Our clients loved their homes location but needed more space. We added two bedrooms and a bathroom to the top floor and dug out the basement to make a daylight living space with a rec room, laundry, office and additional bath. Although costly, this is a huge improvement to the home and they got all that they hoped for.

Craftsman Contemporary

HomeSource Builders

This couple wanted their mountainside home to take in their views of downtown Asheville. The distinctive vaulted ceiling line carries from the front porch, through the living room, and out onto the back deck. The main living area features floor-to-ceiling windows to embrace the beauty of the mountains. Reflecting their contemporary tastes, the interior lines are all simple and clean. The back deck spans the nearly the full width of the home, with minimally obscuring stainless steel cable railing.

Contemporary Rustic - Home

Alair Homes Green Bay

Craftsman exterior with tan lineals and columns. Certainteed Thistle Green Siding. Pella windows.

Residential Siding - Estes Park, CO

Northern Lights Exteriors

Carrie Crews Photography

Forest Cove Hartwell Lake Home

Chapman Design Group, Inc.

Donald Chapman AIA, CMB

Lakeside Rustic Hybrid Home in Northwestern Wisconsin

User

Another view of the exterior of this hybrid home. The deck will soon be added. Rustic hand peeled half log is used for the window and door trim. Vertical logs are used for the outside corners with cedar shakes on the upper gables.

Combining Colonial Tan Natural Stone with Olive Green Siding

STONEYARD®

Colonial Tan Square & Rectangular Stone Visit www.stoneyard.com/975 for more info and video.

Japanese Craftsman - Santa Cruz Beach House Remodel

Shannon Demma

Coastal Cottage Before/After

Daniel Conlon Architects

Tim Lee Photography Fairfield County Award Winning Architect

park city area custom home

User

Amicalola Cottage home in the Park City, Utah area custom built for clients with high end finishes

New Contemporary

Decker Ross Interiors

Cherrydale Green Cottage

WINN Design+Build

This cute green cottage started out as a brick "shoebox". A large gable was framed over the front to visually shorten the facade. In addition, a box bay and portico were added. The stained pea-soup cedar shakes with rusty-red trim finish the look.

Barrington Carpenter Gothic

Katie Hutchison Studio

This project for a builder husband and interior-designer wife involved adding onto and restoring the luster of a c. 1883 Carpenter Gothic cottage in Barrington that they had occupied for years while raising their two sons. They were ready to ditch their small tacked-on kitchen that was mostly isolated from the rest of the house, views/daylight, as well as the yard, and replace it with something more generous, brighter, and more open that would improve flow inside and out. They were also eager for a better mudroom, new first-floor 3/4 bath, new basement stair, and a new second-floor master suite above. The design challenge was to conceive of an addition and renovations that would be in balanced conversation with the original house without dwarfing or competing with it. The new cross-gable addition echoes the original house form, at a somewhat smaller scale and with a simplified more contemporary exterior treatment that is sympathetic to the old house but clearly differentiated from it. Renovations included the removal of replacement vinyl windows by others and the installation of new Pella black clad windows in the original house, a new dormer in one of the son’s bedrooms, and in the addition. At the first-floor interior intersection between the existing house and the addition, two new large openings enhance flow and access to daylight/view and are outfitted with pairs of salvaged oversized clear-finished wooden barn-slider doors that lend character and visual warmth. A new exterior deck off the kitchen addition leads to a new enlarged backyard patio that is also accessible from the new full basement directly below the addition. (Interior fit-out and interior finishes/fixtures by the Owners)

Vallombrosa

Donna Rose Design

Realville

Wright Jenkins Home Design

MidCentury Modern Design

(273M)

Rite Way Custom Homes

Spivy Submit

Custom Audio Video

Rustic Ranch Full of Fresh Character

Waypoint Living Spaces

The SANDFIDDLER COTTAGE exterior

The Cottage Building Company

Kristopher Gerner; Mark Ballard

Custom Huntbox

The Vuepoint Group, LLC

EdgarAllanPhotography

Green Exterior Design Ideas

The front exterior of your home – the driveway, front yard, verandah and entrance – is a fantastic place to start making that all-important first impression on house guests. Even mailboxes and house numbers can have a wonderful way of grabbing people’s attention. The architectural design should reflect the overall style of your house and the family that live there; while your choice of materials will help your house blend in with its surrounds. Browse the photos on Houzz for ideas and inspiration for the exterior of your house, and strike up a conversation with the architects and designers of your favourite picks. You’ll find house designs for contemporary, eclectic, modern, traditional styles and more.

How do I decide on the exterior style of my home?

Your location, overall sense of style, budget and current home layout will dictate the style of your exterior. If you’re renovating a period home, the materials and features you use should reflect the date in which it was built, while a unique colour scheme could add contemporary flair. New homes may prefer to look to modern or contemporary designs with structural simplicity, whereas, if you live by the ocean, a beach-style design may better suit your locale. That’s not to say you can’t build a new home that has period influences. If you’re a traditionalist, you can borrow architectural details from the Art Deco period, for instance, or use finishes that reflect more of a Scandinavian style, too.

What exterior house colours and materials should I use?

Traditional homes typically use brick and timber building materials, while stone, board-formed concrete and metal cladding are popular contemporary options. Again, the materials you use will depend on your location and the statement you want to make. Your budget will also affect your choice. Vinyl siding is affordable and easy to install, while stone is more expensive but durable and low maintenance. If you’re not ready to renovate but want to update the exterior of your home, you can still paint it. Look to your neighbours when choosing exterior house colours. Consider the streetscape and what type of colours are already in use, firstly, so you don’t replicate next door’s shade; and secondly, so you don’t stand out like a sore thumb. If you’re renovating a period home, you could paint features or intricate details in a bold, standout hue. Front doors, garage doors and window trims also look great in eye-catching colours, even if the rest of the house’s facade is neutral.

How can I maximise my home’s street appeal?

To spice up your home’s architectural design, landscape the surrounding area with plants and pathways that accent the style of your home. If you just need a quick revamp, look at your cement and pavers – these can split and crack over time; and repairing or replacing them can do wonders for your street appeal, especially if it’s a large area like your driveway. Plants, garden paths or low walls can can also add structure to your front yard. Light up your home with sufficient outdoor lighting to make walking up to the front door easy at night. You could use bollard lights along your entry path, or replace tiny wall sconces with statement pendant lighting at the entrance or on your verandah. Decorative elements such as house numbers, mailboxes and doormats will also add character. And if you're looking to sell your house, it may be worth hiring a stylist to help make the most of your property.