Before you buy indoor window shutters there are a few things you should know about the type of wood used in making them. Some woods are better than others for making shutters. Although oak is a very good hardwood and you can make great furniture with it, oak is not the greatest for making shutters. Oak is a heavy wood and would make shutters very heavy for any window. Besides the louvers being easy to warp, oak is not a wood that is easily painted. You will find the same applies to maple. It requires pre-drilling and isn’t really suitable to be painted either.
Cedar would be a wonderful wood to use for shutters, but preferably on the outside only. It is a wood that mills and finishes good, but there are a few drawbacks with cedar as it is very easily marked and dented. Cedar is a very good wood for outside use, as it stands up to the weather well and is bug and decay resistant.
For shutters the most widely used wood is poplar. This is a moderately heavy wood and although you can’t stain this very well, it will take paint wonderfully. It is considered a lower cost wood product as it is cheaper and doesn’t have some of the qualities that other woods have.
The best wood to use for shutters is basswood. Basswood is a manageable renewable resource which makes it good for the environment as well as good for any shutters you may want to make for your home. This wood will give you very straight shutters with a fine distinctive grain and a lovely uniform texture. These shutters can be stained very easily and mounted with the same ease. This is the best wood to make your inside shutters with and add to the beauty of your home.