Does your house have style? Of course it does! But which one?

I’ve asked Joel Perry with Indwell Architecture to talk about some of the common house styles around here. This week we are focusing on one of the most popular house styles in the Prairie Village area: the Craftsman.

Where did it come from?
Most house styles evolve from a certain place because of things like weather and available building materials. The Craftsman style is different because it originated through a social movement. In the early 20th century, the Industrial Revolution was in full swing. Thomas Edison was a rock star, and Henry Ford would soon be one. People were moving from the country to the city. Technology was becoming more pervasive in people’s lives.

And some people didn’t like that. They didn’t like mass production. They wanted to preserve the work of the individual craftsman and artisan. So, a house style evolved that used lots of natural products, and felt very connected to the earth. It was a style that would make it clear that skilled hands had worked to make it.

Interesting Facts/Features:

Low sloped gabled roofs with wide eave overhangs make the house feel substantial
Lots of stone and wood
Usually only 1 or 1 ½ stories
Lots of exposed rafters and beams
Generous porches with plenty of room for swings
Lots of built in woodwork (benches, paneling, etc.)
One of the first open floor plan styles
Fireplaces, and if you are lucky, an inglenook
Less paint, more stain
If it were a person:
It would be a bearded (I guess most men are anymore, so I don’t think that is very descriptive), opinionated woodcarver/hippie who hikes a lot and has thought deeply about most everything. He has a hint of a surfer accent. You know the type? He doesn’t have a cell phone or a tv. He loves having long discussions about topics, and quickly recognizes beauty when he sees it. When you stay at his house, he fixes you dinner using home grown herbs, with home brewed tangerine and maple syrup beer and in the morning you get coffee that he brews by hand (I don’t actually know what that means).

Words:
Gable: part of an exterior wall that encloses the end of a roof
Inglenook: a recessed area around a fireplace. Feels like a reading nook or a restaurant booth. Very sexy.
Eave: The part of the roof that overhangs the side wall
Arts and Crafts: A connected movement, often used as another name for Craftsman.
Greene Brothers: The architect brothers from Pasadena that are usually credited with starting the movement.

This weekly sponsored column is written by Lance McCarthy of ReTouch, a full-service, client-based contractor specializing in home remodels. For more information about their services, or to view samples of their work, visit their website.