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The history of Cape Cod architecture continued as the original wave of houses in this style was built from 1690 to 1850. The second wave, Cape Cod Revival, was built from the 1920s to the 1950s and helped popularize the style, spreading across the United States. Cape Cod interiors have furniture with clean, traditional lines, simple, minimalist shapes, and a timeless cottage charm.
Cape Cod Bungalow Cottage
The Reverend Timothy Dwight IV (1752–1817), president of Yale University from 1795 to 1817, coined the term "Cape Cod house" after a visit to the Cape in 1800. Early Capes used wainscoting on the interior walls to prevent moisture from building up during humid Cape Cod summers. The living area is on the main floor, which consists of a living room, dining room, kitchen, and an optional bedroom. The homes are typically 1 or 1 1/2 stories, usually featuring low ceilings, although modern Capes have increased the ceiling height. Today, these homes can range from a traditional 3+2 to a luxury Cape Cod house with all the modern amenities. Wills did away with the functional interior and renovated it for 20th-century life while keeping the exterior features home buyers love, even today.
Full Capes
These homes were built to help house families and veterans returning from war. Like many of the style's other characteristics, Cape Cod homes typically feature neutral exterior color schemes. The original shake shingles are often left to weather gray, while other Cape Cod homes sport painted shingles. Most of the color schemes, like those of Colonial-style homes, are very neutral and austere. Patterned brickwork, diamond-paned windows, and a slate roof can give a 20th century Cape Cod the flavor of a Tudor Cottage home. At first glance, you might not think of this house as a Cape Cod—especially because of the brick exterior.
Plan: #206-1037
'It’s also flexible in how it can be configured and beautiful for all of those reasons. According to Barry Goralnick, a New York-based designer who grew up surrounded by Cape Cod houses in Massachusetts, these smaller iterations have their perks. Despite having a timeless style, Capes have evolved over the years to a few different subcategories, says My Move. Originating in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, in the 17th CE, these houses are a stereotype for the perfect American Cottage that you have envisioned.
Modest Mid-Century Style
To get an accurate idea of how much the Cape Cod home of your dreams may cost, America's Best House Plans offers a Cost to Build Estimator. According to Home Edit, many Capes feature wood trim, but in more modern takes, it's bright white to contrast any other timeless pieces in the home. The outlet also notes that natural materials are the best to decorate with in Cape Cod homes, since it highlights those wood elements and brings the build back to its early roots. Unzipping through the interiors, hardwood flooring is a must specification in the Cape Cod homes. While choosing a color palette, it is always a smart move to go for a chic, subtle design shade that lets the light bounce away while making enough room for you to relax.
The half-Cape has a single, off-center door with two windows to one side. The layout usually centers around a large central fireplace and the common room or kitchen, with the bedrooms, pantries, parlor, and rear entry branched off the central kitchen. The style fell out of popularity temporarily but had a resurgence post World War ll, known as the Cape Cod Revival.
They offer practical drainage and height for the half-story typically included in a Cape Cod home. The origins of Cape Cod houses date back to the 1600s when the first Puritan settlers arrived in America. The humble architecture is similar to an English cottage, but a few features were adapted to withstand the harsh New England climate better. The steeply pitched roofs, for example, are designed to allow heavy snow to slide off more easily in the winter. A 3/4 Cape or three-quarter Cape refers to the positioning of the door and windows on the layout of a Cape Cod house plan.
Cape Cod Architecture Elements
The modern day Cape Cod houses you see in nearly every part of North America are modeled after the rugged architecture of colonial New England. In the 1930s, the Depression and Colonial Revival combined to make Cape Cod-style homes regain popularity as an economical building style. In the 1940s and 1950s, Cape Cod homes were a widespread answer to the post-war housing boom. Even in supersized 21st-century America, Cape Cod-style homes retain a nostalgic popular appeal with new builds of all sizes, from sprawling homes to tiny houses inspired by the original Cape Cod architectural style. Traditionally, the space under the roof of a Cape Cod house wasn't used as a livable second story.
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Cape Cod house for sale in Wellfleet: Contemporary stunner near beach - Cape Cod Times
Cape Cod house for sale in Wellfleet: Contemporary stunner near beach.
Posted: Mon, 04 Mar 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]
It's also common for many modern Cape Cods to have an attached or detached garage, front walkway, and back patio or porch. A Cape Cod-style house with an open-floor plan eliminates most non-structural walls to create an open and airy flow through the kitchen, dining area, and living room. If the homeowner chooses to add a wing or two and still retain the Cape Cod structure, they can extend a single-story off one or both sides of the home. Occasionally, such extensions may not be possible on a narrow lot, and the home can only be built up to add more living space. In keeping with a more traditional style, you can find floor plans with the front entry or foyer that opens onto a stairway, with a bedroom, study, or office on the right side and a formal living room on the left.
From the bespoke versions put up by modern reproduction firms to custom builders throughout the region, the style survives and thrives, sometimes in the most contemporary ways. ZeroEnergy Design, also in Boston, specializes in cutting-edge energy-efficient homes, often achieving net-zero buildings (making as much energy as they consume). Certainly, Cape Cods lend themselves to coastal elements inside, but they're just as easy to decorate in an eclectic, new traditional, or Scandi-inspired style. With a look that's both historic and understated, it's easy to find a design aesthetic that will be harmonious with a Cape Cod cottage. Though this historic style originated as far back as the late 17th century, it has experienced resurgences in popularity many times since then. While Cape Cods first started sprouting up in Massachusetts, they were common in most of New England by 1740.
The names we attach to our residential architecture is telling of the times. People who live in small Cape Cod styles homes will rarely use the word "cottage" to describe where they live. Cape Cod architecture is one of American architecture's most popular and easily recognizable styles.
Traditionally, Cape Cod floor plans are symmetrical, with an equal number of windows on either side of the door. A three-quarter Cape has two windows on one side of the door and a single window on the other side of the door. Quite often, along with a full second-story expansion, today's Cape Cod homes will also feature a bonus space of some type, thereby increasing the square footage and flexibility of the house to suit the modern family. Additionally, the updated Cape Cod plans may have adopted the open floor plan layout to improve the traffic flow, livability, and efficiency of the home's interior. The exterior steep roofs are symbolic of a typical cape cod house that is designed solely for the purpose of minimizing the weight of the snow.
This style has become a quintessential American home whose practicality is outweighed only by its charm. Homeowners can also create a backyard living area without interfering with the Cape Cod home’s quaint, historic charm. You can find patios and decks in many Cape Cod backyards with comfortable furniture for entertaining friends and family. Winters can get cold in New England, so a fire pit would be a nice addition to enjoy the fall and winter seasons.
White paint and black shutters was a popular pairing during the Cape Cod revival. However, you can always reinvigorate your façade with a different combination. A fresh coat of paint has the power to make or break a space, but don’t worry; when it comes to Cape Cod houses, it’s perfectly fine to keep your color palette simple. Before you dive into all of the nuances and rich history surrounding Cape Cod house style, it’s important to understand how it is defined. Many Cape Cod–style homes include decks or porches to make outdoor living more accessible. Both are very popular architectural styles, it just depends on your individual taste and what you prefer for your luxury home.
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