Contemporary, Traditional or Retro Street Facade?
havana007
6 years ago
I have a planned rear extension for my post war rectangular house. The street facade/appeal is currently very lacking. Which style should I make the frontage -Contemporary, Traditional or Retro? My street is a mix of all.
Contemporary
Traditional
Retro
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havana007
6 years agoRelated Discussions
Art deco home renovation/extension suggestions needed!
Comments (41)Hi Sarah, hope you enjoyed your travels last night, that's something we have spent our lives doing plus living in different countries. Do look into the attic room/s they are lovely and the Velux skylights very unobtrusive, look great and if positioned correctly take care of venting any hot air, as I mentioned ours were pivoting ones and could be locked open in several positions. I much prefer these to dormer windows, you don't really notice them. The stairs were built off site and lifted into position and installed, built in. At the time we did ours a very good friend a builder did the same but just completely opened the whole ceiling space right out towards the gutters into a large bedroom play study area for his daughters, also using Velux windows. Glass ceilings, like Velux windows have been around for years, believe me I know, we're both getting older. Velux windows can be used as glass ceilings in opening and non opening configurations. I would love to see you keep the outdoor loo as well and updating the old shed into a new connecting space to the house, perhaps a glass breezeway. I will have another look at your plan again over the weekend. I love your front iron gate as well, auto sliding driveway gates work really well and would really fit with your carport. My brother in law put in a tall timber sliding gate at his last home, lovely cheers...See MoreUrgent help with street appeal!
Comments (19)I wouldn't replace the fibre cement panels under the windows with weatherboards, that would just accentuate the different window heights. Instead I would paint those panels a darker colour, say a charcoal grey, with the corner posts and other window trim in the same colour. (You are right, grey is timeless, while any blue would date very quickly.) Then the windows and panels become consistent vertical elements on a lighter facade. You can also pick out the fascias and gutters in that same grey to tie it all together. If you stripped back the brown painted battens to the undercroft and the balcony timber railings, and instead gave them a coat of decking oil for natural timber warmth and integrity, you could make a similar oiled horizontal batten front fence using hardwood decking boards on 50x50 galvanised steel posts. Then the fence and the undercroft battening would match. If the garage door is a tilt-a-door I would be tempted to replace the steel with oiled horizontal battens. Otherwise, paint it the same charcoal grey. Then you have a 3-tone colour scheme that will give the place simple understated elegance: White, grey, and natural oiled hardwood. I am curious why what looks like the front door is not accessible? It looks like there might have been front steps there at one time instead of the current deck. Probably a casualty of a previous renovation....See MoreWanting some Reference to modern facade that has 2nd story setback
Comments (10)thanks, I do appreciate that & yes I'll think about doing that ;) I think it's important to understand that "help" in with this stuff involves critique to a certain extent. I'm all for helping people, that's kind of inherently what my job is all about, but in order to do that in the best way possible we need to be appropriately positioned to do it, and give it the time/attention it deserves and we're not going to tell you the answer for nothing. You can't easily sort this stuff out via a forum. You're building a house that's going to cost you hundreds of thousands so I beg to differ, you can afford to get the design right, perhaps not a full blown architect service, but I'd argue it's false economy cutting corners at the design stage. Investment in design is money well spent. What Retro and I are saying, and clearly you are seeing it too here because you're still struggling with it all, is that design is a 3 dimensional process. Form follows function and the facade will reflect the plan solution. When you get to this point and the facade's not working, then the plan's not working either. You need to be working with someone with the capacity to understand the consequences of the floor plan spatially. But in your case what I'd argue is that if this is a serious priority for you the designer needs to understand this aspect back while they're planning the layout, NOT tweaking it afterwards. Building design is a skill that is incredibly underestimated in it's complexity. Ultimately until we understand exactly what your comprehensive brief requirements are we are limited in capacity to either critique or suggest a better option. Hence my suggestion that you best engage a competent designer who delivers the contemporary style that appeals and is integrated rather than applied to the floor plan. honestly that's the best advice I can give you here - I'll be in touch :) PD...See MoreAlternate facade?
Comments (30)Ahhhh (sigh) yes...... wouldn't that be great Arcke - a conversation about the true benefits and value of professional design..........one of the biggest challenges I think (we as) designers have is when design is done well, it looks so simple and effortless, that it can be mistaken that it's easy to do.......when in fact (as you know) that underlying the (as you said) "illusion of simplicity", is a deep and complex balancing process that ultimately takes years, arguably a lifetime to properly master........ Wai's house here is a remarkable opportunity (frustrating to look onto from our position) as it (dare I say relatively easily!) could be cleaned up to be a stunningly elegant residence of simplicity, with a far superior living experience and consequently a much more valuable piece of real estate long term......but it requires a seasoned design Pro at the helm who understands this type of architectural language, form and the relationship of human scale to deliver it, not just a drafty who has been directed what walls to draw up by the owner and just slaps a hip form over it all........See Morehavana007
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