Written by Jake Brady

How To Fuse Different Materials In Your External Façade

Creating a place to call home is special. There’s something rewarding about putting your own touches to a house to make it your own. From entertainment areas for family and friends, to beautiful spaces for solitude, each part is special. And this includes the façade of your home because it makes the very first impression.

Today we’re spoilt for choice when it comes to the materials we craft our homes from. Here we look at different materials you can use for your external façade and how to fuse them to create your picture-perfect home.

Timber

Hard wearing and practical yet beautiful, timber cladding is a great choice to work into your façade. Treated native timber is suited to Australia’s unique elements, and it’s eco-friendly too as it’s sourced locally so reduces carbon miles. You can choose from a range of colours and shades to set the literal and metaphorical tones of your home!

Brick

Long-lasting and offering a classic look, bricks are an excellent building material for the façade of your home. They are low maintenance and extremely durable because they age slowly. Their unique colouring delays any signs of dirt build up, and their natural strength adds stability to your home’s structure.

Bricks add to the sustainability of your home by acting as great insulation. And for fire prone areas, bricks are naturally fire resistant, making them a smart and safe choice.

Glass

A classic building material, glass adds beauty and visual interest to the façade of your home. Reflecting light, it plays and morphs with the surrounding street scape. Glass brings natural light into your home too, creating space by illuminating corners and smaller rooms.

There has been great innovation with glass too, including double glazing for energy efficiency, and translucent treatments which add to privacy and aesthetic appeal.

Concrete

Simple, beautiful, and durable, concrete has come a long way in its use as a building material. Smooth or textured, concrete works effortlessly to tie elements together in a stylish and impactful way. Its versatility makes it both structural and aesthetic, and it’s resistant to fire and water.

Once you’ve decided on the materials you’d like to use for your façade, it’s time to consider how to fuse them to create the look and feel you want for your home. An architect can assist in balancing the ratios of materials as well as the placement.

When it comes to styling your façade, it’s important to consider textures and colours. Natural materials tend to blend easily due to Mother Nature’s colour palette. Or if you’re wanting to make a statement with bold colour choices, choose one or two that will work to create the impact you want.

Whatever your vision is, the façade reflects the home you’ve worked to create. It’s the first impression that invites you, and your loved ones, into your special space. And when you invest time and consideration, you’ll create the perfect feeling every time you come home.

If you have a vision for building something special, we’d love to talk with you. Contact us to start planning your build.