The Georgian House Plans Style

Posted by admin in House Plans on May 6, 2013

The Georgian style home is best described as being orderly and symmetrical, with a rectangular shape and formally symmetrical exteriors and interiors. Based upon the classical symmetry of the Renaissance, Georgian house plans became quite the rage in the New England and Southern colonies during the 18th century. The style has roots in both the classical architectural styles of ancient Greece and Rome and also the Italian renaissance style. English settlers in America were inspired by the elaborate Georgian style homes which were being built in the mother country, and tried to reproduce the lifestyle of the wealthy nobility back home. It became the dominant architectural style throughout the American colonies in the 18th century. While colonial homes in the Georgian style can be found in practically every old community on the U.S. East Coast, still Colonial Williamsburg is the most notable example (particularly the College of William and Mary’s President’s house, a stately brick mansion with perfect balance, symmetry and formality, which was finished in 1733 and has been home to all of the presidents of that university for three centuries).

In the southern colonies Georgian homes were constructed of brick; but as you move northward toward New England (where brick was not as common) wood frame construction dominates. These European home plans look quite formal: they are square and symmetrical in shape, with both exteriors and interiors arranged according to a strict proportion and symmetry. From the centrally-located front entrance, a hallway and staircase form an axis around which interior rooms are positioned. Often these homes have two chimneys above a medium pitch, side-gabled roof with pedimented dormers and dentil (tooth-like blocks) decorating the roof line along the eaves and a centered front door with pilasters – the flat, shallow columns found in Greek architecture – on each side. The central door is flanked by evenly-spaced double-hung windows; and they are invariably of two stories (one story homes in this style are referred to as Cape Cod style). There are traditionally five rectangular, evenly spaced windows across the facade of these homes. The windows are multi-paned, with nine or twelve panes in each sash and they have louvered shutters (particularly in the South) which welcome the breeze but provide shade from the sun. In the North paneled shutters are more common, to close tightly to protect the home from the harsh winds, snow, and sleet.

In considering building with Georgian country style house plans, it should be remembered that both brick and wood construction require maintenance. Wood clapboard which is not encased in vinyl siding always requires periodic painting or staining. Exteriors of masonry need much less maintenance, only requiring occasional tuck pointing. The multi-paned windows characteristic of this style are not particularly energy efficient. They must fit tightly and need to be reglazed now and then to keep the putty soft so that it seals well. The wood shake and slate roofs used in original Georgian style buildings were actually sounder than the asphalt shingles available today but all roofs require inspection and maintenance – even shake and slate.

Of all the European home plans brought by settlers to America, Georgian house plans are most typically “colonial American”. These formal, symmetrical country style house plans have always bespoken wealth for the leisure class.

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The Story of Cape Cod Home Plans

Posted by admin in House Plans on May 2, 2013

Cape Cod home plans were originally developed by English settlers in America, who developed this northeastern United States style featuring a plain front with central door flanked by two windows, and gabled roof with small dormers. The next time you see someone playing Monopoly, look at the little green houses put down on Park Place and Boardwalk. These game pieces, with their steep roofs, central chimneys, and rectangular shapes, are good examples of classic Cape Cod home architecture. While Cape Cod is a quintessentially American style, the earliest styles were built in the 1600′s by English settlers in imitation of the simple thatched cottages common back in England. It is a good design to keep out harsh New England winters, since the heart of the home is a big central chimney which provides heat to all rooms clustered around it, as well as light and fire for cooking. Exteriors as well as roofs were sheathed in cedar shingles, which also helped to insulate against the cold. Coastal home plans from the 17th and 18th centuries often had uninsulated crawl spaces beneath the first floor which were used as root cellars and the original settlers packed seaweed against the stone foundations to insulate against the chilling drafts blowing from the ocean. Steep roofs quickly shed snow and rain. In short, Cape Cod design is about functionality rather than form.

The style had largely died out until Royal Barry Willis, a Boston architect, revived the style in the 1920′s as a contemporary option for housing. Willis retained the exterior shape of the Cape Cod, but he adapted the interior to modern lifestyles. The majority of homes seen today were built after World War II, when returning soldiers with young families needed inexpensive, functional housing. The Cape Cod filled this bill magnificently, and it was the basic design of some of America’s first big housing developments, such as William J. Levitt’s Levittown on Long Island, NY, which contained over 17,000 identical homes; and which was a model for many later developments.

The key elements which characterize Cape Cod cottage style house plans are: a large central chimney located directly behind the front door; rooms which cluster around this chimney in a rectangular shape; a steep roof with shallow overhang to quickly shed snow and rain; and two windows on either side of the front door, often with dormers flanking the chimney which open up into the attic; weathered gray shingle siding (although newer homes in this style can also be built of stone, brick, or stucco). The second floor, which was often used for boarders or seafaring men, was accessed by a narrow “captain’s stairway” with very steep risers and shallow treads minimizing the use of space on the first floor. The advantage of Cape Cod homes is that they are inexpensive to build and maintain: a small house on a small lot costs considerably less than the average new home. Moreover, the cozy floor plan of Cape Cods is good for retirees and other people without large families who don’t want the cost and hassle of maintaining a huge home.

Cape Cod home plans are ideal for summer homes and for people seeking the simple life. Like all cottage style house plans, they are cheap to build, cheap to heat, and cheap to maintain; which is why these functional coastal home plans have always been favored by builders of inexpensive housing.

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The Story of Craftsman Style Home Plans

Posted by admin in House Plans on April 1, 2013

The Craftsman house plan has its origins in the Arts and Crafts movement of the late nineteenth century, which was a reaction against the mechanized, mass-produced psychology of the industrial revolution. In America it influenced architecture, landscape design, interior design, and the applied and decorative arts. In both architecture and the decorative arts, the Craftsman style has continued in numerous revivals, as well as restoration projects, to the present day. Its origins are British, but by the 1890′s some of the most influential architects and designers in Boston began to adapt the British design reforms begun by William Morris. The first American Arts and Crafts Exhibition opened at Boston’s Copley Hall in April 1897, with over a thousand objects fashioned by 160 craftsmen and craftswomen. Two months later, The Society of Arts and Crafts was founded to promote artistic works in all handicrafts, and to counteract “the desire for over ornamentation and specious originality.” The movement was an early advocate of the “form follows function” ideal.

In America the Arts and Crafts style embraced locally handcrafted metal, wood, and glass work to create objects which were elegant in their simplicity. In the field of architecture there was a reaction against both the opulence of Victorian architecture, and also the mass-produced housing style. The Arts and Crafts style was for sturdy structures with clean lines, made of natural materials. Craftsman style home plans were defined by their low pitched gable roofs with broad eaves; exposed wood structural elements, and large front porches. The typical Craftsman style house was built of wood and had one or one and a half stories. The distinguishing feature of the Craftsman style was its philosophy that was predicated upon a functional aesthetic; use of natural materials; and a greater appreciation for the craftsmanship which its proponents felt was missing from the ornate traditional styles of the nineteenth century. The Arts and Crafts designers and architects believed that by returning to a simpler and less pretentious style they could foster a healthier, more productive and more comfortable lifestyle.

The Craftsman style bungalow adapted the practical floor plan and large porch typical of British colonial architecture in India. This style proved very popular, and the bungalow house plan was a favorite in building plan books and in pre-cut home kits of the early 20th century. While all Craftsman houses can be considered to be bungalows, not all bungalows are built in the Craftsman style, which is distinguished by excellent workmanship and many fine details. Typically, a Craftsman home has the following features: 1 or 1 1/2 stories tall; a large covered front porch with massive battered columns; a low-pitched roof with exposed rafters and deep eaves; dormers; double-hung windows with a single pane in the lower window and multiple lights in the upper window; decorative knee braces; built-in cabinetry; a large fireplace flanked with built-in cabinetry. Additionally, this style featured many fine details, such as hammered bronze or copper metalwork, and art tiles made by notable art potters such as the Roycrofters.

Although the Arts and Crafts movement began in Britain, Craftsman style home plans appealed to the American tradition of simplicity and craftsmanship. The typical craftsman house plan was basically a bungalow house plan, with fine workmanship and attention to details.

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