Spanish style homes have a style all their own and a few key characteristics that make them popular among many homeowners these days.
I have found some of the best examples from around the web of “Spanish Style” homes that I think fit the bill.
Little features add up to a much broader "overall" look and feel of a building. Everything from the color, texture and architectural framing all add the necessary elements.
Lets take a look at some examples of what I feel are Spanish styled homes and check out some of the more specific building materials that are used to make them really stand out.
Lets Look At Some Of The Architectural Stuff:
The elements that actually make up that classic “Spanish” look are quite dramatic ones but is easily achievable. Here are some of the things that I believe make a house look the part…
The Roof Tiles Are Important:
What I notice first is the tile roofs that a Spanish style home uses, they really accentuate the whole look and add a very real touch.
These tiles are usually a barrel type of style but can also have an “S” shape to them and are usually colored in some sort of a reddish tint like terracotta. The colors can vary, but more often than not they are a solid color, to maintain that “simplistic” design.
Different Tile Colors: These are great examples of the different colors that can be found when it comes to these types of tiles. These are just a few examples of hat is out there though and there are tons of other options available, to match that exact color and style you are looking for!
Tile Styles: There are lots of different styles of roof tiles that can work for these style houses but the two that make it feel even more "authentic", in my opinion, are either an "S" style tile or the older barrel style tiles.
"S" Type Of Roof Tiles: These have a little bit different shape to them but work well for some Spanish motifs. These are pictured in the image above on the lower image and if you tilt your head a bit, you can see that the bottom edges of the tiles make an "S" shape.
Classic Barrel Tiles: These are the types of tiles that I think most of us are familiar with when we think of "spanish style" but there are some many different options out there nowadays and more modern versions tend to lean towards more modern roofing options too. These are shown in the upper image.
Let's Throw In A Few Arches…
There are usually many arches on these style houses and they are usually a true arch, as opposed to a more subtle one (like a Mediterranean style home would have).
They typically are not very wide and can appear in a sequence, side-by-side, on the windows, doors and various other areas of the house.
Windows And Doors Are Something To Think About Too...
These two components make up a huge portion of the overall style, mainly because they are focal and breaking points on the exterior.
I have noticed that the majority of them are darker in color, especially if the stucco color is a lighter one.
Darker Window Colors: The darker window colors were the most popular choice among most of the designs I saw online and went nicely with the lighter colored walls.
Black, oil rubbed bronze and dark brown are the three colors that would fall into this category and were commonly used as a contrasting color to the lighter colored stucco walls.
Lighter Window Colors: There weren't a lot of houses that used lighter colored windows, but I think it would still work in some scenarios, it would just blend into the walls more, especially if they were a lighter colored stucco.
White and tan would be considered "light" colors, in my opinion and the majority of these style houses used a white stucco. Here is an example of a white stucco wall with white windows.
Other Window Colors: I did see a few examples of houses that used different colors to accent trim pieces and even the windows. Teal seemed to work well, when paired with white or lighter colored stucco walls.
Gable Vents:
Little details that you add to the home will make it much more unique and authentic and gable vents for a Spanish style home is one of those small details.
Instead of a traditional metal vent, for instance, you could instead use terracotta pipes that stick out from the wall, making the look complete!
There are many different layouts you could use for these too!
Different Types Of Textures That Create That Authentic Look:
There are a few different stucco textures that you could use to make your project really stand out and each texture will give a different effect.
Smooth Finishes: A smoother finish, like a Santa Barbara Finish is probably the most popular finish but it will tend to crack a bit more than any of the other textures and requires two coats, so the cost to install this finish will be higher.
Sand Finishes: A sand finish would look great on a Spanish style home and I think using a medium or fine sand finish coat would look much better than a coarse finish.
The medium and fine aggregates would give off a subtle texture and would hide cracking more than a smoother finish.
Lace Texture: I have seen a heavy lace textures used on Spanish style houses before and it could work, especially if you're going for an older "Pueblo" feel.
Raised Bumps: I have seen some examples of houses using raised texture in the base coat to give the walls the look of plaster over old rockwork, which is a personal preference on whether or not you like the look but I think this type of texture is better suited for an aged and authentic look.
Wavy Plaster Texture Look
What About The Different Colors?
When looking at all of the colors you could use for a Spanish style stucco home, it was clear that a couple of colors were the most popular choices for most people.
White: White stucco was the single most popular color for these style homes and is what popped up most of the time.
White looks great and will tend to give off more of a Spanish Revival look, in my opinion, even though the architecture might not be up to par. White is a very clean and sleek look and comes in many different shades, so your choices aren't just limited to a bright white.
Remember, though, white will show every piece of dirt and debris on the wall and it is recommended to have your stucco pressure washed every year to try to maintain that white color. Landscaping with rocks and mulch around the bottom of your walls will help out a lot too!
Tan/Beige: If you used a tan or beige color for your house, it could work, depending on the look you're going for. A darker tan would work better for older architecture and a lighter tone would probably be better suited for more modern architecture (in my opinion).
Yellow Colors: There were a few houses on my list and other places online that used a lighter yellow stucco color and it worked pretty well with the Spanish style.
In general, a muted yellow color seemed to be more popular than a bright, vibrant yellow.
