Recently, I was talking to an acquaintenance about building a barn-style home and she asked, “What exactly isbarn-style? Does itmean converting a barn into a house?”
This questionstarted me thinking about how best to describe barn-style. Converting an old barn into a house definitelyaffords thehome a barn-style look, but you don’t need tobegin with an antique barn to build a barn home of your own. Some are old, some are new. They can befound inany geographical region of the US (and even in Europe). In size, they range from miniscule to monstrous. In style, they range from astrict adherance tohistorical details to irreverently ultra modern. So what makes a “barn style” home?
After pondering my friend’s question andflipping throughsome books and photos noting common recurring elements, I’ve developed a list of4 essential structural elementsthat definethe barn-home style.
1.A barn-style silhouette. Thesilhouette of a buildingis the firstdetail your mind processes when you look at a house, so ashapethat thebrain willinstantaneously associate witha barn will set the basis for the barn-style look.
This contemporary home is unconventional yet unmistakably barn-style thanks to the striking silhouette of the silo structure.
The frame establishes the proportions of the house. Most barns and barn-homes are proportioned to look tall. Mostare rectangular in shape with a pitched roof, although gambrel roofs are also somewhat common.
This is a cute barn home that uses the gambrel frame and stone exterior to resemble an old English carriage barn.
Cupolas and/or weathervanes often adorn the roofline of a barn or barn home. Cupolas are often centered, as pulling them “forward” towards the front of the building evokes the silhouette of a church. Large barn homes often have multiple cupolas to fit the scale of the frame size.
This home’s silhouette is clearly barn-style. Notice that the owners used multiple cupolas to fit the scale of the long frame.
2. Post & beamconstruction. It could probably go without saying that post and beam construction is an essential element of a barn-style house. When you walk into a barn, the first thing you notice is the heavy beam frame.
Barn frames come in a variety of shapes and sizes. There are King Post Truss frames and gambrel frames. There is theaptly “A” frame, where the roof line and thehorizontal cross tie for them shape of an A.More commonis the “barn” frame – where the roof line is alsoshaped likean upside down V but there is an upside down U-shaped beam structure on which the roof sits.
Craftsmen call this a barn with a King Post Truss Frame. I call it a barn with a frame shaped like a bunch of triangles.
The Gambrel barn frame affords more height and headroom at the roof line.
I eloquently describe this post and beam barn frame as the type that’s “shaped like an upside down V supported by an upside down goal post.”
The heavy timber frame is often the dominant feature of a barn’s interior. Naturally, heavy timber framesare therefore usedby those striving to get that barn-style look and feel on the interior of their home.
3. Barn windows. Barn windows are square and small – typically 2’6″ or 3′. They are traditionally awning-style(meaning that they open upward), although updated casem*nt styles (opening out from the right or left side by turning a crank) have been available for a number of years.
Because of their small size, they are relatively inexpensive and thus an easy way of adding more barn-style elements to your barn home without breakingthe bank.
Barn windows are popular for ground-level bedrooms or bathrooms in barn-style homes. They are large enough to let in light, yetsmall enough to keep private rooms (like bedrooms and bathrooms) from being on full display to the outside.
The first floor master bedroom and the second story bedrooms of this barn home use barn windows for privacy.
Since they are small you will also seebarn windowsused in space constrained areas like on the front face of a gable dormer.
This barn window is a perfect fit for the small gable dormer.
4. A “Great Room”.This is different froma “great” room (as in,a room that’s really nice). A “great room” is a space that almost always has cathedral ceilings for an impressive look, whose function is to combine a living room and a family room into one central location of the house.
The owners of this post and beam barn home look out the great room windows to a beautiful lake view.
Great rooms evoke the feeling of stepping inside a barn. The high vaulted ceilings and wide expanses of wall-free floor spaceare made possible by sturdy post and beam or timberframe construction. The great room often has a fireplace and a panel of windows soaring up the cathedral-height exterior wall.
