Victorian Home Exteriors in Historic Downers Grove

At the beginning of this month I showed a collection of Sears catalog homes in the quaint Chicago suburb of Downers Grove. Today I’m featuring Victorian home exteriors from the same neighborhood. I loved my snowy trip to the town where my daughter lives because I found plenty of eye candy to photograph. And believe it or not, I think I have enough photos for one more post of beautiful houses from my walking tour.

 

This large home is my favorite of today’s line-up, although they’re all special and unique. I love the color palette of this home’s exterior and appreciate the fancy scrollwork above the front entrance, the large wrap around porch, and the turreted corner. Sigh. What’s not to love about this beauty?

 

Here’s another grand painted lady with a second story porch. There must be a door to it on the side of the house. Or maybe that porch is just decorative.

 

Note how the homeowners painted the foundation blocks the same shade of deep red as the accent trim.

 

A second floor turret is painted an accent color to give it a little more emphasis. I love when people use creativity with color on Victorian homes. They’re called painted ladies for a reason.

 

Extra detail was given to the trim work on this classic home. The sunburst trim at the peak of the house is easily visible due to the contrasting paint colors. And I can only imagine how long it took to paint all the details of this house, cutting in all the lines of the fancy trim.

 

You know I love a red house! This charmer enjoys a second floor above the garage at the back.

 

Why can’t today’s builders be more creative with windows like this? I know wood window frames are expensive but they look so much better than today’s aluminum or vinyl ones.

 

This Victorian style farmhouse is pretty even though it doesn’t share a lot of the fancy gingerbread like its neighbors.

 

Look carefully and you’ll see Fido in the upstairs window of this pale green charmer.

 

This Victorian beauty wears a slightly different shade of green.

 

If there’s one thing I wish my own Victorian house had, it’s fish-scale trim. It’d be a nuisance to paint but I love the look of it.

 

A bright blue house stands out in the snow. The wooden front doors wear an arch and the lamp posts are an nice touch. I noticed the sign on the front lawn says Save Longfellow, which I thought might be a local dog or something. I Googled it and it turns out that Longfellow is a former school that the town decided to sell.

 

 

This historic home enjoys two sunburst motifs on its exterior.

 

It looks like the attic on this bright blue home was expanded with dormer windows. That would make a great teenager’s retreat, or an art studio.

 

Okay. Does anyone know the significance of the big ball on the top of this home’s turret? I’ve never seen anything like this before.

 

Next week I’ll share the rest of the beautiful, historic homes of Downers Grove. It’ll be a mix of home styles – something for everyone!

 

See More Victorian Home Exteriors:

Victorian Houses and Details to Tickle Your Fancy

Victorian Home In Upstate New York

Painting My Victorian House

Victorian House Collection with Major Curb Appeal

The Charm of a Victorian House