Menu

The Ornament Scale

Five levels of ornament, from good proportion alone to the grandeur of a palace. Each level has its own character and its own cost to build. Choose the level that suits the place and the budget, and we will help you build it well.

Level 1

Proportional

Proportion alone: a pitched roof, a good rhythm of windows, and paint and colour. The simplest level, and the foundation of every other.

For example: A plain traditional terrace.

A row of plain painted timber gable fronts on the Bryggen wharf, BergenReference photograph, not our project. Fassaden in Bryggen, Bergen N.jpg, JoachimKohler-HB, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
A row of plain painted town houses with evenly spaced windows on Stortorget, Gamla stan, StockholmReference photograph, not our project. Iconic buildings surrounding Stortorget square (24830677806).jpg, Jorge Láscar, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
A row of plain brick canal-house facades on Jonas Daniël Meijerplein, AmsterdamReference photograph, not our project. Amsterdam, city - old house facades at the square Jonas Daniël Meijerplein; free photo by Fons Heijnsbroek, 04-2022.jpg, Fons Heijnsbroek, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Traditional brick houses in Brandevoort, Helmond
BrandevoortNew buildNetherlands · ProportionalReference photograph, not our project. Brandevoort 1.JPG, Willem_90, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.5 NL

Level 2

Patterned

Flat ornament, cut or painted in two dimensions: fretwork, patterned trim and decorative paintwork.

For example: Scandinavian fretwork, lace-like timber trim, and the harbour front at Nyhavn in Copenhagen.

A row of Victorian houses with flat applied trim and painted detail, Alamo Square, San FranciscoReference photograph, not our project. Painted Ladies, Alamo Square.jpg, Bernard Gagnon, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
A street of painted timber houses with fretwork window surrounds and trim, Old Rauma, FinlandReference photograph, not our project. Rauma 3.jpg, pjt56, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0
Brightly painted houses along the Nyhavn harbour front, CopenhagenReference photograph, not our project. Nyhavn houses and boats.jpg, OleNeitzel, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
Colourful historic houses along the Nyhavn canal at sunset
NyhavnDenmark · PatternedReference photograph, not our project. 2018 - Nyhavn on sunset.jpg, Moahim, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Level 3

Moulded

Ornament in relief: cornices, mouldings, window surrounds and cast details that catch the light.

For example: Georgian or Haussmann-style streets.

A Haussmann-style apartment building with moulded window surrounds and iron balconies, Boulevard de Magenta, ParisReference photograph, not our project. Bd Magenta 50-W.JPG, FLLL, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Brownstone townhouses with a stone stoop and moulded door and window surrounds, Grace Court, Brooklyn HeightsReference photograph, not our project. Townhouses on Grace Court in Brooklyn Heights.jpg, Rickbern, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
A Georgian brick townhouse with stucco window heads, a cornice and an arched doorway, Bedford Square, LondonReference photograph, not our project. 1 Bedford Square.jpg, Georgian Boy 1776, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
A street of traditional houses at Poundbury, Dorset
PoundburyNew buildUnited Kingdom · MouldedReference photograph, not our project. Poundbury - geograph.org.uk - 4921023.jpg, Michael Garlick, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Level 4

Sculptural

Columns and the classical orders, carved stone, balustrades and figurative sculpture.

For example: Grand townhouse rows and sculpted street fronts.

People say this can no longer be built. We make it possible, and cost-effective.

A guildhall front on the Grand-Place with carved statues, pilasters and a gilded relief, BrusselsReference photograph, not our project. Grand-Place 1, Bruxelles.01.jpg, Nenea hartia, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
A stone apartment front on Avenue de l'Opéra with carved pilasters, pediments and wrought-iron balconies, ParisReference photograph, not our project. 3 Avenue de l'Opéra, Paris (01).jpg, Neoclassicism Enthusiast, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
A row of carved brownstone townhouses with sculpted stone panels and arches, East 93rd Street, New YorkReference photograph, not our project. 16, 18, 20, 22, 24 East 93rd Street, between Madison and 5th, Carnegie Hill, Upper East Side, Manhattan.jpg, Deans Charbal, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Rebuilt old-town houses in Frankfurt with gabled, ornamented facades
Frankfurt Neue AltstadtNew buildGermany · SculpturalReference photograph, not our project. Frankfurt am Main, New Frankfurt Old Town (2024).jpg, Dr. Thomas Liptak, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Level 5

Palatial

Palace-level grandeur: almost too much, and meant to be.

For example: Place Vendôme in Paris, the Nash terraces in London and the Royal Crescent in Bath.

People say this can no longer be built. We make it possible, and cost-effective.

Cumberland Terrace, a Nash terrace with an Ionic colonnade, sculpted pediment and statues, Regent's Park, LondonReference photograph, not our project. Cumberland Terrace, from Regents Park.jpg, Michael Coppins, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
The Royal Crescent, a curved terrace of giant Ionic columns and a carved cornice in Bath stone, BathReference photograph, not our project. Royal Crescent, Bath 2014 10.jpg, Mike Peel, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
The classical stone fronts of Place Vendôme with pilasters, pediments and carved dormers, ParisReference photograph, not our project. Place Vendôme, Paris August 11, 2011.jpg, Philip Sheldrake, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Tell us about your site.

Start an enquiry