What Does Your Dream Barn Look Like? Part 1 - Exteriors

Disclaimer: I am a total nerd when it comes to design and architecture - I love it! I'm one of those people who mentally renovate every space I enter and build imaginary homes on the vacant lots we drive by. With G and I still shopping for the perfect property, my barn planning has been a bit in overdrive - to the point where I maxed out the memory on our laptop with barn images and my sketch books are full :) But, rather than inundate you with a million ideas and pictures, I might just make this a weekly thing. I was going to keep up with the weekly book reviews, but I haven't been reading much I'd want to recommend and hate writing negative reviews...

So, to answer the title question. My dream barn is:

- small - 3 to 4 stalls max
- nice, but not over the top fancy
- practical
- bright and airy
- large aisleway for working/grooming
- walkout stalls with attached paddocks
- has a washroom and tack room
- easy to keep neat and organized
- grooming area/washbay
- separate hay storage (I'm allergic to the dust and worry about fire)

Because I am a geek AND was working in an engineering job, I drew things like this on my lunch break:

Our AutoCAD version was more for plans and diagrams, giving you limited styling tools, but you get the idea

And I spend more than a few of spare evenings at home doing this:

Obsess much? ;)

Now that we've established my crazy obsession is real, lets move on to a few professional ideas. Unfortunately, most of these photos will be uncredited as I've collected them over a long period of time and don't recall most sources.

Love the idea of exterior windows the horses can hang their heads out of. Love the shingled look, but sceptical of durability - my horses have all LOVED to chew on cedar.

This is a garden shed, not a barn, but I saved it because I love the idea of having casual front gardens and landscaping and having the not-so-attractive sacrifice paddocks partly hidden behind the garden area.Word of warning - the foxglove in this picture is poisonous so not a good choice near a barn - you'd have to be careful to pick horse friendly plants

On the west coast, the weather is such that it's a toss up between a closed barn and a shedrow. This has both. Also, I really like the siding and the air flow to the stalls

Such a great idea - a covered spot to keep the rain/snow out of the stalls, but not so large that it requires posts to hold it up, keeping the area nice and open and bright.

Again, not a barn, but what a nice barn entrance this would be with the neat window and covered area. Just make it level entry and change the door....

Funky, but classic. I'm not sure of the color, but the style intrigues me. Also like the idea of a loft space with lots of windows - maybe a lounge area or office?

This appeals to me as a field shelter. Cute, useful, and has a little spot to store feed and tools if need be. Put a gate across the front of the stall and you'd have a tiny barn prefect for a single horse.

Kind of along the lines of my first drawing - nice big centre aisle and classic looks.

These are just a tiny portion of all the ideas I've collected over the years - hope you've enjoyed.