STEP FOUR
1. Assess Existing Exterior Design Elements
Original Cottage
The Steep Hill Cottage architectural style (based on what existed beneath the aluminum siding and the later additions and changes) was simple, utilitarian and built from locally available materials. There was no symmetry in the organization of openings or in the building shape. Windows and doors were placed for function over form.
What We Like
We like the simplicity and unassuming character of the original cottage. It feels old but not particularly delicate, probably due to the lack of ornamentation. The house is not imposing on the surroundings; it fits within the small clearing it is set in and being low in stature, blends in nicely. The asymmetrical window placement is quant and somehow inspires a more lighthearted feeling.
What Needs Work
The façade doesn't feel particularly solid; years of use with little maintenance have degraded it to a level that isn’t endearing. The original construction quality is lacking and detracts from its overall presentation. The single story form needs modification to improve function. The Muskoka room is disjointed. It needs to be more reasonably incorporated into the primary structure.
Inspiration Goals
We want to maintain the original character of the cottage with the rebuild. We want to make changes to the exterior to bring a new elegance and rugged handsomeness to the design while maintaining a certain quaintness and vintage feeling. We want to find a way to better incorporate the Muskoka room addition.
Fig. Pre-Rebuild Steep Hill Cottage
| Era | 1900 |
|---|---|
| Form | A-symmetrical, gable-wing plan. Rectangular. |
| Storeys | 1 |
| Façade | Green cove siding with white window trim (most recently white aluminum). Asymmetrical window placement. Small windows in the upper third of all gables. Muskoka room clearly a later vintage addition. |
| Roof | Gable. 6:12 pitch. Wide eaves. |
| Windows | Divided lite, 2/2 double hung, rectangular shape. |
| Details | Minimal ornamentation. Deep window and door trims. Exterior sills at window casings. Wood soffits. Masonry chimney. Random pattern local stone foundation. |
2. Consider Common Architectural Styles
The original Steep Hill Cottage doesn’t fit neatly into an academic architectural style. It is a vernacular representation of a low cost, utility house or cottage from the early 1900s. Later folk, gable-front-and-wing designs are quite representative of the original Steep Hill design. Let’s keep the naming simple.
PROFILE Name: Century Vernacular Cottage
3. Research and Development
The vernacular style affords considerable flexibility in detailing. The rebuild is intended to respect the utilitarian and unassuming style of the original cottage. It is a place that would be built using locally available materials and simple detailing by an owner/builder with relatively common carpentry skills. That said, we want to dial up the quality and consistency of the exterior finishing to improve the overall presentation of the style.
The asymmetrical form, plan layout, and organization of windows and doors will persist in the rebuild. This prioritization of function over form is a hallmark of folk style houses. It adds a quaintness that is desirable. Restrained yet complete window and door trim details and a 4” exposure painted cedar bevel siding are modelled from earlier folk style and will act to provide some refinement and elevated craftsmanship to the simple exterior while evoking the same immediate sense of age that the original cottage did. Given the rural situation and what would be limited access to milled materials and skilled craftsmen, bevel siding and simple trim details make sense.
Wider eaves, shake detailing in upper gables and grouped window sets evoke simplified craftsman elements. These subtle craftsman details are a reasonable reflection of popular style ideas of the time that the cottage was originally built. By including a small amount of this more stylish detailing, the disjointed style of the Muskoka room’s addition (which will remain intact and relatively unchanged) is more easily understood as part of the whole building.
The Muskoka room roof slope will be made to match the slope of the other roof lines. This will elevate the overall presentation and add a cohesive thread between the Muskoka room addition and the remainder of the house. This will also improve durability and functionality, a key element of folk style houses.
The façade will be painted a dark green; intended to minimize the imposition of the building on the surroundings and offset the addition of a partial second storey. The green colour will be chosen from a palette of historical colours.
By unifying the overall style, improving presentation through organized detailing and higher quality materials the house takes on a slightly more respectable stature. We maintain the quaint, vintage quality through commitment to the asymmetrical layout, window placement and unadorned styling.
A simple name will suffice.
NEW PROFILE Name: Vintage Cottage
Fig. “Vintage Cottage” Concept for Steep Hill Cottage
| Era | 1900 Vintage cottage. |
|---|---|
| Form | A-symmetrical, gable-wing plan. Rectangular. |
| Storeys | 2 |
| Façade | Painted 4” reveal bevel siding with shake detailing in 2nd story gables. Mix of symmetrical and asymmetrical window placement with triplets at upper level. Larger windows at lower level. |
| Roof | Gable. 6:12 pitch. Wide eaves. |
| Windows | Divided lite, 2/2 double hung, rectangular shape. Intended to capture lumber yard stock window look. |
| Details | Minimal ornamentation. Deep window and door trims. Exterior sills at window casings. Two part facia. Wood soffits. Bevel and shake clad chimneys (compromise for cost). Copper chase cap and shoulder flashings. Random pattern local stone foundation (cladding). |
As a result of this exercise, we now have a working exterior style profile that will help to inform our design decisions and create a cohesive plan that pairs the exterior architectural style with a complementary interior design.
-
-This guide provides a brief, highly graphical overview of Canada's architectural heritage, highlighting the defining characteristics of various building styles and types across different historical periods. We love older Parks Canada publications.
Parks Canada. Buildings of Canada: A Guide to Styles and Types. 1980, https://www.historicplaces.ca/media/7173/buildingsofcanada.pdf.
-This guide, commissioned by an East coast municipality, is quite comprehensive. It provides more detailed information on the architectural styles that are common in Canada.
Town of Sackville. Heritage Architecture Style Guide. 10 Mar. 2014, https://sackville.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Heritage_Architecture_Style_Guide_Final_10March2014.pdf.
-This book provides a comprehensive overview of major architectural styles and building terminology in Ontario from the late 18th century to relatively modern times.
Blumenson, John J.-G. Ontario Architecture: A Guide to Styles and Building Terms, 1784 to the Present. Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 1990.
-A concise introduction to considering the architectural character of your home is provided in the U.S. Department of the Interior National Park Service Cultural Resources - Preservation Guides. The National Park Service preservation guides are a great resource in general and well worth exploring.
-This book outlines what to look for, what to do and what not to do when working on important building details.
Cusato, Marianne, and Ben Pentreath. Get Your House Right: Architectural Elements to Use & Avoid. Sterling, 2007.
-This book provides an excellent detailed guide to American residential architecture (basically the same as Canadian architecture).
McAlester, Virginia Savage. A Field Guide to American Houses (Revised): The Definitive Guide to Identifying and Understanding America's Domestic Architecture. Knopf, 2015.
-This book provides detailed information on building elements.
Benjamin, Asher. The American Builder's Companion. Illustrated ed., Feb. 26, 2009, Dover Publications.
-This book provides detailed information on building elements indicating scale and proportion.
Radford, William A., Bernard L. Johnson, and Charles P. Rawson. Radford's Portfolio of Details of Building Construction: A Remarkable and Unique Collection of Full-Page Plates, Accurately Drawn and Reproduced to Exact Scale. Complete Details for Every Style of Interior Trim, Including Special Built-In Features. Illustrated ed., Dover Publications, Aug. 31, 2012.
Copyright Disclaimer: This online resource is for informational purposes only. All content is protected by copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without permission.