Mismatched

House #1

Brick and Vinyl

House #2

Limestone Facade and Vinyl

House #3

Vinyl with Wood Trim

House #4

Cedar and Asbestos Siding

House #5
Asbestos Siding and Vinyl

House #6

Aluminum Siding and Limestone Facade

Old House Journal readers look forward to reaching the last page of each edition of the magazine, "Remuddled." What is one to make of these famous collages of styles of various eras?

Yet, none of us including me is above the temptation to try out the lastest trends in home improvement especially if those trends are aggressively marketed as energy-saving, i.e. cost-saving, up-to-date, and smart. As a homeowner, who wants to make dumb decisions, or fall behind in making changes that realtors and siding companies imply will increase our home's value?

In all of the above cases, I think that what motivated these homeowners is peer pressure and economic pressure, which is simply to say that home improvement decisions are hardly made in a vacuum. These decisions tell us something of local and national economies and of the pressure that they put on us all to conform and stay current.

Let's start with House #1. I chose this house because it is in an upscale neighborhood. I walk or drive down the street where this house is located nearly every day, and from either vantage point it is clear that the trend on th street where this house is located is vinyl. Given the size of the homes along this street, one might expect that their owners could afford to exercise other options. They could opt to paint the wood that is underneath the siding for instance. Choosing to paint would suggest a commitment to the historic character of this neighborhood. Residents of this area would need to begin thinking of their neighborhood of '40s and '50s houses as historic. So far, no such transition in thinking has been made, so homeowners here continue to keep up with the latest standard, which, again, is vinyl siding.

I also included House #1 for a few other reasons, not the least of which is that it indicates that market pressure is not felt just by the working class. The focus of this post, however, is the overall incompatibility between different siding treatments and other home improvement choices. House #1 is clearly not a terrible case of remuddling, yet it does commit this sin: post updates, the homeowners have created a new housing style. While the general lines suggest Prairie the slender porch columns and lattice work give a country feel. At the same time, the very large picture window--very common in the city where the house is located--further confuse the houses architectural style. Was it built in the '50s, '60s, or '70s? My guess, based on the front door, is that this is in fact a late 50s house, but given the more recent treatments this possible fact is hidden.

House #2 is in another nearby neighborhood full of ranch homes similar to this one. To a large extent, this neighborhood also has gone the way of vinyl, though there are some admirable cedar-sided holdouts. Probably, that is what is beneath the siding on this particular house. (I plan a separate post on the exact type of siding I'm talking about.) I chose this house for comment because of the limestone veneer facade, which you will see on one other house in this post. I am urging my readers to think seriously, or, rather, artistically about the compatibility between something like limestone, other natural stones, or even brick, with plastic. To me, marrying vinyl with these other, natural, elements (even brick begins natural) is like wearing a plastic tiara with a sleek black Donna Karan outfit. Sorry folks, but for me there is nothing richer than natural materials, and if one is blessed to have wood on his or her house, covering it with plastic is an act that, I have to admit, continues to puzzle me.

House #3, no doubt architecturally admirable at one point in time, is now what I call a mountain of plastic. Whoever chose vinyl siding did decide to leave some wood trim, and the dark paint color of the door surround leads me to believe that this house may have some Tudor blood. I find it interesting that the owner wanted to hang on to this rich, dark color and the way that this particular brown makes the viewer feel. It is warm, pleasant, and rich like black coffee. But how compatible is this mood with that of the creamy yellow that has become its partner? (Racial overtones coincidental.) Arguably, these are Tudor colors. I will concede that much, but I'd still ask whether vinyl can carry the same feeling that one gets when viewing stucco and timber together.

House #4 obviously is not a full house but simply its most distracting feature. This new window is part of an asbestos and cedar sided Four Square. I can't say much about this choice other than that the person or people who made it were apparently pulled in two directions just as in House #3. The owners of this Four Square wanted to stay true to the cedar, but they also desired, needed, or both desired and needed a new window. This three-paneled picture window is as far as I know very up-to-date. (I had a window salesman suggest one for my modern ranch just last year.) This is what I would call a semi-bay, and perhaps it manages to carry all of the class that goes with having a real bay window. Problem is, it does not belong on this house. Why? Well, that's not easy to answer. Back to the concept of compatibility, how well do the super clean lines of this window jibe with the home's original windows. While you cannot see the original windows, rest assured that the windows of most Four Squares have wood divides. Wood may in fact be the key word here, but division also adds complexity and texture. In a divided light (window) there is simply more for the eye to see. This complexity matches the art of most old homes, where usually in terms of design there is a lot going on. At the same time, if designed well, the many parts become a graceful composition that induces a sense of peacefulness. For me, this new window is an attempt at achieving the peace that comes with clarity and simplicity, but because it is compatible with the house it actually destroys the hoped for sense of calm.

It should be painfully obvious why I included House #5, so I'm going to keep my comments about it brief. This house makes me cry. This house says most strongly, economy is driving us all.

Finally, House #6 repeats some of the choices of the other homes with its marriage of limestone and, in this case, aluminum and with its new bay window. This window seems a little out of scale with the house itself, and I think that likely that was the selling point. It is gaudy, yes, and it gives off a feeling of affluence. Now, this is a perfectly (potentially) beautiful small home, and like the others, it could be rich indeed without the extra adornment. If we could only let our houses be themselves!

I'll leave you with this. I believe that architects use the word "aura" to get at what I've meant by feeling. For me, aura is created by four things: (1) setting, (2) building materials, (3) color, and (4) design. I prefer a warm, rich, natural and inviting aura. I don't like pretention (when you see my home you'll see that I've broken this rule), and I don't like incompatibility or mismatches. Wood almost always gives off a warm feeling especially if it is stained or left as natural as possible; stone can exude this same feeling depending on with what it's married. Stone can also give off a very fresh and cool feeling as people associate it with water. Together with wood, this treatment can provide viewers a sense of balance. Not too cool, nor too hot, but just right. Needless to say, there are warm colors and cool colors, and I don't necessarily have a preference. My only concern is that vinyl and aluminum siding limit color choices and therefore limit the aura that can be created from them. (Every house included here looks dull, almost faded.) Colored siding simply cannot mimic the intensity of painted wood. (Despite new additions to the offerings of siding companies, paint colors are far more vibrant and much more numerous. Siding companies never will be able to achieve the intensity of paint color.)

Lastly, various house types or designs can feel differently depending on things like scale and materials. While it may not be impossible for a gigantic ultra-modern, stucco house with very large undivided lights to feel "homey," creating this feeling may be more of a challenge than, say, for a small stone cottage with heavy brown timbers over divided, casement windows.

Well, I'll close now. I've said enough. I hope that my comments are taken in the spirit and purpose in which I offered them, as an attempt to get people to take a second look at their homes to see if some of the changes that are being advocated by home improvement companies and our neighbors are necessary and whether one can achieve a home of beauty and delight without doing much at all.