Prairie style homes are characterized by vibrant, earthy colors and natural materials.
Prairie style design became common during the early years of the 20th century. It is characterized by long, horizontal lines, pitched roofs and open floor plans. The style was popularized by architect Frank Lloyd Wright and aims to create buildings that are cohesive with nature and their surroundings. To accomplish this look, homes are accented with overhanging eaves, masonry and stucco. The color palette is generally kept simple, most often utilizing earth tones indoors and out. Does this Spark an idea?
Outdoor Colors
To create a proper prairie style home, the exterior color should mimic the landscape, which generally means selecting a color from the earth-tone family, most commonly tones of brown, beige, green and brick. Exteriors are often multi-tonal, with the main part of the home being one color while trim and soffits are another. Generally, if the main color is dark -- green or brick, for example -- the trim is light, usually beige or off-white. The same contrast is utilized when the siding or stucco color is a lighter shade. Lighter colored stucco is generally accented with dark trim and soffits.
Indoor Colors
Like the outside of the home, interior colors are generally earthy in nature. Neutral shades, browns, greens, rusts and ochre tones are among the most widely used. Paint is usually added to the wall with some kind of texture or faux finish. A rough plaster skim coat, a glaze or suede finish are all common choices and will work as a nod to the natural surroundings of the home. These techniques add visual appeal and texture to a room and are fairly easy and inexpensive to accomplish.
Furniture and Accents
Furniture and accent colors will vary depending on the wall color. Cooler greens and browns can be spiced up with white, beige or yellow furnishings and accents. Brighter ochre and rust tones are often downplayed by adding deeper-toned wood furnishings and accents in cooler tones. Horizontal chair rails on walls are widely used in prairie style homes and reflect the lines from the outside of the home. Furniture is usually mission style, hardy wood pieces in a number of natural wood colors. Couches and chairs generally incorporate natural materials; wood, leather, cotton and suede are all ideal. You can use oak, birch or maple woods for a traditional look, or update by using the more eco-friendly bamboo if available.
Flooring Options
As with the rest of the home, flooring is kept simple and natural. Hardwood floors are the most widely used, usually in medium-toned woods. As with furniture, consider oak, birch or maple for the most traditional look. More modern options are bamboo floors, which are equally durable and equally convenient but are generally lower cost and more eco-friendly. Another option, one that is growing in popularity, is the use of concrete for flooring. This material is durable, fairly inexpensive and may be painted, stained or textured to match just about any room. You can also create a stone or wood texture if those materials are desired.
Tags: widely used, accented with, birch maple, furnishings accents, green brick, kept simple, more eco-friendly