canvas awnings for front window and door, suggestions needed archived

lars

Apr 19, 2010 at 4:21am

one of the first things we did when we moved in was remove the gawd-awful aluminum awning from over the front door. neighbors breathed a collective sigh of relief.
buuuuut, now, in an effort to make the front look better (not that it's so bad) we've decided that the door and the living room window could use a little somethin'-somethin'.
also, it's nice not to get rained on while we're trying to get inside.
would like to put a striped awning over each. 3 upstairs windows will get nice window boxes. front door is going to get painted.
eventually we will remove the siding and paint, but that is serious coin, so it's on hold.

so any advice on where to look for awnings? I know zero about them, except that I like the look on certain style houses.
not looking for the cheapest, either. want nice quality. would like striped.
dunno anything about retractible or non.

I did a search but didn't see anything pertinent.

kmk

Apr 19, 2010 at 4:34am

Maplewood Shade (and Awning) might even have your house on file from the 30's!

lars

Apr 19, 2010 at 4:39am

great, thanks! will start there...
I was hoping the answer wasn't "home depot."

boomie

Apr 19, 2010 at 4:50am Edited

www.hayneedle.com

I love this site for all things outdoor. Great prices, shipment, service, and quality.

lars

Apr 19, 2010 at 4:56am

thanks, boomie!
they have adirondack chairs, too.
my folks are bugging me to put out some lawn furniture.

boomie

Apr 19, 2010 at 5:00am

I know!!!! I just ordered an umbrella from them and my kitchen cart is from them. Im still thinking on the adirondacks.

lars

Apr 19, 2010 at 5:05am

Posted By: boomieIm still thinking on the adirondacks.

yeah me too.
they're comfortable but "clee-shay."

SN2

Apr 19, 2010 at 5:21am

maplewood shade and awning - we went in a few years ago after finding a tag on our canvas awnings. Not only did the owner/employee know our house but knew the exact color scheme from memory. They weren't cheap but their work is excellent and they were very easy to deal with.

lars

Apr 19, 2010 at 5:24am

looking at their website now. some great stuff!
I hope awnings are suitable for our style house. I see mostly colonials and victorians here.
don't know what our house type is, exactly. cottage? bungalow?

kriss

Apr 19, 2010 at 5:25am Edited

Hope you don't mind if I hijack your thread a bit, lars - but I have a question about awnings. Would it be weird to get awnings for just the side of a house, not the front, or even just one set of windows? One side of my house gets wicked sun all afternoon - my sunroom and DR are on that side on the first floor. I like to keep the windows open (no shades), especially in the DR because it adds a ton of light to my entire downstairs (and my kitchen can get a little dark). But it gets so freaking hot - I was thinking retractable awnings would be a good solution, but I don't necessarily want to put them on all of my downstairs windows.

eta - to answer your question, I think awnings would look v. cute on a bungalow.

lars

Apr 19, 2010 at 5:28am

Posted By: krissWould it be weird to get awnings for just the side of a house, not the front, or even just one set of windows?

flip through the residential galleries. it seems like anything goes, really. also, you could make them retractible. http://www.maplewoodawningandshade.com/residential/resi_awnings.php
I was wondering sort of the same thing. I only want the front door and the main living room window. there are also 2 windows on the far side of the front but there is little clearance between the top of the windows and the eaves, so I figured, why bother. also, I don't want to block any light in that room.

lars

Apr 19, 2010 at 5:31am

Posted By: krisseta - to answer your question, I think awnings would look v. cute on a bungalow.

I was walking around yesterday and I saw a house a few blocks away whose color scheme and general look I decided to swipe. it had awnings. have been looking for quite a while, so I was excited to find such a perfect role model.
it was sort of the same style as ours, in that it had a tall 2 story "steeple" but was still different enough to make me question the awnings.
thanks for your input!

kriss

Apr 19, 2010 at 5:35am Edited

I think doing just the front door and LR window would be fine - I think singular 'decorative' stuff on the front of the house always looks ok. Having just one window on the side of the house, or just one side of the house w/awnings I thought might look strange, but I need a solution (10 years in - ha) because I officially can't take it anymore. Thanks for the link to the gallery - going to have a look now.

lars

Apr 19, 2010 at 5:39am

Posted By: krissHaving just one window on the side of the house, or just one side of the house w/awnings I thought might look strange, but I need a solution (10 years in - ha) because I officially can't take it anymore.

click through all of them. I think you'll be surprised.

so 10 year, huh? that last 90 degree day was the proverbial straw, was it? :wink:

kriss

Apr 19, 2010 at 6:03am

Posted By: larsso 10 year, huh?

11+ actually. Holy crap. Now I feel old. And very, very lazy.

Posted By: larsthat last 90 degree day was the proverbial straw, was it?

Indeed. See, if I had central air, the point would be moot. Next house, next house....

kmk

Apr 19, 2010 at 6:04am

Lars,

Get thee over to the Maplewood Public Library and ask to see the "Realtors File" of images of all of the houses of Maplewood taken back in the 30's and 40's. You will see MANY more examples of awnings in the old pics. Remember: central air conditioning is a new thing and our ancestors knew how to cool a house with what they had!