Building a home of your own is one of the toughest, yet most rewarding things you are ever likely to do. Planning, and putting in place, the little touches that you’ve dreamed of for years is the perfect way to get a dream home that money can’t buy.

6 Must-Haves If You're Building A Rustic Home

It can’t have been lost on you that the popularity of rustic real estate has been on the rise in recent times, and there’s plenty of reason why that should be the case. Few things look cosier and more welcoming from the outside, nor as charming on the inside, as that perfect rustic getaway. Below, we’ll go into detail about how you can build that perfect country home by adding some important exterior touches.
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1. Create multiple levels for character

One unavoidable truth about a lot of modern buildings is that they are built to very specific parameters and, unfortunately, they end up looking boring and samey. It’s important to plan everything out before building, but the end result of many of these houses is that they look over-planned. For more pleasing results, it’s always a good idea to put in some vertical interest. This can be achieved by means of steps up to a porch, a widow’s walk on an upper level, or building an attic that extends up out of the roof to bring some asymmetric charm.

In the same way, to avoid uniformity it is ideal to keep the exterior of the home painted in differing colors, almost clashing, to deliver a ramshackle feel that only a true rustic home can deliver.

2. Build into the landscape, not onto it

When building a rustic home, it is important to work with your surroundings. After all, there’s a reason you’re choosing to live in a more rural area, so just planting an urban-style house in a rural setting wouldn’t look right. Also, by building into the land, you can get natural visual effects that are truly stunning. It’s possible for your home to literally be part of a sweeping hill by cutting into a slope and having parts of the house exposed on one side only. Naturally, you’ll need to know how far down you can dig and retain a secure foundation, but a consultation with your builders should help a great deal in that regard.

3. Keep the fixtures and fittings on-brand

Any real rustic home needs an exterior porch where you can sit out in the evening with a meal or something to drink. That’s one touch no-one’s likely to forget - but there are a lot of other ways you can keep the rustic theming going, and these include making sure the doors and windows are set in wooden frames. Work on fitting carriage garage doors rather than something more modern-looking, and you can take it all even further by choosing the right fittings in the garden - an antiquated kettle-style BBQ grill as opposed to a more futuristic one, for example. 

Because so many of the little add-ons we choose for a home can be bought individually, it’s always possible to add and modify as you go, and as a bonus this will add to the ramshackle feel of the place.

4. Make the most of trees

If you are building your home somewhere rural and green, the chances are that there are some trees already in the area. For the perfect rustic homestead, these should always be preserved. In fact, keep all the trees you can and, if possible, add a few of your own. For one thing, we simply need more trees in the world, not fewer. For another, they add beautiful natural decoration to the outside of your home, framing the house in a classic, storybook kind of setting.

This can be enhanced all the more if, as in point 1, you build to multiple levels. Having an outdoor terrace on an upper floor is pretty wonderful anyway, but if you’re among the trees it can be even more delightful. One word of warning, though; if your home is set in a storm-prone area, it’s vital to keep branches from overhanging the house itself, as these can become a hazard in high winds.

5. Use reclaimed wood for a log cabin

6. Create outdoor terraces

There are few types of home that offer the rustic look and feel quite as well as a log cabin, and if you have the chance to build this kind of house it is a highly-recommended approach. It’s all the better if you can ensure that the wood used to build your house comes from dead trees rather than felled timber; this isn’t always possible, but by asking around you should be able to find out if a yard in your area can supply this sustainably-sourced wood.

Some people are put off by the idea of dead wood, but it’s important to bear in mind that dead wood is not necessarily rotten wood. This sort of timber will always have been treated and made safe before it is sold, and will look every bit as good as logs cut from live trees.

If you’re living out in the country, it’s more or less essential to make the most of the cleaner air and prettier scenery by spending some of your time outdoors - especially as living in the country has been shown to positively affect mental health. Having breakfast or dinner out on the patio or terrace is an experience that will always be enhanced by having the surroundings of a rustic, rural home - so make the most of it!

Frankly, a rustic home can’t have too much outdoor seating space - the more of it you include when building, the better. A wraparound terrace that lets you get the best of the sun no matter where it is in the sky is always a good idea.

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If you’re looking to build the ideal rustic home, then the above are a few ideas you can use to help you get started. No doubt you’ll have a few more of your own, so why not mix and match for the ultimate rural getaway?

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