There's a particular rhythm to a house up here. The doors are open more than they're closed, the light changes character three or four times a day, and by mid-afternoon everyone in the house has developed an instinct for finding the breeze, whichever room it happens to be moving through. Anything you add to a North Queensland home eventually gets measured against that rhythm: does it work with it, or does it get in the way? Plantation shutters, done well, are firmly in the first camp.

Ask most North Queensland households which part of the house gets the least use for the effort it deserves, and there's a good chance it's the patio. It's usually the best-positioned space in the place: catches the breeze, looks out over the garden or the pool, and is exactly where you'd want to be having breakfast or a quiet drink at the end of the day. And yet it's often the space that sits half-used, closed up before rain, swept clear of leaves after a blow, and enjoyed properly for maybe half the year.

Enclosing your patio can be a great way to add value to your home. By giving you another room and keeping insects out, you can sit out on the back patio and not worry about flies or mozzies.

​Enclosing your patio can be a great way to add value to your home. By giving you another room and keeping insects out, you can sit out on the back patio and not worry about flies or mozzies.