Avoid Costly Mistakes When Choosing Windows
by paying attention to these 4 things
First I want to point out that I am not an expert on window companies - builders can give you a better review on the best companies to purchase windows through and architects know a lot more about the parts that make up a window. What I do know how to do is make sure that they look good, and for one of the most defining and expensive features on your home, this decision is worth doing research on to get it right. In this post, we’ll be sharing more about the 4 things you should pay attention to when choosing windows: style, function, color, and material.
STYLE
Our first tip when it comes to style is to look to books like “Get Your House Right” and “A Field Guide to American Houses” to see what the architectural style of your home is and find which window style is typically paired with it - let that guide your decision making.
Another big stylistic decision is whether to use grids or no grids. I would say a slight majority of windows tend to have grilles (grids) and when looking at them you notice that the horizontal and vertical grilles create a shape between them.
Look at this home below. The space between the grilles creates a vertical rectangle. As the window sizes get bigger or smaller you want to have enough vertical and horizontal grilles that you ideally will create the same shape on all the windows and doors. The door on the left has much bigger rectangular shapes but they are the same shape overall as the window on the right. Those repeated shapes give the home continuity and order. This is the first thing we look for when approving a window order.
Can you mix window styles on a home?
Yes and no. On this home below they’ve mixed plain glass windows with windows that have mullions (not grilles, but dividers between the glass to create a separated light look) and I love this look personally. They took the more traditional window style of the original home and added these large plain glass windows that feel like the “modern addition” to the house which tells us that this historic home has been updated. The house tells a story and still follows a rule…all windows and doors have dividers but the big accent windows are frameless plain glass.