shingles

Material often defines the architecture not just of bridges and skyscrapers but even of the most common American houses. Federal homes are brick in the South, wood- frame and clapboard in the North. International Style is concrete, and Shingle Style speaks for itself. But what of Arts & Crafts buildings?

Nothing caps a Storybook, Rustic, Mission or bungalow house like a complementary roof. Period roofing materials and techniques are back.

Shingles that install quickly in rows? Stone veneer that’s a fraction of the weight of traditional materials? Historically correct siding has never been so high-tech or so user-friendly.

The traditional materials are once again widely available today, as are tradespeople who work with them. Wood shingles, clay tile, slate, metal, quarter-sawn clapboards, cement stucco: these materials telegraph the style, character, and quality of the house.

Even if you live in a house from the bungalow era, chances are your roof is covered in asphalt. Nothing wrong with that: at $1 to $3 per square foot, the ubiquitous asphalt shingle is by far the most affordable roof you can buy.