alternative solution such as blackout curtains to sit in front of their shutters or even look at replacing their shutters with blackout shutters where blinds are already built in.