Design Ideas: Colonial Revival

The single most popular architectural style in the United States, the Colonial Revival style of architecture is beloved by Americans because of its richly varied vocabulary and inherent eloquence. The style reflects the late 19^th century fascination with homes built by the early English and Dutch settlers. It is essentially a mixture of styles, all of which are uniquely American. Roof forms such as gabled, hipped, and gambrel identify the style’s diversity that allows a greater degree of adaptation when remodeling than do the more rigidly defined architecture styles.

Characteristics

Larger Colonial Revival homes often have an asymmetrical façade to accommodate a garage or porch. The effect is more complicated, but leaves a more interesting roof form. Roughly 10 percent of Colonial Revival homes are designed this way. The remaining subtypes feature variations of the primary roof forms.

Profiles

            Although brick is the preferred material for Colonial Revival houses, clapboard and shingles are also often used.

Roof

Typical to this style of architecture are gabled roofs, followed by gambrel and hipped roofs. Slate shingles were commonly used, which were then replaced with asphalt shingles because it was a cheaper option.

Windows

The windows of Colonial Revival homes were often designed to be simple. Most windows in the Neo-Colonial era are rectangular with double-hung sashes, each one consisting of six, eight, nine, or even twelve panes. Multi-pane sashes with only a single sheet of glass serving as the lower pane are also common.

.Doors

One of the most recognizable parts of any Colonial Revival homes is the decorative entrances. Their doors may consist of a paneled front door flanked by sidelights, a broken pediment over the door, a modest portico with columns, or perhaps a pediment supported by plasters.

Color

Colonial Revival homes can be seen in a wide array of colors, although often in lighter shades.