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Style 18 / 45
Classic American & Vernacular

Cape Cod

Traditional / familiar

Compact, steep-roofed, and snug — the cottage that started in New England.

Your take
Overview

Compact, steep-roofed, and snug — the cottage that started in New England.

A modest, weather-hardy form from colonial New England: a story-and-a-half cottage with a steep gable roof, central chimney, and dormers tucked into the eaves. Charming and unpretentious, it scales from a tiny cottage to a comfortable family home while keeping its cozy, symmetrical character.

01 Key principles

  • 01Steeply pitched gable roof with low eaves
  • 02Symmetrical façade with a central door
  • 03Dormer windows lighting the upper half-story
  • 04Central chimney; compact, efficient footprint
  • 05Cedar shingle or clapboard siding
  • 06Simple, cottage-scaled detailing
Spatial direction
Cozy, efficient rooms; low ceilings up top with dormer nooks; a central hearth; window seats and built-ins.
Furniture
Comfortable and unpretentious — slipcovered seating, painted cottage pieces, nautical and antique accents.
Textures
Beadboard, painted paneling, gingham and ticking-stripe textiles, simple brass and black hardware.

02 Materials & finishes

Weathered cedar shingles, white clapboard, painted trim, brick chimney, wide-plank floors, painted beadboard

Color palette
6 tones — the working palette for this direction.
Weathered Gray
#9C9890
Crisp White
#F4F1E9
Navy
#2A3750
Soft Red
#B05647
Sea-Glass Green
#9DBDB0
Natural Cedar
#C19A6B
The feeling

“Snug, charming, and durable. A small house with a big sense of home.”