Finish Options for Western Red Cedar

Exploring Nature’s Palette to Create Different Looks in Modern Architecture

High Desert by Hacker, photos by Jeremy Bitterman / Joel B Sanders Agency

In the realm of architectural design, a building’s facade plays a pivotal role in shaping the initial impression and overall identity of a structure. Accordingly, the choice of cladding material becomes a defining statement. The right siding speaks its own language, weaving narratives that go beyond mere structure to embody the fusion of nature’s elegance and design ingenuity. 

Western Red Cedar siding, with its innate beauty and remarkable adaptability, invites architects to explore this narrative deeply. Its pitch and resin-free composition not only makes it a guardian of durability and natural resilience but also a versatile medium for an array of finishes. Through the lens of these projects, we uncover the eloquence of cedar in architectural dialogue.

Photo: Sama Jim Canzian

The Bluebonnet project by Shelter Residential Design artfully employs two-tone cedar siding, creating a striking visual dialogue between dark and light. This design choice not only showcases cedar’s capacity to accept diverse finishes but also its ability to blend seamlessly with the landscape, demonstrating the material’s versatility in contemporary design. 

Time-Honored Tradition: Shou Sugi Ban Cedar

Seattle’s Madison Park Tree House by First Lamp Architecture and Construction features cedar with a Shou Sugi Ban finish, an ancient Japanese torching technique that enhances the wood’s resistance and brings a rich, textured appearance. Cedar’s natural oils and tight grain make it particularly receptive to this preservation process, ensuring a uniform and lasting charred effect. 

Photo: Jim Westphalen Photography

Aged to Perfection: Heritage Grey 

For this Bank Barn project in Woodstock, VT, the Birdseye architect team merged traditional architecture with modern design by replicating the look and texture of rustic American barnwood. It’s a process perfected by Hewn, and the result is a uniform, aged look that stands up to the region’s varied climate. When treated with this unique finish, knotty grades of cedar exude a warm, mulitdimentional elegance that is both striking and naturally blends with the landscape, making it an impeccable choice for the application.

Photo: Jeremy Bittermann

Unadorned Beauty: Unfinished Cedar

For this Newberg Residence in Oregon, architects James Cutler and Meghan Griswold opted to leave the cedar siding unfinished. It’s a choice that allows the material to age naturally, blending seamlessly with the pristine forested environment. This kind of minimal intervention highlights cedar’s inherent beauty and its ability to form a symbiotic relationship with its surroundings.

Photo: Auda & Auda Photography

The Subtlety of Transparency: Semi-Transparent Stain Cedar

In Carlsbad, California, Laguna Row project by Brett Farrow showcases cedar’s natural grain and luster through a semi-transparent stain, a finishing choice that protects while highlighting the wood’s organic beauty. This approach reflects a deep appreciation for cedar’s natural aesthetics, offering a window into the wood’s soul.

Photo: Courtesy of Dan Brunn Architecture

Ethereal Lightness: Bleaching Stain Cedar

LA’s  Bridge House by Dan Brunn Architecture utilizes a bleaching stain on cedar to achieve a facade that gently merges with its environmental context over time. This choice is a reflection of a broader desire within architecture to create spaces that exist in harmony with their natural settings, where the material’s transformation is an integral part of the design vernacular. 

To learn more about creating different looks with Real Cedar, visit our finishing page here. Or to earn continuing eduction units, register for our CEU entitled “Western Red Cedar Finish Options Maximize Versatility.”