The most common cladding form for Storybook houses is stucco, and decorative trim boards may be used to evoke medieval half-timbering. Brick is sometimes employed decoratively as a plaster insert to give the appearance of aged walls as seen in medieval European towns. The original roofs were generally cedar shingles, sometimes elaborated in exaggerated overlapping wave patterns to mimic the appearance of traditional thatched roofs.
A more modest version of the French Storybook style. Featuring here its turret entryway with a hipped roof, adorned with a small opening sheltering the door. The siding is stucco in a grey colour, and the twin window sills are white. The L-Shaped roofline is simple and bare.
This beautiful French Storybook home showcases the coloured stucco finish, that too defines this style, in a bright orange, with a contrasting coloured door. This house is full of whimsy and circular motifs, starting with the witch hat turret, and the rolled eaves. The windows are arched. The upper floor, although having been added later on, is a smaller L shape built on top, with a circular dormer window.
This lovely home features a bright red coloured roofline and windowsills. The turret here is octagonal, with an arched entryway. We can notice that one window echoes the arched motif while the other one is composed of 3 rectangles separated by the bright white stucco.
Maintaining the key style features of the French Storybook style, such as the L-shaped roof with the central turret entryway. The turret here is hipped, and its windows are square with far less whimsy than most known French Storybook homes. There is a dormer present in the side-gabled section of the roof, as well as a protruding baywindow at its front-gabled section. While we often see rolled roof edges, here we see a similar motif sheltering the entryway from one side in a round stucco finish. The stairs too have the same round motif.
A stuccoed home featuring an L-shaped roof, with its turret in its inner corner with a conical roof and the entry door. The front-gabled section of the home has its edges rolled, and at the top there is a small round dormer window. The windows and the entrance on the main floor are adorned with castle-like motifs, fitting well to the "Dunbar Castles" name as French Storybook homes are known for.
From Heritage House Tour 2019: "The rather fanciful, romantic Storybook architectural style became popular in North America in the Interwar years, reflecting a newfound love of the picturesque and a kind of whimsical neo-nostalgia associated with films and fairy tales. Variations were built to common plans with a variety of elements including French turrets, sweeping gables, arched windows and other exaggerated Gothic and Tudor cottage-like elements. Rolled eaves give the look of a thatched roof. Though modest in size, high-quality materials and craftsmanship persisted during this period."
A more modest version of the French Storybook style. Featuring here its turret entryway with a hipped roof, adorned with a small opening sheltering the door. The siding is stucco in a grey colour, and the twin window sills are white. The L-Shaped roofline is simple and bare.
This beautiful French Storybook home showcases the coloured stucco finish, that too defines this style, in a bright orange, with a contrasting coloured door. This house is full of whimsy and circular motifs, starting with the witch hat turret, and the rolled eaves. The windows are arched. The upper floor, although having been added later on, is a smaller L shape built on top, with a circular dormer window.
This lovely home features a bright red coloured roofline and windowsills. The turret here is octagonal, with an arched entryway. We can notice that one window echoes the arched motif while the other one is composed of 3 rectangles separated by the bright white stucco.
Maintaining the key style features of the French Storybook style, such as the L-shaped roof with the central turret entryway. The turret here is hipped, and its windows are square with far less whimsy than most known French Storybook homes. There is a dormer present in the side-gabled section of the roof, as well as a protruding baywindow at its front-gabled section. While we often see rolled roof edges, here we see a similar motif sheltering the entryway from one side in a round stucco finish. The stairs too have the same round motif.
A stuccoed home featuring an L-shaped roof, with its turret in its inner corner with a conical roof and the entry door. The front-gabled section of the home has its edges rolled, and at the top there is a small round dormer window. The windows and the entrance on the main floor are adorned with castle-like motifs, fitting well to the "Dunbar Castles" name as French Storybook homes are known for.
From Heritage House Tour 2019: "The rather fanciful, romantic Storybook architectural style became popular in North America in the Interwar years, reflecting a newfound love of the picturesque and a kind of whimsical neo-nostalgia associated with films and fairy tales. Variations were built to common plans with a variety of elements including French turrets, sweeping gables, arched windows and other exaggerated Gothic and Tudor cottage-like elements. Rolled eaves give the look of a thatched roof. Though modest in size, high-quality materials and craftsmanship persisted during this period."
Form
French Storybook homes are small and whimsical, known as “Dunbar Castles” in that neighbourhood, with hipped or side-gabled roofs and a projecting living room wing (under an L-shaped roof, in some cases), with a turret tucked into the L and forming a shelter over the front door. The turret’s roof may be hipped, conical or may have crenelations (‘battlements’). Windows may have arched tops, and an arched, quoined opening in the turret may frame the front door. Their cladding is coloured stucco. Roof edges may be rolled as in the English Storybook Style.
Background
Like the English Storybook style, French Storybook style emerged in North America after WWI. Soldiers returning from European battlefields brought with them a familiarity with architectural styles. Among these were French farmhouses and castles. Builders translated elements of these traditional buildings into practical cottages. After a period of upheaval, the value of the picturesque and the traditional increased following the war. This contributed to the development of the French Storybook style, with its quaint tower and European flair. In a period where the economy was in flux, these cottages grew popular in the Dunbar neighbourhood of Vancouver.
Details
- Hipped or side-gabled roof
- Asymmetrical
- L-shaped massing – projecting living room wing
- Turret tucked into ‘L’ and forming shelter over door
- Turrets roof may be hipped, conical, or have crenellations
- Windows may have arched tops
- Coloured stucco cladding
- Shingles may be rolled to imitate thatching