I like how all the pictures you posted have light colored roofs and walls. these folks understand how color can save energy and reduce maintenance.

have you looked at vinyl siding?

I'd say they fit the current trend of white farmhouses with metal roofs for sure. ;)

Vinyl siding is not a low maintenance option in our climate. Fading, cracking, and hail makes it less than a stellar option and below hardi to me as far as maintenance.

What about stucco? Not as traditional as clapboard, but still a viable traditional look.

And I see DE doesn't know how to read since you specifically said you don't want vinyl siding.

Oh and not EIFS stucco but the real stuff. LOL.

If you do stucco, the original way was to incorporate the color into the actual stucco mix, which makes it quite durable. You get no peeling or flaking as the color is incorporated into the stucco and not just painted on. This requires higher skills because you don't want to end up with different or blotchy colors throughout the whole project.

If you did do plain stucco and then painted it, you need to make sure they use elastomeric paint, which is specially formulated for stucco. Dunn Edwards makes a well rated version.

You can't get more maintenance free than stone or brick. As long as you don't destroy it by painting it. I would go with whatever is a natural resource your area.

I was going to mention stucco as well. Reminded me of this house, which I drive by occasionally, that was built as a farmhouse in 1934 and is now smack-dab in the middle of suburban sprawl. Its exterior appears to have stood the test of time, and I think it's just a lovely-looking old place.

the architect was pushing more for a whatever style (ie whatever comes out of the shape of the house) or lower slung ranch (neither DH or I are huge fans of those)

This would be a red flag to me that the architect may not be the best match for you. If he's going to be pushing a style that isn't what you want, it may be a frustrating process for all involved.

Can explain what you mean by, we'd really like a more traditional looking house ? When I think of your part of TX I think of limestone as being very traditional to the area along with low slung ranches. We used some of those as inspiration for our house tho we are far from TX. Stone and brick are going to give you the most maintenance free house.

Corrugated steel reflects the vernacular architecture of agricultural buildings. Little maintenance.

Corrugated steel farmhouse

Thanks for posting that Anglo - I love absolutely everything about the Bush's home.

I'll have to research stucco further. I know for sure we wouldn't paint as then we're back to why not just use hardi then. Doesn't it crack a lot and you need to be careful to make sure you repair any cracks to prevent moisture intrusion.

Yeah corrugated is not part of my wishlist either and although it would rust quickly here it would also quickly rust through.

With traditional I mean similar to the pictures I posted or along those same lines. They appeal to me because they are simple, yet have a little bit of charm and not too tall and not too squat looking either. Ranches live very nice, but the exterior unless going modern doesn't appeal to me. However DH is not a modern style fan.

The house styles we like and can agree on generally are the local traditional houses as posted, cape cod style with porches (sort of a Texas ranch style). I'm currently on my second Texas ranch style look house. My first was mainly stone and an addition which I changed from wood to hardi. I really liked the low maintenance of the stone part and it only had a little bit to paint so wasn't too bad. Our current has a little bit of stone and mostly hardi - a lot more to deal with. We also have dormers now and I want to avoid those if I can. We both like Tudor cottage styles which both work with stone and brick - however not sure about that on a farm. Generally see those in towns. Folk Victorian styles is another where we can agree which is similar to the traditional ones around here.

Our wish is to have a house that looks like it was built on the property a long time ago and maybe has been added onto over time. Maybe two materials will be needed to achieve that, but if we can have all stone that would be my preference. All we'd need to paint is the fascia and eaves which would be hardi, which is more manageable.

We are still interviewing architects. The one mentioned has done some more traditional Texas ranch style ones as well as the more local traditional farmhouse styles. He wasn't opposed to it, but voiced his concern about the material we preferred and I think that was a good thing to bring up and a plus in my book. He had quite a varied portfolio and has been licensed since the mid 70's. He certainly works really well with the land and the features of it. Until I meet with others that are available to work in this rural area and willing to work with an average home I won't make a decision, but I think the question was a good one and something that should be pointed out to a client when they have some potential conflicting design ideas.

So what house styles work well with stone?

Here are three structures that I used as inspiration.

Isn't this along the lines of your native stone?

This shed was the inspiration for the brick we eventually chose - the look of paint wearing off without having to deal with painted brick

This may be painted - can't really tell but the aged brick look was what caught my eye.

One thing about real stucco is that you need control joints and those have to be figured in to the design of the house - a timbered tudor is actually control joints at work.

You don't even have to paint the fascia and eaves if you use aluminum. Our current house and past house the only thing we painted was the front door and that was only because we wanted it a different color.

DLM the first one is an example of the Fredricksburg stone houses, but I think that particular one is a replica.

What style is the last one a Tudor?

I would call the last one a tudor cottage - very similar in look to my first house but it was stucco. Is that the type of thing you mean you say traditional? No idea if the first one is repro or not - I was just drawn to the low porch with no railings and the look of the stone.

Historic Sunday Houses and other historic houses in Fredericksburg are a combination of a variety of exterior materials.

For example, limestone masonry is very common:

Many historic houses are handsome examples of wood siding:

Historic concrete Basse' Block houses are also found in Fredericksburg:

Log cabins are also common:

And some renovated houses may include several materials which are harmonious together, i.e., limestone masonry, log structure and unfinished, natural wood siding:

Another option is corregated metal siding which gives a more rustic and agricultural look:

Natural stone is a great low maintenance option. Its tough and won't peel, chip, or fade in the Texas sun. Although, not exactly the same look, natural stone could easily fit your design profile and still hold up to your local climate.

Dlm not sure what you're asking? I defined what we (me, DH, and architect) were talking about as traditional in my original post with the text above the pictures and with the pictures. Are you not able to see those?

Virgil thanks for those. I said to the architect like the German stone houses in Fredricksburg. All that came to mind at the moment and I do have the stone house surrounded by log cabins pinned as well as the block.

OMG, I love Tex-Czech music! I need to go to that museum!!!

rwiegand, not sure they actually play any music at the museum more on the history I think. Haven't been to that part.of it. There are yearly events that will have bands playing and celebrate the general area's Czech heritage as well.

Would a Tudor cottage work on acreage? I'm used to seeing them in town, but not sure if they would work well on a larger property. I love how they look though and it would be a second choice to a more "traditional" to the area, but with stone siding.

It looks to me like stone siding could work and nobody has said anything against it here and that a more Fredricksburg TX stone home wouldn't be out of place. I think the Fredricksburg TX older homes are otherwise very similar to this area stone or not. We have lots of the more ornate ones too similar to what Virgil posted. Just not my preference. Below is a pic of one of them I took while driving by this morning that is historically accurate.

Here's a Fredericksburg historic house similar to the photo above:

What confused me is the difference between what is traditional to your area and traditional in general but I think I see where you're going now.

If you did the tudor idea are you planning on one floor living or would you have an upper floor in that 1-1/2 story? The tudor cottage I lived in was 1-1/2 stories with essentially a partial finished attic but there was an original (1926) steep & narrow staircase to access it. Can't imagine living space like that in TX heat though, so if one floor living, would you opt for some areas to have vaulted or cathedral ceilings to take advantage of that roof space? I'm having trouble envisioning a tudor cottage on acreage. Like you I've only seen them in areas where lots are smaller - seems counter intuitive to place something like that on acreage where you have room to sprawl.

"Traditional" residential architecture, which is truly architecture and not a McMansion or builder's tract development, is often regional. In other words, what may be "traditonal" in one area is not necessarily "traditonal" in another area. Another architectural term for this is "regional" or "regional vernacular", where commonly built homes vary by region and the architectural vernacular which is used.

Regional vernacular may be characterized in a variety of ways. For example, materials. In much of Texas, for example, the native limestone is (or was before McMansions and tract developments) a common building material. Another example is form. The form of regional Texas houses tends to be 1-2 story, often rather rambling, houses and frequent use of overhanging and shaded porches on front and rear. Two story porches may also be common on historic houses. This "Texas vernacular" is far, far different than, say, the common vernacular in the New England region, where climate and weather encourage much more compact, multi-story houses, often without the outdoor living and shading devices so common in Texas.

Climate and commonly available local building materials were often the two key influences which caused regional vernacular to vary region from region.

The invention of airconditioning and the availability of common building materials across the country have largely doomed regional vernacular, especially as builders build large tracts of housing virtually identical in various parts of the country.

A truly custom designed home, however, can easily be designed and built in a variety of regional vernaculars by talented and experienced architects and designers who have studied vernacular architecture sufficiently to be fluent in their design.

And I will agree with an earlier comment that a Tudor style house on Texas ranch land is something of a misnomer, since "...the Tudor style movement is technically a revival of "English domestic architecture, specifically Medieval and post-Medieval styles from 1600-1700," says Peter Pennoyer, FAIA, of Peter Pennoyer Architects. Because these homes mimicked a style designed to weather colder climates with lots of rain and snow, they were best suited for the northern half of the United States, though they're popular in other areas of the country as well. These houses, with their myriad materials, solid masonry, elaborate forms, and decorations were expensive to build and mostly appeared in wealthy suburbs," Peter says. They were even nicknamed "Stockbroker's Tudors" in reference to owners who gained their wealth during the booming 1920s..."

But if one likes the style, isn't concerned about the incongruity of one on a Texas ranch, and has the money to design and build properly..."go ahead on", as we say here.

Thanks Virgil for explaining what "traditional" means so much better than I could ever do. There are no colonials around here which I think many in other parts of the country considers "traditional", but I don't think there is a general traditional as what comes to mind for people will be what they are used to in their particular area.

Also thank you for that last picture. It does remind me in general of the shape of the local traditional houses, but with stone. Not really much stone used around this area which is why I'm struggling a bit. However, we do have some white limestone pieces (they are smaller and not like the hill country on our property which is not the norm in this area. We also have a lot of gray limestone near the creek which are huge.

Yeah I'm not sold on a Tudor cottage style for our property, although in town here they are very common and there are some on land around here as well, but more unusual. We do have some limitation in size/space because we don't want to cut down any mature trees (nice and large live oaks, post oaks, and elms). I for sure don't want a regular Tudor as they are too elaborate for my taste.

I think we are leaning towards the following if we can afford all stone, I will cut on interior finishes first to try to achieve that.

1. Area traditional style with stone -which if we can't afford all stone can add stucco or hardi (still need to research stucco more - busy week with no time)

2. Texas ranch style stone with hardi if all stone is too costly. Similar to what we have now sans dormers or maybe just one.

Here's some more stone houses I found that are similar in style to the local "traditional" and all from the Fredricksburg TX area - we do have 2 story ones too, just isn't my preference at this time, but may prove best based on space.

I included links to their listing pictures as well because for any like me it is cool to see the interior as well.

The first 2 are from the same house - where there is a stucco addition.

Here's a link to the general site: These were under 1845-1879 and 1880-1899

https://www.mikestarks.com/historic-pioneer-and-early-fredericksburg-stone-homes/

Here's two pics from Kreische Brewery and Monument Hill State Park which has the stone we have on our property by the creek.

The white stone we have are just small pieces, but closer to where the home site would be.

Sorry for poor quality I zoomed in on a larger picture that was taken at dusk.

We have several different kinds of smaller eco systems on our property.