Character Building: Exteriors

ABOVE: Orientation can have a big impact on character - houses don't have to face the road. Read more about this project.

I’ve visited literally hundreds of self-built homes in the past decade and closely studied hundreds more for inclusion, or otherwise, in the pages of Homebuilding & Renovating. Over this time, I’ve begun to get more finely attuned to an element of self-building that is the most difficult to define and the most tricky of all to achieve. Pretty much all the houses I’ve seen have been a success on paper — they look great in the pages of the magazine and they meet the needs of their owners in ways that developer-built homes never can.

The quality I’m talking about – character – is, however, evident in a tiny minority of the houses that I’ve seen. It’s difficult to define and yet it’s very obvious (certainly in person, and even on a magazine page) when a house does have character and when it does not. And yet it is, undoubtedly, the thing that most people value in new homes — and, for people who shun new homes, their number one reason for never going new.

I believe it is possible to create it. Having built one house that, I feel, could benefit from a bit more character – and determined to ensure that self-build number two has plenty of it – on the following pages I set out to discover what character really is in a home, and how to achieve it.

Hide the House

What’s one of the key characteristics of characterful old homes as opposed to modern ones? They don’t necessarily face the road. There’s a sense of surprise and playfulness in the positioning of homes that look into their plot, as many traditional properties do, rather than looking at the road all the time. (What’s so great about the road view anyway?) Hiding things away rather than trying to impose oneself upfront creates intrigue and character, which can so easily intoxicate a visitor before they’ve even reached the front door.

Use the Landscape

Don’t instinctively level the whole site and try to start from scratch with the landscaping scheme. Preserve as much of what’s already there as possible. A house is very much part of its environment and a successful new house sits as part of that, not simply on it. Trees, slopes etc. are crucial to this and help a new home to bed in and get away from that imposed feel so common to new developer homes.

Design for the Outside

One of the most important aspects of character in homes is a design based around the external spaces as much as the interior layout. As a result, in many ways contemporary homes – usually much more in tune with their surroundings through bigger windows and a more fluid exterior look – can handle this part of ‘character’ much easier than traditional-style new homes can, with their strict, rigid forms and smaller windows.

Don't Follow Styles

It’s easy to assume that the only way to a new house with in-built character is to pick a certain traditional style and try to replicate period housing. It’s certainly an easier starting point than building a more contemporary home, but blandly following a particular house style is unlikely to be a guarantee of character, regardless of its style. The main reason for this is that so few new houses ever get traditional styles absolutely right, but it’s also because strictly following a rote style means sacrificing personality — and regardless of their design, developer homes rarely have personality, and therefore rarely have character.

Design Well

Character isn’t necessarily a size or a mass issue. Many architects complain that bigger new houses simply don’t have the subtlety of smaller, less ‘massed’ designs. They’re wrong. Both big and small homes have character — you only have to look at the UK’s period housing stock to agree. Massive barns and Georgian rectories have it just as much as smaller homes with plenty of details and different shapes. The problem for self-builders and their designers comes when they’re trying to build big and replicate the character of these styles based around simple shapes. In fact, getting the proportions and details right on this type of house is just as difficult as it is on what appear to be more complex schemes.

Design the Details

To truly have external character a house must appeal on two levels — from both a long way away and up close (to the touch). It must strike a strong look on first impression (invariably from a distance) but for the exterior to truly have character it must also be attractive in terms of its details. This means close attention to the design detailing — for example around windows and doors, the choice of brick course and the position and size of windows. Also, the movement of someone entering the house from outside is so important to initial ‘feel’ (the entrance is perhaps the most defining feature of a house) that this junction – whether it be a porch, a simple step or a pathway – requires special attention and a subtle, personal touch.

Materials Matter

Closely linked to the detailed exterior design is the choice of external materials. A good choice reflects a feeling of solidity, quality and permanence which easily translates through to character. Up close and personal with a house – literally, when you’re touching the outside of it with your hands – it’s the textures that have so much importance. It’s really here where the choice of the key materials such as bricks, windows, doors and even smaller, but equally important, choices like downpipes play such a critical role. All of these require thought and there are no right or wrong answers in terms of which materials to choose. Try to specify materials that are true to themselves rather than trying to be something else (it’s the problem with plastic downpipes copying the effect of cast iron). It’s also quite a clever idea to utilise the key topographical triggers in your external material choice — e.g. incorporating some form of timber if the site is tree-heavy.

Find out more about interiors, including advice on interiors, layout and kitchens...

Find out more about design details, including advice on stairs, fireplaces and lighting...

Further Reading

• House Design Explained
• Design Problems and Their Solutions
• The Essence of Good House Design