Walkway Lighting vs. Landscape Lighting
Walkway - Pathway lighting is a trend you see almost everywhere on middle-class homes these days. Not only walkway lighting but lights everywhere - on fence posts, newel posts, around trees, everywhere you could imagine. Just like black and white houses , this trend is out of control! This is a cheap attempt at curb [...]
The Problem with Brick Halfway Up a House
Brick or stone halfway up the façade of a house is a common feature seen in all new construction and renovations today. This trend is not new but originated in Mid-century homes. If you look at many mid-century houses , you will notice a common feature: brick or stone covering the lower third — and [...]
Roof Balustrade, Widow’s Walks, and Roof Cresting: The Difference and Proportion
Roof balustrades, Widow’s walks, and Roof cresting are signature features of historic American architecture that define a home’s character and era. These elegant rooftop details—whether the classical railing of a Georgian house, a simple railing on a Craftsman house, or the decorative iron cresting of a Victorian mansion—add beauty, proportion, and distinction to the roofline. [...]
Stucco Removal
Historic preservationist Dan Miller and his wife Pat, freed their 1875 Italianate Victorian in Elgin IL, from a century of stucco turning an ugly home to something spectacular. It’s a scene that repeats itself in older neighborhoods across North America: a graceful wood‑clad Victorian, Craftsman or any style house entombed beneath an inch of cementitious [...]