The VanderHorn Architects team lives to see our architectural creations come to life as we cater to our clients’ individual tastes and needs. While we’ve created homes in a wide variety of architectural styles and find that each project is unique, there are a few styles that have proven to be the most popular in our recent custom renovations and new home builds. Today, we’re sharing our 5 top requested architectural styles.
SHINGLE STYLE
Our most requested style over the past five years, the shingle style is known for its broad expanses of shingle and roof, generous porches, and creative use of design elements inside and out.
Originally prevalent between 1880 and 1920, with earlier work being an offshoot of Queen Anne architecture, this style was increasingly influenced by early American and classical precedents. Our shingle style projects work particularly well with their settings, taking advantage of their topography, view aspects, and available sunlight.
COLONIAL/FEDERAL
A perennial favorite with many regional variations, the colonial style has an adaptable and elegant simplicity, ranging from rambling rustic cottages to symmetrically dignified homes in town that work well with today’s sensibilities.
The federal style is generally considered to be a more formal variation. This is a style that always has broad appeal and works with virtually any property.
CLASSICAL REVIVAL
A varied offshoot of classical styles such as Georgian and Neoclassical, and from a time when architectural styles were less compartmentalized than they are today, classical revival homes exude a dignified and elegant presence.
Some examples are textbook studies in classical design, while others are an amalgamation of styles generally considered colonial or even Victorian.
TRANSITIONAL/MODERN(ist)
These styles have made their presence known in the local market. Transitional can be most simply described as a blurring of traditional and modernist elements. While everything created today is modern by definition, the style of Modernism’s direct lineage can be traced to the likes of LeCorbusier and the Bauhaus.
We have used a transitional design palate to create updated classical homes, and have even been asked to design full-on modernist homes for clients.
ENGLISH VERNACULAR
Perhaps because we are known for specializing in this style, we have had the privilege to work on a number of English homes over the years.
Ranging from tudor to Arts and Crafts and numerous regional variations, this grouping of styles in America is known for its dramatic rooflines in tile or slate, generous use of masonry and timberwork, and layouts that afford surprising amounts of light and cross-ventilation.
