Replies

1. 
   runnerguy | May 12, 2010 01:33pm | #1

   Actually, when the gable is on the sides of the house it's just refered to as a "gable end". When there's a gable facing the street on what otherwise would be a sloping roof, it's sometimes called a "reverse gable".

   Regarding roof pitch, I have this book:

   http://www.amazon.com/500-Bungalows-Douglas-Keister/dp/1561588423/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1242908990&sr=1-1

   and just flipped through it. Didn't see any 12:12's but everything else from what looked like 2:12 to 10:12.

   If you're looking for info on the craftsman or bungalow look, I highly recommend the book. 500 photos of nothing but the fronts of 500 houses. You'll get not only a healthy look at roof pitches but also all kinds of other detailing like columns, brackets, siding, front doors, colors, etc.. And at $5.95 used it's certainly a lot of bang for the buck!

   Doug

2. 
   Scott | May 12, 2010 09:33pm | #2

   A lot of what you ask is pretty subjective and complicated, so you're probably best to do some real research if you want definitive answers (not to slag the quality of info around here at all).

   As for my completely narrow term of reference, anything I can comfortably walk on (steel roof) isn't "craftsmany".

   Hence, anything 7:12 and up qualifies.

1. 
   runnerguy | May 13, 2010 06:35am | #3

   Argueably, possibly the most famous example of an Arts and Crafts home is The Gamble House in Pasadena.

   http://www.gamblehouse.org/photos/ext/index.html

   Looks like there isn't a pitch over 3:12.

   Doug

2. 
   JohnWalker | May 14, 2010 01:34am | #4

   Thanks runnerguy and Scott.

   Scott your comments about walkability and 7:12 and up qualifies seems reasonable. I've taken dozens of photos of houses we like but you cannot measure the slope from an oblique photo taken from the ground or corner etc. At best you can estimate the slope.

   (I have viewed that book at the library too).

   John

3. 
   JohnWalker | May 24, 2010 09:41pm | #5

   I should have included this fine link:

   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vancouver_Special

   Pretty ugly eh?

4. 
   Hokuto | May 28, 2010 08:30am | #6

   Well, since you asked, when the entrance is on the gable end, it's called [i]tsumairi[/i]　（妻入り）, and when the gables are on the sides and the entrance is on the flat side of the house, it's called [i]hirairi[/i] (平入り）.

   [i]Tsumairi[/i]

   http://image.blog.livedoor.jp/kokentiku_hinagata/imgs/e/4/e41eac11.JPG

   [i]Hirairi[/i]

   http://tetuoya.fc2web.com/cicle/mikuni/h18kitagata-mikuni048s.jpg

1. 
   JohnWalker | May 28, 2010 11:15pm | #7

   Japanese influence on Craftsman style

   Hokuto

   Thank you very much for that. I had read that the original Craftsman style designers (Greene & Greene, and others) had been influenced by (east) Indian homes and Japanese temples.

   Interestingly my wife is Japanese and is strongly attracted to Craftsman style homes. Unfortunately she cannot provide much translation beyond what we have found on the web. I understand that Hirairi means basically the front door is on the main/long side of the house, and Tsumairi means the front door is on the "edge" or secondary side, typically the gable end.

   Can you provide any additional meaning to these Japanese terms? I am curious where they came from.

   Thanks again

   John

1. 
   Hokuto | May 30, 2010 11:24pm | #8

   The entire Arts & Crafts

   The entire Arts & Crafts movement grew up at the same time as the wave of late-19th-century Japonism, so there were lots of influences (mutual, in fact, although that's another topic). The minimalist linear style, use of repeating narrow slats, wide eaves, etc. are all evidences (IMO) of Japanese influence on A&C, Craftsman, and Prairie styles.

   The term hirairi is easy to understand; hira 平 means "flat" and iri 入り means "enter/entrance". At first glance, tsumairi  妻入り is a bit more puzzling; ｔhe iri part is the same, but  in common Japanese, tsuma 妻 literally means "wife". The reason is because originally, tsuma meant the "edge" of something, so the name seems to have been used to refer to the woman "connected to" or at the "side of" a man. So the original sense of tsumairi has nothing to do with a wife, but simply indicates that the entrance is on the "edge" side of the building (the ends or edges of the structure in relation to the peak line).

   Shinto shrine construction is generally described as being either tsumairi or hirairi. The Grand Shrine of Ise, for example, is hirairi:

   http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c197/Peregrinor/ww/2010_housework/Ise_Shrine_shinmeizukuriW1.jpg

   Interestingly, out of respect to the shrine, houses in the city of Ise have traditionally avoided hirairi construction, adopting tsumairi instead:

   http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c197/Peregrinor/ww/2010_housework/PA278203cpw1.jpg

   This is just a traditional sign of respect, and it's not universal, but I was surprised to find how many houses indeed were tsumairi in the vicinity of the Grand Shrine.