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Choosing the style for your homes exterior can be a very exciting part of planning your custom home. Check out these tips on designing a house exterior in a particular style:
Let the surrounding environment influence the style of your home’s exterior. Are you building your home out in the country? Is the climate dry or damp? What kind of vegetation will be in the backdrop? What kind of home do you picture in this environment? Also consider how the style will fit in amongst the other homes in the neighborhood (if the houses are in close vicinity).
Design the house in a traditional style if the environment influences you so. Traditional styles include: Georgian Colonial, Federal, Cap Cod, and Saltbox. The style of these homes is influenced by the homes built in the colonial period of America (1600-late 1700’s). Colonial homes are usually built square with a steep-pitched roof and a central door with a decorative crown (columns and shutters optional). Traditional homes can look very stately with as much as three stories (Federal, Georgian). You can also go with a more modest traditional style with one story (Saltbox, Cape Cod).
Victorian homes allow you to decorate the exterior of your home in a very ornate fashion. This style is influenced by the homes built in the Victorian era (late 1800’s-early 1900’s). The Victorian style features ornately designed dormers, turrets, towers, decorative posts, and wrap-around porches. These features give you a great deal of freedom to paint your house with multi-color schemes (San Francisco homes e.g.). Victorian homes look great in a country setting or in the middle of city backdrop.
Country/Ranch style is a safe choice to go with if you are building on a large lot. This style is usually rectangular shaped or L-shaped. It features a steep roofline, wrap-around porch, and window shutters (optional). Country style homes are influenced by the country homes most common in Mid-America.
Mediterranean homes are influenced by the homes built in Mediterranean countries (Italy, Spain, Morocco, etc.). This style is popular in more sunny states like Florida, California, Arizona, and the rest of the Sun Belt. These homes feature a stucco exterior, low-pitched tiled roof, open verandas, and courtyards. Spanish Colonial homes also offer a more traditional design in this style.
The main feature of the contemporary style is that it is less decorated and ornate than other styles. Contemporary homes often include large unframed windows and a tar-shingled roof. They come in a wide range of geometric shapes and can have a low or high-pitched roof.
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