Unexpected Design Elements That Will Make Your Home Stand Out
By: Hannah Warne
There’s nothing wrong with sticking with tried-and-true elements when designing your home. But if you want to create a stand-out exterior design, it might be time to think outside the box. From choosing unexpected hues to incorporating less commonly used materials, you can curate a look that sets your home exterior apart in many ways.
Read on to discover our favorite ways to create a home exterior that stands out from the crowd.
From classic designs to unconventional styles, the brick&batten team can bring any exterior to life. We’ll help you pick your color palette and choose design elements to create the one-of-a-kind home of your dreams. Learn more about our virtual exterior design services.
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Pick bold paint colors
Neutral paint colors are a classic choice. From bright shades like white to more moody tones like brown or gray, choosing an earth-toned or neutral color palette ensures your home will stand the test of time. Neutrals, however, will not set your home apart.
If you’re looking for something that makes your home pop, opt instead for a bold color palette filled with unexpected shades. Picking a bright hue instantly adds an unexpected design element to your home. Colors like vivid reds, pastels like yellow, or even tropical tones like purple or teal infuse the exterior with just the right amount of fun.
Mix and match design styles
Committing to one design style — whether mid-century modern, Victorian, or whimsical cottage — helps your exterior feel cohesive and intentional. Blending different aesthetics, on the other hand, helps create a more unique finished product that better represents your personal style.
Mix and match unexpected design elements to curate a stand-out home exterior. As in the home above, opt for black or metal industrial accents, organic details like stone siding, and mid-century accents like vertical wood siding. This approach draws inspiration from many eras to create a modern and timeless design.
Choose a monochromatic color palette
While choosing a single bold color as the primary hue in your palette is sure to draw attention, you can also take a polar opposite approach. A monochromatic color palette with varying shades of the same color creates an unexpected color scheme that sets your home apart with an effortless, modern feel.
Opt for a mix of white and cream shades for an airy and bright look. In the example above, a blend of off-white and light gray tones creates the perfect stylish exterior. We used an off-white shade for the siding and brick. We used White Dove on the trim and the deeper Rockport Gray on the shutters, both by Benjamin Moore. The deepest gray tone, Iron Ore by Sherwin Williams, was used to add a subtle pop to the front door, drawing the eye to the entryway and completing the monochromatic look.
We always recommend sampling and testing paint colors before committing. Factors such as natural lighting, undertones, and your property’s fixed elements will significantly impact how a color will appear on your exterior. Our friends at Samplize offer extra-large 9 x 14.75-inch peel-and-stick paint samples of the colors we love for exteriors. Order your ‘Real Paint, No Mess’ samples from Samplize here.
Arched windows add to a stand out home exterior
Add curving, graceful lines to your exterior design by incorporating arched windows. This unexpected design element adds softness and modernity. By contrasting with the square and rectangular elements typically found in exterior design, arches make a home feel more bespoke and set it apart from other, similar exteriors.
Consider adding multiple arched windows in varying sizes, like in the example above. This makes the window style feel more intentional. Incorporating other arched elements, like the stone arch above the entryway or an arched front door, makes it feel even more cohesive.
Choose a contrasting front door color
If you want to add a pop of color but are afraid to commit to a vibrant shade for the entire exterior, consider incorporating a bright front door. Even if you opt for an entirely neutral color palette otherwise, a vivid front door draws the eye and offers your exterior an unexpected design element.
The sky is the limit when choosing a contrasting front door shade. Bright green, navy blue, fire-engine red, or even pink are all beautiful choices that complement various color palettes. If you’re unsure which direction to go, consider matching undertones. Colors with cool undertones pair best together, while the same is true for warm undertones.
In the example above, we paired the gray undertones of Silver Satin by Benjamin Moore and Tricorn Black by Sherwin Williams with the yellow-green undertones of Wasabi by Benjamin Moore for the front door.
Add an outdoor fireplace
Fireplaces — though beautiful — are a dime a dozen in interior design. But adding a fireplace to your exterior design is a sure-fired way to make your home exterior stand out. An outdoor fireplace not only adds fantastic ambiance but also helps you create a more fluid indoor-outdoor living experience. An outdoor fireplace will become your new favorite exterior hangout spot, especially when paired with a comfortable seating area, beautiful hardscaping, or even an outdoor kitchen.
Incorporate copper accents
Certain finishes, like metal and wood, are commonplace in exterior design. On the other hand, copper is a luxurious and attention-grabbing material that instantly elevates any exterior. Perfect for awnings, gutters, or even accents like light fixtures or hardware, copper will instantly make your exterior design stand out.
This warm metal is not only beautiful but also practical. Copper does not rust and can withstand elements like snow, hail, and extreme temperatures. As an added bonus, the metal will naturally patina over time to add beauty to your exterior as it ages. The only downside? Copper tends to be more expensive than other metals, so it’s a significant upfront investment.
Mix siding styles
Though a single siding style — like lap siding or brick — gives a home a more traditional feel, mixing and matching instantly elevates your exterior. You can combine two siding types of the same material — like lap and board and batten siding or two kinds of stone — and pair diverse materials to create a home exterior that stands out.
The example above features painted brick, both vertical and horizontal siding, and beautiful mosaic stone to add depth and dimension to the home’s exterior. Painting the both siding types in Deep Creek pulls out the earthy tones in the Eco Gold Solstice Stone for a polished final product.
Elements to make a stand out home exterior
Do you want your home to be the talk of the neighborhood instead of fading into the background? Strategically choosing exterior elements that stand out can help you curate a design that is anything but boring. From a vibrant paint color to more uncommon accents like copper awnings, there are endless ways to transform your exterior into the home of your dreams.
Ready to create your stand-out home exterior? brick&batten virtual exterior design services can help you find the perfect design elements to create a design that sets your home apart. You’ll even get a comprehensive design plan to make getting started simple. Begin your project today!
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