Climate has always exerted a powerful influence on the architecture of the South. Before the advent of air conditioning, even the simplest houses were constructed with techniques that took heat and humidity into account. This raised cottage, designed by Dean Winesett, of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, applies many of these time- honored, common-sense solutions to the problems of living comfortably in the South. Inspired by raised cottages in Southern coastal areas and by the cozy farmhouses of the interior South, the house's appealing vernacular style could work in a variety of locations.
Our Vernacular Cottage plan features a characteristic double-pitched roof. The hipped portion of the roof covers spacious galleries on three sides of the house. These galleries, or porches, once common features of Southern houses, serve as cool, transitional spaces between outdoors and indoors.
