Planning To Build Your Dream Luxury Home?
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The structural design of our home significantly impacts our daily experience of living in it. That is why it is important to build a home that matches the aesthetics and convenience you desire. Here comes the importance of custom homes that allow you to design your home the way you want. However, designing a home is often challenging and requires architectural ideas.
There are multiple architectural styles, historical and modern and choosing one from them often seems daunting. This blog will walk you through 10 popular architectural designs for your custom home, helping you make a thoughtful decision for your home.
Throughout history, architectural designs have evolved, and some classic and timeless designs are still in vogue. Here are some of the popular designs that you must explore for your custom home.
Victorian architecture originated in the Victorian Era in England during 1857-1901. The houses are decorated in a highly opulent and ostentatious interior design with signature features, colored bricks, ornate gables and painted railings. Others are stained glass windows and a decorative fireplace.
In America, people have adopted the style and blended it with local styles for convenience. One of the iconic examples is the Painted Ladies row of Victorian houses in San Francisco. If you are fond of luxurious classic home design, Victorian architecture is your choice.
Mediterranean-style homes are popular in warmer regions like California. Homeowners who prefer minimalistic elegance that offers a calm and laid-back vibe choose Mediterranean architecture. Even though Mediterranean homes are smaller in size with smaller rooms and lower ceilings, leaving very limited space for a modern lifestyle, Californian architects have adopted the design to create larger spaces.
The modern Mediterranean homes are more spacious with an indoor-outdoor extension. Some of the signature features are swimming pools, open floor plans, terracotta external roofs, stone walls painted in white, curved doors with an essential front door, iron beam windows and balconies. So, if the Spanish and Italian influenced architectures draw you, go for a Mediterranean-style custom home.
Ranch-style homes are extremely popular in the United States, originating in California around the 1930s. These are single-story houses with spread-out L-patterned, U-shaped or rectangular layouts. The house is built on a concrete slab that is of different types, including split-level, storybook ranch and more.
All are open-concept layouts with all the adjacent floors at one level. This allows you to have useful outdoor spaces, such as an outdoor dining space. However, you need enough space for the spread-out layout. Otherwise, it is most suitable for homeowners who want easy mobility, especially older adults, and easy maintenance.
The Tudor homes emerged during the 16th-century Tudor period in Medieval England and Wales and feature Gothic elements. Features like turrets and towers are typical of Gothic styles. Other notable features include gable roofs, small leaded-glass windows with geometric patterns, decorated front doors and half-timber facades, made up of red-toned bricks and stucco-stoned outer structure. The bricks were often embellished with intricate designs.
The interior design includes ceiling beams, tile, brick or wooden floors, a sweeping wooden staircase and wood panel walls. The Tudor style is also common in the United States, and most of the houses have been adapted with modern features and decoration. If you dream about an ideal America, an opulent and elegant lifestyle, the Tudor style is the fit for you.
The Cape Cod style house is famous across England and is known for its timeless architectural designs. Originating in the Massachusetts coastal regions, the houses are typically rectangular with a steep roof and a front door. These are one-story buildings with a half-story second floor.
The sloped roof makes it ideal for winter regions where snowfall is common. If you have a smaller family and are looking for old English, cosy and elegant cottage-like charm, Cape Cod is your ultimate choice.
Prairie is the first distinctly American style of architecture and is a product of the Prairie School, which is similar to the Arts and Crafts movement. This style emphasises that buildings should be designed in a way that reflects the place it is located in, i.e., the surrounding landscape.
It focuses on functionality and convenience over aesthetics. Some of the key features are horizontal lines, surfaces, handmade long wrought wood works and art glass inspired by arts and Crafts movement, open floor concept, continuous indoor to outdoor first floor and massive windows.
Homeowners who believe that homes should be more practically designed and prefer homes near nature, Prairie-style homes are an excellent choice. One of the most iconic Prairie structures is the 1935 Fallingwater House located in Pennsylvania.
Farmhouses offer a rustic elegance to your living space. The modern farmhouse style features more contemporary décor with modern furniture, a sleek kitchen with white walls and wooden windows. Other features include a grey or dark metal roof, a large, spacious porch with a roof, multiple windows and rustic lighting. Additionally, it exudes a vintage charm with decorative elements such as colourful patterns of patterned tiles on the porch, painted shutters and more. These features make it ideal for inviting a homely feeling and ambience.
During 20th century, craftsman architectural design was popular among homeowners. The 20th century custom home style has made a comeback today. People who prefer wooden luxury homes can choose this option, featuring built-in cabinetry, tapered squared columns, etc. The meticulous use of wood makes such homes cozy and inviting for the dwellers and guests.
Popular between 1600s and 1700s, the colonial-styled houses have once again gained popularity among homeowners. Notably, the design and aesthetics of colonial homes vary depending on the cultural influences on them. For example, Dutch colonial-styled homes look different from French colonial-styled homes. The materials vary across wood, stone, and brick depending on the style of colonial home you choose.
A few noteworthy features of colonial homes are an equal number of windows on both sides of the door, a large central door, a symmetrical rectangular shape, a wooden staircase, etc. Find an experienced custom luxury home contractor in Austin, Tx, for a personalized colonial-styled home.
The modern architectural style was introduced in the mid-20th century, during the modernism movement following World War I and II. The style emphasises designs that align and cater to the practical, minimalistic and functional needs of modern households. However, it also provides ample scope for experimentation.
Homeowners often combine different vintage styles with modern ones. Open floor plans, large windows, glass panes and sunken living rooms are some of the signature characteristics of modern and vintage blended designs of modern style architecture.
Building a custom home is always special, and there are multiple architectural types for you to choose from. You can also blend different styles for your custom home. However, while choosing a custom home architectural style, there are many other factors that you must consider apart from your personal preferences. These include site and location, curb value, builder expertise and budget.
Consult Bryan Murphy at BLDR, Austin’s top luxury home developing contractor, qualified to provide valuable guidance on how to make the best decision with your custom home architectural designs.
