Shenandoah Valley "colonial" (federal, actually)
Claymont Court, 1820:

Casey

Casey,
Is this your house or one you restored?
It is beautiful!!!

While beautiful, it is no longer a "house." Here's a link...

Here is a link that might be useful: Claymont Society for C.E.

carolyn53562 writes:

Beauty is not only in the eye of the beholder, but when it comes to houses it is also regional. That is clearly a southern house and sometimes people from the north, like me, are not used to houses like that and so will respond differently than a southerner who recognizes, and finds comfort and beauty in, familiar southern architectural features.

I also think that's spot-on. You see few houses of that style in this region (New England) or the other region I've lived in (Midwest), so perhaps due to that, it's not a style I've ever liked. Just don't like the "two stories of columns in front" look.

But since I'm not building it, what does it matter what I think about it? :-)

--Steve

I've lived in the South all of my life and I have never seen a house like the SL living plan. I'm from the Birmingham area - the home of Southern Living and Southern Accents magazines. The South has many beautiful homes, old and new. imo, this SL plan looks like a mix of architectural styles and is unpleasing to my eye. Sorry.

I live in central TX too and although there tends to be a typical hill country style there is no reason to have to build that, however I do think you should build something that works with the surroundings since on 20 acres it will stick out more than say in a smaller size neighborhood. Actually I think a FL style beach house would fit the arrid landscape better than something that looks like it needs lush gardens due to a beach house also being in a sandy type type landscape not suitable for lush gardens.

However I can't figure out what style this house is. It looks to have lots of different styles, and the garage appears to be a completely different style than the house due to difference in the columns.

The drawing does look better (at least color ties in the difference in material there) and maybe it is a material thing as well. I don't think it is ugly, but I also don't go oh I love it. If you really like the plan maybe you could just have the exterior re-designed some to work better in the landscape where it will go.

John Tee specializes in southern style homes on a level considerably above that of the internet plan mills (including Don Gardner and Frank Betz) but I think this one is not a very serious effort; it was probably thrown together for the magazine. It looks a lot like a souped up version of his Crabtree Cottage. I can just imagine Southern Living asking him to give it more dramatic southern style.

Anyone interested in this style house should look at his other work and purchase the design drawings directly from his office.

Here is a link that might be useful: John Tee, Architect

William Poole is another great architect of southern style homes. He is very good with scale.

Here is a link that might be useful: William Poole

1sst,
It was a project I undertook for 5 years.
Claymont Court hasn't been a private home since 1969, when the Mowers, the last "homeowners" moved out. It was the original white elephant, empty after the civil war, during the depression, and from 1969 to 1975. You can't even think about heating costs for a historic house this size. The last boiler was rated at 700,000 BTU/h, and fired at 8 gallons per hour!!
Casey

I have to take issue with this being a "southern" style house. The porch, balcony is true to the Georgian, federal, Greek revivals often seen here in the south. The wings,dormers, and garage are more typical of the western style homes I see in Colorado and Wyoming. Combining all the elements makes the front elevation unusual. But that may be what appeals to others.
My cardinal rule is "don't build it if someone else won't buy it!!!"

My opinion is that it is unattractive and harsh looking. I bet the windows look great from the inside but the outside view of them is too busy, looks like they slapped too many on. To me it does not look like a traditional southern home or even resemble the beauiful images that mightyanvil posted. It's just too harsh.

Sorry, I'm not trying to be mean but you did ask for opinions and that's mine.

I was born and raised in the South and have lived all my life in Alabama and Georgia. I love Southern homes and Southern architecture. I agree completely with MightyAnvil and Allison.

Although there are elements to the house that look Southern, the whole effect is jarring to me.

But if you like it, that's what counts.

I love the houses MightyAnvil posted - those are my idea of beautiful Southern homes.

I don't know if you are seeking a "southern home" or if you just liked the uniqueness of this house but you have to go with what you like and what speaks to you.

Can you picture this house in the landscape of the land you purchased? Will it have the effect that you hope for? Will it make you think "home" when you see it? Those are questions that should be more important to you rather than do random people on the internet think it's ugly.

It is not harmonious to me (it kind of looks like the idea was "what would happen if I crashed two of my other designs into each other") But my house doesn't appeal to lots of people either - they may think it's pretty, but wouldn't want to live here. We originally decided not to buy it and my mother (who wouldn't give opinions when I asked) said when we passed . . . "Thank goodness, it was just to primitive" with a shudder. Ultimately, we did buy it. I like "primitive" exposed beams, floors that are not quite level, small odd bathrooms stolen out of odd spaces and old house quirks that you work around with a modern family -- but I know when/if we sell it will be to a niche market -- it will not appeal to the masses (whether or not it appeals to them athetically)

hth

I did not read all sixty some responses, so this may have been covered:

Why, if you have twenty acres, would you want to crowd a garage right up on top and in front of your house???

I only gave it a quick glance, and perhaps it has other flaws, but it seemed like a nice plan to me otherwise.

Just move the garage off to the side, connect it to the home with a breezeway, and you'll have a home that "fits" and takes advantage of your roomy twenty acres.

The design as is, is meant for a crammed suburban lot.

And make the garage bigger, you're going to need room for four wheelers, etc.

Just remember the comments are very helpful, but you are the one that is going to live in this house not the other 60 people that attacked your plan. I think it is very unique. It is not one I would have picked out, but it is nice. I have lived in TX, AL, and VA and I see different styles in each state. Sometimes different is beautiful because you have one of a kind. You have to pick what will make you happy, but after reading comments quite often on this site, this is a plan that drew a lot of attention. Sorry they were so negative.

My husband and I visited the home when it was open to the public. I was not impressed with the pictures in the magazine, but the actual home in person was quite lovely. The selected details on the outside were all Southern Living. I absolutely loved its charm. We thought very strongly about building the home after our visit but instead we are building Walker's Bluff-another Southern Living plan. I could not be more pleased.

I wouldn't say its ugly but I do think it looks sort of strange. I guess I'd say that in MHO the contempory twist on traditional southern architecture doesn't work for me.
Its mostly the large two story column thing in front that totally doesn't jib with the rest of the house. Its like someone wanted to built a beautiful upscale southern country/farm/ranch house but then decided to jam in some huge plantation elements - 2 very different things.
It strikes me as a very nouveau riche thing to do.

I agree with some of the others. The house seems mis-matched to me. The elegance of Georgian with the pillars around the entrance combined with a metal roof just doesn't work for me.

Goodness me! I've been wanting for a long time to post the architect's renderings of our house plans, but only one drawing ever got scanned in. Now maybe I'm glad I didn't have the opportunity. I'm not crazy about the design anyway, and I think I may be way too thin-skinned right now for honest criticism. aggie9597, kudos for being braver than I am!!

As for your house: I guess my untrained eye can see what some of the more educated and knowledgeable posters are saying about mixed style elements..... But these days, does the occasional "mixed metaphor" really matter? I agree that with a different placement of the garage, the house would look a little more "spacious and gracious." But we're building on 20 acres too, and because of the way the land lies, and because we want to keep the existing trees, it is DARN hard to find a place for the garage that's not inconveniently far from the house.

In addition, because of the "green" nature of the house we want to build, we're going to end up (hopefully) with some of the same "conflicting" elements that some posters dislike about the house in your drawing. For instance: a metal roof (in a perfect world, anyway) for its high reflectivity of heat in the summer; and a stone facade to add to the house's thermal mass and keep the warmth inside in the winter (or that's what we were planning before we decided on going with ICF construction). Maybe the juxtaposition of elements from different styles of houses creates a NEW style, the "Green House". Or the "21st Century Spec House", or some such. ;-)

Anyway, aggie9597 -- As others have said, the only person your house has to please, is you. How do YOU feel about it? If it makes you feel good inside when you look at it, then nobody else's opinion matters.

Best wishes and positive thoughts for a nice, BORING build!!


-------------- Trilby

Actually, the opinion of others does matter, IF you ever want to sell it.

(Just helping this thread get to 100.)

The short question was "Do YOU Think This House is Ugly?"
The answer can be short too: YES

And, I think the post limit is now 150.... unfortunately.

If you post photos of your house design "for critique" you can't complain if you get what you asked for, especially if you did it twice.

Aggie, threads come back to the top of the list when they get a new post.

After 2 weeks of sliding down, Stephanie93 [a new member] posted something pretty positive, brought it back to the top, and it's received a post every couple days since then.

I agree that some posters have been unnecessarily harsh, but at least you are getting an honest look at how 'the market' might feel if you ever sell, and I think some of the advice as to how to reconcile the disparate elements are very good and worth considering.

You asked for opinions again after your first request got negative responses. You even appeared to be challenging anyone who might dislike the house and you got what you bargained for. This is the Internet; people speak their minds. That's why you and others keep coming back.

Here is a link that might be useful: first request for opinions

Mighty:
The post you're referring to is a whole different topic....I asked for opinions of the floor plan and got several negative responses about the home's exterior. So, in that particular case, I didn't really get what I asked for.

But from those criticisms, I did begin to wonder if I wasn't seeing the house with the same lens as those who disliked it, so I posted a different thread asking for opinions of the exterior only. This time, I got what I asked for and whole lot more!

I don't mind negative remarks, really. I just wish some of you would go a little further and offer suggestions of ways to improve the existing exterior. To say, "That house is butt ugly" is an opinion, but is not helpful. THAT is why people come to this forum....for help.

There were many people that gave me substantial critique....advice that we are taking to heart. More of you should operate in this spirit of "help" and these forums wouldn't take such a nasty turn as I've seen several threads do.

FYI: I have had no less than 5 different people email me personally to apologize on behalf of this particular thread. I think that's a really sad testament to this site that other people are trying to clean up the messes some of you make.

over and out...

Aggie... just a suggestion for future posts - if you make any!

Don't ask "Do YOU Think This House is Ugly?" if you don't want to hear the answer to that question. That is a clear cut yes or no question, and with the uppercase YOU, you are asking us for our personal opinions. And those opinions are not always going to match yours.

If you would have asked "We are consider this house plan; what do you like or dislike about it?", you WOULD have people who would go a "little further and offer suggestions" (as you mentioned above).

Most of all, don't take peoples' opinions of a house plan as a personal attack.
As mightyanvil said: "This is the Internet; people speak their minds."
You should expect that.

Agreed. My original question was baited (not intentionally, though).

I have another thread going (check the "here we go again" post) where I posted another exterior photo of a house suggested to me by eventhecatisaboy. I'd love some feedback on this home's exterior (how's that phrasing?).

As you can see, I don't really want to be boxed into a certain style....I'm ecclectic and want my home to be a reflection of that. But I think this home is similar in style to the first Southern Living house that I posted--is this home more visually pleasing?

Here's a quick link....

Here is a link that might be useful: Midwest Living Idea house

I like the new plan better as being a consistant style, but kinda miss the big porch, although I never felt it fit the original house. I guess what I am saying is that big porches are a good thing in the south, but the design you were looking at originally, didn't incorporate it properly IMHO.

And I see that I failed miserably in talking you into a different garage location!

I think the only problem is the colors used. Colors more closely matched in shade will make a big difference. Other than that it is a very classy southern style home.

I think it is a wonderful home. I could not get the virtual tour to work because I guess I don't have that program. ( I will ask my in home techie (son) how to do it. I am from the north (West. PA) but have lived in Southern California for almost 39 years (I am 49) I have owned and lived in over a dozen homes and have custom built some of them. I think this home is unique and lovely. I say build what you like!
The biggest REAL issues are is it really live-able for your family and how the floor plan flows to your needs. The exterior is somewhat important but it really is just icing on the cake. It is a blessing to build a home! As long as it meets your needs as a family BUILD IT! Here is a link to our most recent homes (we built one for us and one for Mom and Dad on 5 acres in wine country)

Vancleavterry:

You actually did not fail at all! We will most definitely be angling the garage a little more to open up the current 90 degree angle. That was the main gem I got from the this forum!

I doubt we would consider moving the garage completely to the side or back, simply because we like the forward facing garages as it gives us more concrete area in the front. The kiddos will use this space to ride trikes and such....moving to the country means no sidewalks or neighborhood streets, you know.

I'm excited about sitting on the front porch watching my girls play!

>>>>it gives us more concrete area in the front. The kiddos will use this space to ride trikes and suchWell, how about a circular drive in the front? And a sweeping driveway towards a garage set off to the side?

That's my plan, and I admit to being a bit too evangelical about it.

It would take advantage of your unique opportunity to spread out on 20 acres, be more traditional and therefore probably have a higher resell for your family someday down the road.

There must be some study out there on the resell values on homes with the same square feet, but comparing more frontage versus more depth.

I promise to shut up now.

We have a set up like vancleaveterry mentions.
We have 5 acres and have a side entry garage. Our drive is a half circle with a sweep off to the garage. We have two entrances off the road. Our house is situated about 125 feet back off the road.
Our daughter loves to grab her scooter or bike out of the garage and sweep past our front porch back and forth all the way to the end of each driveway.
It has worked out great.

Aggie,

I too like this house. The garage facade is what does it for me more than anything else on the exterior. The stone, the metal roof, the window on the front, the dormers up above, etc. From the midwest idea house link you posted, it looks like that style of garage may just be what does it for you too. My husband and I are getting ready to build Abberley Lane from Southern Living (it was a 2002 Idea House & we were able to tour it)and we had alot of discussions about making the driveway a courtyard style and having the garage entry on the house side of the plan vs. the far side (this would give the master bath more privacy on the side of the house, too). In the end, we chose to leave the garage entry on the far side of the house. This came after looking at multiple houses with the courtyard set up. They all had a couple things in common: Positive- beautiful look, easy entry into the garage, seemed to encourage guests to use the front door vs. entering from the garage. Negative- awkward backing out of the garage, awkward looking "turn around" area right in front of the house for backing out of garage, severely limits parking outside garage (imagine the kids riding their scooters and bikes in the courtyard when you have guests over--the cars could easily become targets).

Based on our findings, we decided that we would keep the side entry. With our garage extending past the main house, we will get the same look. Then we're putting in a circle drive in front with plenty of "bike riding" space in the front. The one side of the circle drive will branch off and allow side entry into the garage. We're building a barn (for my husband's hobbies) about 40-50 feet from the garage and the space in between will be paved as well for more "bike riding" space for the kids.

You could easily do the same and just flip the garage around--don't know what that side of the house looks like from the exterior, but it may just give the side of the house some pizazz as well as allowing the front entry of the house to have all the attention vs. competing for attention with the garage.

Like you, we have lots of property (46 acres) so definitely spread out and take advantage of all the space.
My husband is always talking about having miniature cows in the pasture to make the property appear bigger. You can use the same thinking on the house--but you don't want the house to look small and overwhelmed by the property either.

Good luck to you!

It would sale for half a million in Toronto, Canada if not more and on a lot perhaps 30 ft by 50. Houses cost so much here, that my daughter thinks she will never own a house. Seniors about 60 - 70 would think this is just the "right size" for them and for young ones starting out. Here again, taxpayers, with the larger houses would be paying $5000 - $10,000 a year so BIG is not important anymore. Taxes for this home would be about $2000 perhaps more. And, land, wow, people wish they could have land to place a tent. Thanks for sharing.

AND, this house would make it through a recession, depression, etc. Also, not needing servants is also important....sometimes you can't get rid of them so easily and sometimes you may get one that just waltzes up, picks your tomatoes without permission, and ask for you to pay a day's wages when you didn't hire them in the first place. Having a small house has many perks.

Iris why are you bringing up a thread that is 6 years old?

No! It is certainly NOT ugly! It is a beautiful house. Pick the house you love and enjoy your building process! Post pics of the process please!

Since it's now been 7 years since this thread was started by aggie, I would love to know if she built this house.

"It would sale for half a million in Toronto, Canada if not more and on a lot perhaps 30 ft by 50."

Since the house itself is 87' x 76' that would be a neat trick indeed!

(Assuming Iris is referring to the house plans that started this thread,)

Incidentally, the average detached Toronto home now sells for C$1.053m ($789,000 Yanqui dollars).

Wow!

I don't think I'd say UGLY, but I would say unfortunate or poorly laid out. It's a nice house ... but then they stuck the garage literally in front of it! What were they thinking? How could anyone think that hiding a portion of the house behind the garage (a service item) is a good choice?

Beyond that glaring item, I'm not sure I like the combination of the metal roof (which says casual farmhouse) and the portico and balcony (which proclaim plantation house).

I like it, very pretty & southern!

I think the interior is quite nice, and I was surprised because the somewhat ornately detailed exterior looked a little too Gone With the Wind for my taste...but I'm a Northerner who has lived in the South and never quite got won over to that regional style.

We had the privilege of working on a modified version of Kousa Creek in Lewes, DE with Lewes Building Company.

More photos can be found on our profile, but have attached one here for users to view.

Agie9597-

Did you build the Kousa Creek house? How was your experience? We purchased the plans several years ago but never built. I love the exterior and many parts of the interior. I was disappointed that the plans did not include all three levels of the home. As it was featured in Southern Living, only the top two floors were shown, but you could tell by some of the photos, especially the photo of the back elevation, that it is a 3 story home. We live in east Texas and may consider this home again.

Hello,

Did you build the house? We are also interested in this house and are wondering if you build and if you are happy with the outcome.

Are you aware this is a thread over ten years old...?

How does that old saying go . . . Ugly is in the eye of the beholder?

And, an oldy but goody.