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hyer717

Thoughts on this exterior

hyer717
9 years ago

I found a plan online that I was interested in but I wasn't crazy about the exterior. I made some modifications to the exterior to simplify the number of gables, any additional ideas/thoughts?

Original:

Comments (23)

  • hyer717
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Modified:

  • mtnrdredux_gw
    9 years ago

    Like your version much better, plus it looks to me as though it will make the room on the left top seem nicer and more open, without detracting from the room on the top right

  • nini804
    9 years ago

    Oh, I like it (yours) sooo much better! Very pretty!

  • palimpsest
    9 years ago

    What about similar bumpouts but without both peaks?

  • palimpsest
    9 years ago

    Or even a bay like projection on each side , with a slighly recessed center with a deeper eave under the same roof and No extra peaks, with a shed dormer to the side.

  • mrspete
    9 years ago

    I like the first one because it keeps the mass of the roof towards the middle of the house.

    Though I usually find rooflines overly "fussy", I do not like the straight-line roof at all.

  • reinitodepiedra
    9 years ago

    In the first picture there is a gable over the entry way. I think that is there not only for looks, but to make it so you don't have to have a gutter over the entry way. It would deflect the water to the sides. If you left that there you probably wouldn't need any gutters on the front of the house which would be much nicer for maintenance.

  • palimpsest
    9 years ago

    The mass in the center of the room in the multi-gabled first version of the house though leads to a petering-out of the mass of the roof as you extend laterally and kind of makes the house "sag" as it goes toward corners and creates a weak terminus rather than a strong one. We're used to seeing it but that doesn't make it good architecture.

    I think the single roof may look a little heavy, I've made it too tall, but at least it is not the indescribable meandering of shapes in the original roof. Again we are used to seeing it, but that doesn't make it a strong design. I am seeing something like this in all the gables

    This post was edited by palimpsest on Mon, Dec 8, 14 at 17:46

  • Oaktown
    9 years ago

    I like best what palimpsest posted at 14:23, but assume that the second story front wall would be straight rather than 2 bump outs? I'm not a fan of the tapered columns on this particular house.

    Personally, when I saw the first photo, I thought, oh they must have had some daylight plane constraints on that left side.

  • zippity1
    9 years ago

    it may not be good architecture but i actually like 1 the best
    i like the others but slightly less

  • littlebug5
    9 years ago

    I like the first revision, but with plain columns. I think the tapered columns are adding a lot of busy-ness to the front, emphasizing and highlighting every gable by seemingly pointing right to them.

  • renovator8
    9 years ago

    I agree with bug. If the roof hips are deleted, it is possible to reduce the formality of the gables and the apparent size of the end gables using the old 2 story disguised as a 1 1/2 story trick.

  • palimpsest
    9 years ago

    Two peaks with gabled roof instead of hipped

  • LogBuildDreams
    9 years ago

    The only thing I find unfortunate is the loss of the center roof over the front entrance, makes the entrance disappear. My eyes go first to the 2nd floor bump outs, and I barely notice the little front door with those fancy sidelights and transom, tucked all in the dark back there. I would probably want to still find some way to make that front door pop out of the space. That's where folks are headed when they show up!

  • golfergirl29
    9 years ago

    I am not an expert in design, so I was thrilled when I found the book "What Not to Build--Do's and Don'ts of Exterior Home Design." Great tips and photos of what works and doesn't and why. As they said, sometimes you just don't feel right about a look but can't specify why. This explains it--the rule of five, different window types, proportion and balance, making the front door pop, etc. It's what I needed to be comfortable with our design. Good luck!

  • hyer717
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Ok, after thinking about this exterior for a couple of weeks and reading through all of the comments, I have come up with my own interpretation. This is only photo-shopped for now, but the colors are close to what I would want and the slope of the lot is accurate. Thoughts?

    This post was edited by Dan.H on Sat, Dec 27, 14 at 21:51

  • CSKI13
    9 years ago

    First post here (we're just getting started w/our build) but was moved to say that I really like what you ended up with here. Well done, and good luck!

  • CSKI13
    9 years ago

    deleted duplicate post

    This post was edited by CSKI13 on Thu, Jan 1, 15 at 13:18

  • littlebug5
    9 years ago

    I like it too. It looks really, really big, but it must suit your needs.

    I like the porch.

  • hyer717
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Ok, after laying out the inside, we had to switch the gable over to the left. Also, the original photoshopped picture was not to scale so the house does not look nearly as big anymore! Comments welcome!

  • bry911
    9 years ago

    Just my 2 cents...

    You are mixing your metaphors here. You have selected a craftsman house then worked very hard to remove all the William Morris and Frank Lloyd Wright from it. Craftsman houses are defined by multiple textures and angles with as much oak on earth tones as you can get. It is no small coincidence that Frank Lloyd Wright moved from Craftsman to modern/contemporary and the two are still married today. You have almost turned it into a farmhouse look, and if you love the interior you now have, then great.

    However, I am not a fan of the shingle look siding on non-craftsman homes, that much shingle can look great on small houses but there is a reason you break it up with different angles, colors and textures. If you don't, they can look like you are living in the biggest fish ever.

    Additionally, I don't see the partial stacked stone at the columns as being more aesthetically pleasing than full white columns. If you love the stone then I would personally keep the stone to grade then abandon all the stone for lap siding above grade. If you are not married to the stone a nice white porch and white lattice under the porch would really make the whites pop out.

    Either way it's your house so enjoy it.

  • hyer717
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Hi Bry911,

    I agree, it is too much shingle siding in the current drawing. This was just the first version from our designer. I am planning on lap siding on the house with shingles at the top of the gables.

    I like the stone on the columns tieing into the stone on the foundation.

    Other changes that I am considering

    - The shed dormer on the side of the garage is a bit too large.

    - The windows on the house could stand to be a little bit wider

    Any other ideas? I am open to suggestions!

    Dan

  • missingtheobvious
    9 years ago

    For me, switching the gable to the left -- in combination with the weight of the chimney and the loss of the gable over the front door -- makes the left side of the house too heavy. Perhaps wise landscaping could help ameliorate that heaviness.

    I love the way the stone of the foundation and porch, in combination with how the porch extends beyond the house to the left, tricks the eye into ignoring the falling ground on that side.

    I would prefer plain pillars to the hybrid stone/pillar things.

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