Windows are highly functional home components. They let in air and light while offering extended outdoor views, but they also offer so much more. As a visible design element, windows can improve your property’s curb appeal. The right ones, in fact, can further add to historic and architectural accuracy. All you need to do is make sure that they perfectly match with your home’s distinctive appearance.
There is one window style that is versatile enough to cover most residential architecture: casement. The earliest form of the movable window, it is attached to the side of its wood or metal frame by one or more hinges, allowing you to swing them open or shut. Casement windows are usually operated via crank, lever or handle. While they were the go-to option for sash windows were introduced, casement units remain one of the more popular styles available today.
Without looking out of place, they can grace a variety of home styles, such as:
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Craftsman Bungalow
This is a common home style from the early 20th century Arts and Crafts movement. A craftsman bungalow is recognizable by its shallow pitched roofs, exposed rafter tails, and wide front porches while the interior’s floor plan typically features built-in furniture and big fireplaces. It also emphasizes the use of several natural materials, including brick, stone, and wood. Today, this home style is still in great demand for many home buyers.
What to Get: If you own a Craftsman bungalow, you might want to consider single-frame casement windows with a vertical grille pattern.
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French Eclectic
The French Eclectic home is a mix of French architecture-inspired styles. Brought back to the U.S. by soldiers from World War I, it has evolved into the highly Americanized version of the charm and character for which the French countryside is well-known. A French Eclectic home comes with a steep mansard or multiple-pitched gable roofing that may be accentuated with dormers or round towers with cone-shaped roofs. It also features a modest timber frame with either a stucco or stone exterior.
What to Get: Single-frame casement windows with an arched top will look excellent in French Eclectic homes.
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Mission Revival
This homestyle first appeared in California in 1885, taking inspiration from Spanish mission churches in the early 1600s. You’ll know a Mission Revival home by its low-pitched, red-clay tile roofing, whitewashed stucco walls, one-story porch with expansive arched openings and gables with curvilinear parapet walls. It may even feature a bell tower or two.
What to Get: French casement windows will complement a Mission Revival home beautifully. Just make sure the main floor windows are taller than the upper story units.
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Prairie
Popularized by renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright, the Prairie style is built on the idea that homes should serve all practical needs minus the embellishments displayed by other residential architecture. To emphasize this belief, Prairie homes come with a cleaner and simpler design, long horizontal bands of windows and a low-slope hip roof with overhanging eaves. The interior usually has an open floor plan and a central chimney.
What to Get: You should get single-frame casement windows with prairie grilles, fitted with art glass for a boost in aesthetic appeal and privacy.
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Ranch
Ranch-style homes became popular after the Second World War and is common in areas where land is highly available. They are typically one-story structures with a long and narrow design spread out across the lot. A Ranch home also highlights practicality. Most of them have an attached garage and feature easy connections to the outdoors. Because it accommodates elements from other home styles like the modern home’s open floor plan, it allows for more versatility and personalization.
What to Get: Keep things simple and practical in a Ranch home by investing in single-frame casement windows with a vertical grille pattern.
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Spanish Colonial Revival
This home style was introduced by the Spanish during their exploration of the Americas. Found originally in California and Florida, the Spanish Colonial Revival home comes with light-colored stucco walls, low-pitched red Spanish or Mission tile roofing with little to zero overhanging eaves, and arched entry doors or main windows.
What to Get: To match your windows to a Spanish Colonial Revival home, use tall and narrow French casement units with horizontal grilles.
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Tudor
The Tudor home is based loosely on early English building traditions. Emerging in the U.S. around 1890, this home style is known for its multi-gabled, steeply pitched roofing, exposed timbers with stucco, large, elaborate chimneys, and asymmetrical door and window compositions. Tudor homes also borrow details from the Craftsman, Prairie and Renaissance styles.
What to Get: Enhance the look of your Tudor home by choosing multiple, single-frame casements combined together.
Single Frame vs. French Casement Windows
Casement windows come in both single-frame and French options. As the name suggests, a single-frame unit is one casement window installed on its own. French casements, on the other hand, are two casement windows hinged at opposing sides, swinging together to meet in the middle.
If you’re looking to replace your old windows this season, you’ll do well with either single-frame or French casement units. These window styles can complement any home style.
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Author Bio:
Christine Salamone is the creative director for Renewal By Andersen of Western New York. With over 10 years of experience in the industry, she aims to provide quality window replacement services to homeowners in the Rochester and Buffalo, NY area with the help of her professional team. Check out the company blog for updates from Christine!
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