While most of us want a magnificent home that stands out amongst the others; we also want a home that blends using its surroundings and neighborhood.
Designing the surface of an home can be considered a complicated procedure for color choices, materials, balancing form and lines- it isn’t a job for novice designers.
Do you wonder why is a home exterior visually appealing? Why are there certain homes on the road that produce you stay in your tracks and gawk in awe of its beauty? It really is probably that those jaw-dropping homes have followed some key design principles. Yes, every design, interior or exterior, must follow some simple “rules” of design for the final outcome to be visually appealing.
Let’s check out 10 basic exterior design principles that will help help your house be a haven:
Follow these basic design principles to accomplish an amazing home exterior. Image Source: Vanbrouck
1) Balancing Shapes With Symmetry
Like in every types of design, balance and symmetry play an important role in obtaining a well-designed space. The facade of each home needs some semblance of balance and symmetry to be able to seem pleasing to the eye and properly designed.
Whether it’s the eye-catching appeal of a symmetrical Georgian home, where in fact the door is centered and the windows equally flank either side, or a home where in fact the balance is achieved through pointed roof lines or dormers that are equally located among the surface.
There are numerous ways to attain a proportional home exterior-some through apparent symmetry, while others aren’t as apparent. In any event, an adequately designed home has an exterior that is proportional and balanced.
home exterior
A home exterior should be properly balanced. Image Source: Highmark-Builders
2) Form Follows Function
Louis Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright’s mentor, coined the phrase, form follows function. Essentially, which means that the purpose of the building should be the starting place of the look.
What is the goal of your home? What do you intend to use your home for? Consider your families needs and then decide what’s required at home in order to support those needs.
The exterior of your home will mimic the form of the inside designs that you’ve chosen. Maybe you are an artist who chose large windows because you will need natural lighting to paint/create. Perhaps you needed a granny suite above the garage, therefore the exterior of the home has a dormer to make the window in that room look balanced. Remember that your home design affects the surface one, as well.
white house
The proper execution of your interior design will always drive the surface design. Image Source: Avalon CBG
3) House Materials and Textures
Using the plethora of options, it is very difficult to choose what materials we have to use on our home exterior. Between cedar shingles, vinyl siding, aluminum, brick, wood, stucco, steel…how do we choose?
It is advisable to balance sturdiness with aesthetics. Certainly, you want the surface of your house to reflect your individual style- are you a country guy/girl? Then you may want tumbled stone and cedar shingles. Have you been a modern minimalist? You might choose the lines of sleek steel or simple wood panels.
To avoid costly mistakes, it is always best to seek advice from with an experienced design architect. There’s also a lot of online visual tools that can help the simple truth is what your material choices can look like before you make that final financial investment.
This house is a good mixture of stone, stucco, roof tiles and wrought iron. Image Source: Steigerwald-Dougherty
4) Exterior Color Combinations
Oh, the cornucopia of color choices! How will you decide what’s the right color for your home exterior? Will you go bold or basic? As in all decorating, color choice is vital-it can hide flaws or when done poorly, draw attention to flaws.
Sherwin Williams claim that a effective and safe approach to color placement is to choose two tints or shades from the same color strip a few shades apart. Either the lighter or the darker shade could be utilized for your body and the opposite for the trim. The one third contrasting accent color could punctuate the door.
Color can play up so many features of your home exterior. Paint your front porch a bright fresh white to draw the attention to the cozy entrance, or make your too-tall home look shorter with a dark color at the top and a lighter color on bottom. The ways that color can trick the attention and play the positive are endless!
craftsman
Try choosing 3 colors or shades for your home exterior. Image Source: Sortun-Vos
5) Choosing the proper Roof
A durable roof is imperative-choosing a roof for your home is more than just deciding after color and aesthetics.
There are so many building options, with varying costs and life-expectancies. Material like slate and tile may seem ideal but understand that they are extremely heavy, so make certain your home can carry the strain. Asphalt shingles seem to be to be most prevalent because of their lower cost and easy install. Surprisingly, wood is also a viable option with the same life span ( 25 years) as asphalt shingles. Slate and metal are costly and heavy options, but may work for a few designs.
While you’ll find so many choices, they don’t all work within budgets and home design. Always consider cost, durability, weight, and what suits your homes style best.
metal roof
Deciding upon roofing materials and color can be difficult. Image Source: Design Guild Homes
6) How to Choose Your Garage Doors
One might not exactly think of an garage door within our homes style statement-but they might be wrong. Door manufacturer, Wayne Dalton, shows that buyers go through their online tutorial before choosing a garage door for their home.
Apart from design style, you will need to gain knowledge in the doors insulating properties, safety features, material strength spring designs, warranties and cost.
Once you are at night nitty gritty of mechanics, then you can have a great time deciding upon the style that best suits your home design. Whether it’s a clean, classic steel door or a cozy carriage house design-the options are endless.
garage doors
Garage doors are an equilibrium of form and function for the house exterior. Image Source: Witt Construction
7) What Windows Look Best
Just like garage doors, your homes windows are much more than functionality-windows are like the soul of your home, shining light onto all the moments shared within those four walls. We may offer you numerous tips in choosing the right window style for your home.
First and foremost, the windows you select have to be durable. Secondly, your windows should reflect your homes character. Modern homes look best with large expanses of floor-to-ceiling windows, while a traditional home may look best with symmetrically placed, white-paned, rectangular windows.
Other factors to consider are: UV rating, privacy, proper ventilation, ease of cleaning and outdoor views. Consider your options to be able to open the soul of your home with durable and aesthetically appealing windows.
exterior windows
Windows look into the soul of your house. Image Source: DJ Architects
8) Design AN INCREDIBLE Entryway
The most frequent question: What color must i paint my entry way? As we touched after above in the section titled, Color Combinations, choosing 2 shades or tints from the same color strip is most beneficial for the primary exterior trim and siding colors. A third color should be chosen for leading door.
You are able to go bold with the addition of a contrasting color that is opposite on the color wheel of your trim and siding colors, or you can pick a third lighter/darker shade that mimics the trim and siding. To make your entry stick out , it is advisable to choose a darker or bolder shade than the others of your house.
Aside from color, there are a great number of other features that can renew your entryway and get hold of your homes style-lighting, plants, door knobs, door knocker, door kick plates, rugs, and porch seating all enhance the overall appeal of your homes entry.
Make your entryway amazing with pops of color and plants. Image Source: Dennis Allen Associates
9) Landscaping IS VITAL
Landscaping your home involves a lot more than simply plunking a tree in your yard. Frequently it is well-placed plants that add that jaw-dropping appeal to a home, so that it is stand out amidst the others in a nearby.
It is difficult to really know what plants to decide for your landscape, so we suggest researching local soils and native plants. Greenhouse staff are usually very knowledgeable in plant species; they know what is most effective locally, plus they may also draft a landscape plan for your yard.
Get a green-thumb on and start planning your lush landscape today. Remember it takes time for plants to determine and complete, so patience is crucial. The sooner you begin, the better.
landscaping
Landscaping is the ultimate decorating touch for your home exterior. Image Source: Princetonscapes
10) LIGHT Your Home
Don’t let your home fade in to the darkness. Proper lighting is paramount for home safety and nighttime appeal. Apart from the clear light fixtures that straddle your doorways and garage doors, there are other outdoor lights that should be located around your home.
Choose lights that mimic your homes style. Traditional homes look good with lantern-style chandeliers hanging more than a covered entryway, or flanking the garage. Angular steel lights add appeal to the entryway of modern homes. You then must think about what other top features of your home might use some nighttime light.
The picture below shows a well-lit home; there are lights increasing of the stone steps that contributes to the entry (adding a good safety feature and visual appeal), pot lights under all the roof lines and lanterns flanking the garage.
exterior lighting
Light up the night with exterior lighting for your home. Image Source: Stonewood
As the design of your house exterior is an elaborate process that is fraught with decisions and choices, do not give up-a well-designed home May be accomplished with patience and a little help. Through the design process, we claim that you follow all 10 tips offered here in regards to to color, materials, form & function, balance & symmetry, lighting, doors, landscaping, windows and roofing.
Remember that there are a great number of online tools available that can demonstrate a virtual picture of what your design could look like-it’s always better to view it and think it’s great before you make the ultimate financial investment.
