Exterior design is as important as interior design- it’s the first thing the world sees about your house. Moreover, the exterior design is a great way to add your personality to the outdoors and make an impact. The exterior design will not only serve to make your outdoors beautiful and well, more you, but also make it seem approachable and new. Here are some exterior design styles you can choose from when deciding on what to do with the exteriors of your home!
Coastal Look
A staple in the countryside with beaches and coastal areas, the coastal home exterior design is perfect for those who enjoy lots of sunlight, both indoors as well as outdoors. The look makes the house feel calm, fresh, and symmetrical. The main feature of this kind of look is the use of neutral colours as well as the large outdoors and windows that the house features. Use plenty of white and nautical colours and patterns to add to the ‘coastal’ theme. Since the house is inspired by living near nature, using a lot of curved and organic lines will make it look more authentic to the vibe. If you are using metal, go for copper or aged gold colours as they line up perfectly with the theme.
Cape cod
One of the most common types of houses in suburban communities- if done right, cape cod can make your house look like it belongs in a fairytale. These houses are usually a story and a half tall and have steep roofs with big windows. The frame is made to suit the England climate which is often rainfall and wind. These designs require good gutter systems to ensure that the water is not getting collected on the roof. Click here for professional gutter installation services. One of the most common themes in these designs is the use of neutral colours and darker accents with front gardens. Exposed brick exteriors and silver and metal trimmings go well with these exteriors. If you decide to go for a bigger cape cod house, you can make it up to two stories higher. Bigger cape cod houses usually give a more ‘country home’ vibe than the small, more delicate ones.
Craftsman style home
This style became famous in the 20th century, after the advent of the arts and crafts movement, hence the name, ‘craftsman style’. These homes pay homage to materials and motifs inspired by nature. Most of these homes are made with sustainable materials like wood and glass. They often feature light woodwork as well as stained glass designed with natural and forest motifs. Following the nature theme, the colour palette remains neutral and earthy- including shades like dark green, orange, and natural browns. These homes usually feature a flatter roof, with the steep not being very prevalent and play emphasis on straight lines in the exteriors. They are often accompanied by front gardens as well as porches. There are various versions of craftsman style homes you can look into as well- bungalows, Stickley and mission being the main and most famous ones.
Prairie
These are some of the rarest kinds of architecture to be found around the world, despite their amazing architecture and nod to nature. Prairie homes are known for their emphasis on the horizontal, rather than the vertical. This home exterior design was put forward by Frank Lloyd Wright and a group of young architects. The concept behind this arts and crafts inspired house was to conceptualize the flat land texture of Midwest America. The structural elements focus on the horizontal lines, making the roofs long and flat. This kind of architecture is the complete opposite of the art deco movement where the roofs were pointed upwards. The exteriors also often feature handmade craftsmanship like handwrought wood and stained glass. The prairie exterior design style also incorporates a bunch of simple and natural woodwork as well as an open concept first floor.
Contemporary
Contemporary home exterior designs are common to come by but the biggest problem with them is that they follow trends- which makes them subject to going out of trend and needing renovation every few years. At the moment, contemporary designs feature double stories- usually with flatter roofs as colour combinations that cater to nature- dark greens, yellows, and deep blues. However, contemporary design has recently started incorporating a lot of curves over the vertical, straight lines and balance. They also feature a lot of silver metals over gold and have bigger windows. However, they are not timeless. While they might have some features that are classic and won’t change for a long time, the basic contemporary home designs are subject to getting ‘old’ and out of the trend as soon as new lifestyles emerge or people start fixating on other exterior design styles.
