Architectural Tutorial: Ceilings

“Aim for the sky and you'll reach the ceiling. Aim for the ceiling and you'll stay on the floor.”

- Billy Shankly (http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/ceiling.html)

Maybe it isn't all that bad to stay on the floor if your ceiling is at least something interesting to look at. Visbeen Associates designs include many ceilings that make for grand statements in the home, so today, our architectural tutorial will focus on several types:

1. Barrel vault: A simple continuous vault, typically semicircular in cross section. (http://www.yourdictionary.com/barrel-vault)

2. Coffered: A grid-work of beams with crown moulding. They can be any size and design, limited only by your imagination.

(www.custominteriorworks.com/glossary.html)

3. Dome: A vaulted roof having a circular, polygonal, or elliptical base and a generally hemispherical or semispherical shape.

(http://www.thefreedictionary.com/domed)

The ceiling shown below is a bell-shaped dome ceiling

4. Tray: A recessed ceiling resembling an upside-down tray

(www.mascord.com/glossary.asp)

5. Cathedral: A high, open, usually slanting or pointed ceiling.

(http://www.thefreedictionary.com/cathedral+ceiling)

Visbeen Associates often designs cathedral ceilings with decorative trusses, as seen below.

So aim for the ceiling in your home designs and the sky will be the limit!

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Architectural Tutorial: Turret

The school year is back in full swing for the kids, so it's time to start our architectural tutorials back up! Today's lesson - the turret.

definition: tur•ret

n 1. a small tower projecting from a building, usually at a corner and often merely ornamental.

(www.yourdictionary.com)

Here are homes with turrets that Visbeen Associates has designed:

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Architectural Tutorial: Carriage House

n. 1. a small building usually near a large residence or part of an estate, used for keeping coaches, carriages, or other vehicles; - also called coach house. It is now (1998) obsolescent and its function has been taken over by the garage, which is usually attached to a residence or main building. Carriage houses are still found on older estates, though not usually used for their original purpose. (www.thefreedictionary.com)

Well, we tend to disagree with the "obsolescent" part of this definition. Yes, garages are far more popular, but there are still those of you out there looking for a beautiful carriage house. Here are a few Visbeen Associates has designed.

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Tutorial Thursday: What is a corbel?

Welcome to Tutorial Thursday! Today we're learning about corbels. What is a corbel, you might ask? Well, I'm sure you've seen them before. Possibly your home even has corbels, but you may not know what they are called. Here are some Visbeen Associates homes which feature corbels and a definition:

"A projecting block, sometimes carved or molded, that acts as a means of support for floor and roof beams as well as other structural members." Phillips, Steven J. Old-House Dictionary. Lakewood, Colorado: American Source Books, 1989.

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