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Modern Home Exteriors Turn a Corner With Mixed Materials
Breaking free from monochromatic monotony, exteriors with different materials on the sides create interest in an unexpected way
Houzz Contributor. I am an architect and writer living in New York City. I have Bachelor of Architecture and Master in Urban Planning degrees, and over ten years experience in architectural practice, split between Chicago and NYC. Currently I'm focused on writing and online pursuits. My daily blog can be found at http://archidose.blogspot.com
Houzz Contributor. I am an architect and writer living in New York City.... More »
The norm with single-family houses is that the material on one elevation "turns the corner" to another. Think of wood siding or brick or even glass; if it's on the front, most likely it's also on the side. Variations occur, such as in urban settings when more money is spent on the front elevation and side elevations are close to their neighbors.
But sometimes a material on one side of a house stops and another material takes its place around the corner. As the following examples show, it's never as easy as stopping one material and starting another; transitions need to occur, whether for aesthetic concerns, means of construction or some other reason.
But sometimes a material on one side of a house stops and another material takes its place around the corner. As the following examples show, it's never as easy as stopping one material and starting another; transitions need to occur, whether for aesthetic concerns, means of construction or some other reason.
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by Durham Builders
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| This first house exhibits what might be the simplest change in materials: siding on one side and stucco on the other. A vertical trim piece on the corner covers the siding and makes for a minimal transition between materials. The change in material is also a change in color: dark green on the side and light green on the back. |
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| A more complex change in materials happens in this house outside Minneapolis. The short side is covered in dark standing-seam siding, while the long side is full-height glazing with a wood structure. The wood helps to make the transition, not only with the piece at the corner, but with its use and that of metal along the cornice, as if to create a large frame around the glass. The stone base ties together the two sides and the various materials. |
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| The other side of the house — the public side — has less glass, so now the transition is from metal to wood. The metal and wood again wrap along the roof, yet the difference between the materials is accentuated by the change from vertical (metal) to horizontal (wood). |
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| While similar in theory to the previous example, this house in Bogota, Colombia, shows in a very different way how a material wrapping from wall to roof (and even to the ground) can act as a transition between other materials. The thick dark corners (painted concrete?) follow the edges between wood panels and stucco. |
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| Cor-Ten steel siding covers this front facade. What interests us here is the narrow strip on the right side, between the front door and the corner. A light-colored strip at the corner signals that something else is happening around the corner. |
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A slightly different angle and a glossier material are evident around the corner. Cor-Ten gives way to glass.
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| The long side elevation, seen here in a perpendicular view to the previous photo, reveals the glass in its entirety. Translucent glass (on the left side) is adjacent to the Cor-Ten, while to the right the glass becomes clear. |
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| This house has brick walls placed at one end, necessitating a change from wood and glass to masonry. The architect continued the precast concrete coping from the roof down the side, making a thickened transition between materials. In the distance you can see how this same detail caps a freestanding brick wall defining part of the courtyard. |
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by First Lamp
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| The front of this two-unit townhouse in Seattle has a few materials: wood, metal, glass. Of note here is the crook-like metal projection of the roof, meeting a narrow wood strip on the right. |
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by First Lamp
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| The narrow wood strip makes the shift between wood on the side and the large window and metal on the front. |
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by First Lamp
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| The rear elevation works similarly to the front, except the metal extension of the roof reaches closer to the ground. |
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by First Lamp
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| The projection of the metal makes the transition between metal and wood siding, while also creating a strong shadow line. |
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| Deep projections also occur in this house in Wisconsin. Wood siding bookends glass and corrugated metal, some of which is set back for shading. |
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This view shows how the wood turns the corner 180 degrees and then meets the metal and glass at an inside corner. In some cases, constructionwise, it's easier to transition between two materials at an inside corner — where things can be hidden — than at an outside corner.
Ideabook published on Oct. 24, 2012.
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my home exterior and make it better. Very timely, me and my husband are on our adventure to look out for something new and bold, Your post is awesome! The combination of different textures and materials is great. I adore the one with covered in dark standing-seam siding, While the long side is full-height glazing with a wood structure. The wood creates a huge impact! If we need more information, can we get in touch with you?