Identify Your Window Type Before Ordering Shutters

Before choosing a shutter frame, identify the basic features around your window. The most important questions are whether the window has a recess, an architrave, a projecting sill and any hardware or moving parts that occupy the recess.

In this article

• What kind of architrave do I have?
• Does my window have a sill?

• Does the window have a recess or reveal?
• Is there an architrave around the opening?
• Does the bottom have a projecting sill?
• Are there handles, winders, locks, flyscreens or inward-opening sections?

These details determine the most suitable mounting method and how the final measurements should be taken.

Does my window have a recess?

If the glass and window frame sit back from the wall surface, the space between them and the front of the wall is the recess or reveal. A sufficiently deep, unobstructed recess may allow the shutter to be inside mounted.

What is an architrave?

An architrave is the trim surrounding the window opening. Some windows have no architrave at all, while others have simple square trim or highly decorative mouldings.

What kind of architrave do I have?

Bullnose architrave

A bullnose architrave has a mostly flat front face with a softened or rounded outer edge.

Decorative architrave

Decorative architraves contain grooves, steps or moulded details rather than one continuous flat face.

Square architrave

A square architrave has straight edges and a simple flat face, making it particularly straightforward for many shutter mounting options.

Does my window have a sill?

A sill is the ledge at the bottom of the window that projects further into the room than the other sides of the opening. A window can have both a recess and a sill.

Identifying the sill matters because the bottom of the shutter frame may need to finish on top of it.