Shou Sugi Ban stands out at a #dwelloctoberstudio mid-century modern fixer-upper

#dwelloctoberstudio
Written By Elizabeth Fair

As part of our Dwell October real estate service, we worked with a client to find them an abandoned and foreclosed mid-century modern fixer-upper and then transformed it into their dream home through our Dwell October design service.

Before photo of the exterior

As you can see from the before photos, this house had great bones, but years of neglect had caused the house to fall into disrepair. The old windows were leaking, the trim was rotted, and the landscaping was starting to overtake the house.

Before photo of the front exterior

After photo of the exterior

Our goal with the exterior renovation was to peel back the vinyl siding and stone facade and take the house back to its mid-century roots. We knew we wanted to go dark with the color to create a dramatic impact and use vertical siding to give the illusion of height to this one level home. Initially, we explored Shou Sugi Ban charred wood siding, as well as vertical steel siding, as potential options. As the interior of the home required extensive renovation as well, we opted for a more budget-friendly alternative: fiber cement board and batten siding from James Hardie in the color Shou Sugi Ban, designed to replicate the look of the traditional technique.

While the black siding was used on the majority of the house, we made sure to incorporate a bit of genuine wood siding to add some warmth and capture a key element of mid-century modern design. We initially considered cedar, which is an excellent option for exterior siding, but our contractor suggested sapele for a similar look at a more affordable price.

All of the windows needed to be replaced, so we selected modern black ones to complement the siding, opting to replace the large bay and picture windows at the front of the house with casement windows. The vertical panes of the casement windows mimic the lines of the board and batten siding and offer a clean look.

After photo of the front exterior entry

A new paver stove and pea gravel walkway leads to a set of minimalist cement steps and a chartreuse front door provides a pop of color while creating an inviting entryway. A simple black garage door blends in with the siding and new landscaping adds curb appeal without taking the focus away from the house.

Elizabeth Fair
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