Shutters and Blinds Kiama

Kiama sits on the traditional lands of the Dharawal people, who knew this coastline long before Europeans arrived. The name is generally understood to derive from a Dharawal word describing the sound of the sea, a reference to the Blowhole that still draws visitors to the headland today. George Bass recorded the Blowhole in 1797, and within a generation cedar getters were working the Illawarra rainforest that once covered the hills behind the town. Through the nineteenth century Kiama grew on two industries. Dairy farming spread across the rich volcanic country toward Jamberoo and Gerringong, and quarrying took hold at Bombo, where blue metal basalt was shipped out through Kiama Harbour after it was completed in 1876. The railway arrived in 1887, connecting the town to Sydney and beginning its long shift from a working port to the coastal destination it is now. That history is still visible in the streets. The town centre holds heritage cottages, terraces and weatherboard homes well over a century old, many of them now holiday houses or short stays. Around them, newer development has spread north to Kiama Downs and Minnamurra and south toward Gerringong, with modern homes built to take in the ocean and the escarpment. Jamberoo and the inland valleys keep a rural character entirely their own. Window furnishings in Kiama have to answer both. In the older cottages, openings have shifted over a hundred years and almost nothing is square, so plantation shutters need to be measured to the reveal rather than fitted to a standard size, and honeycomb blinds are a genuinely useful addition in rooms that were never insulated. In the newer homes at Kiama Downs and along the headlands, large glass and wide stacker doors call for roller blinds, sheer curtains and motorised options that can handle the span. What every Kiama property shares is exposure. Salt off the ocean, strong summer sun and southerly weather all shorten the life of the wrong product, which is why we specify polymer and aluminium shutters close to the water, wind-rated tracks and Zipscreens on exposed decks, and marine-grade mesh with corrosion-resistant hardware on security screen doors. Fusion Shutters and Blinds is proud to serve Kiama and the surrounding coast with custom window furnishings built for the conditions.