Fiberglass cornices are among the most subtle and flattering details you can add to your home. Made of incredibly sturdy fiberglass, cornices are essentially ridged and shaped strips of decor that line the eaves, dormers, and upper details of a modern home rooftop. They are reflections of the wood and even stone cornices carved to adorn much older buildings in an architectural nod to the beautiful ways we used to build in the past. Cornices are a wonderful addition to a home or commercial building because they add just a hint of style, texture, and accent without overwhelming the design.
In many ways, they can add a true delicacy of detail for those that look closely but at a scale that is at once so big and so small that it hardly noticeable at a glance. But the most interesting thing that fiberglass cornices can do is change the impression of your roofline. Whether you have home with a classically steep roof or a flat-topped business, cornices add shape and style to a roofline in a way that nothing else can.
Taper and Shape the Top of Each Wall
Cornices are sometimes attached to the top of an outer wall, shaping the way the wall itself reaches for the eaves of the roof. Cornices can be used to add an artistic taper with tiered ridges or to create a specific shape as the wall reaches up toward the eaves. Fiberglass cornices are heavy-duty meaning they can withstand the weather that may blow past the exterior of your home and the winds that whistle through the eaves.
This shaping effect of upper-wall cornices can make a home look more elegant and finely crafted than it was originally while showing off the classical sense of style of the current homeowners.
Flair the Roofline
Cornices can also go onto the edge of a roof beyond the vertical wall. This is particularly common for flat roofs but can also be seen on sloped rooftops in select conditions. These cornices tend to add a little flair to the edge of a roof, making it seem like it reaches out to a point rather than cutting bluntly off at the edge. This slight effect of flaring can make a home seem faintly more exotic and stylish than the utilitarian look often left when the construction crew is finished.
Add an Accent Color Surface
Another interesting use for subtly shaped cornices is to add a surface on which to create accent color trim. When you see a home done beautifully in two tones, one primary color and one vivid or contrasting trim, often cornices are used along rooftops and the tops of walls to provide some of that vivid accenting color.
Cornices can be painted before they are installed or after, but the clean lines of a freshly installed white fiberglass cornice are often enough to make a home really pop with the new smooth lines of accent color.
Texture the Roof Edges
Cornices are also sometimes used just to add a touch of texture to the join between the vertical walls and the roof eaves. They can be dimpled, scalloped, ridges, or sometimes even custom carved to reflect classic or artistic pieces of architecture. These cornices may not significantly change the shape or impression of the roof, but looking closely gives one a sense of opulence in the level of detail in how the cornice provides unique texture to the roof design.
Point the Corners
Some people even use cornices to achieve a subtly more eastern look, by flaring only the corner into points at the edges while the rest of the cornice around the roof perimeter remains uniform. Flaired corners give a home or business a subtle additional visual oomf, emphasizing the sharpest points of the home while simultaneously beckoning guests to come indoors and find out what splendors await within.
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If you are looking to add texture and flair to your home’s rooftop design without significantly changing the roof or architecture, a fiberglass cornice design could be exactly what you’re looking for.