Exterior Stains

Alterstudio Architecture of Austin designed this house in the Texas capital for a young family of four.

Wood from the property’s felled trees was incorporated into every room in the 3,000-square-foot house.

The house's stained-cedar cladding makes a stark but pleasing contrast to the natural foliage of the site.

"The cedar siding is simply stained with a black semi-transparent oil stain [from Cabot], which allows the color of the wood to still emerge through,” architect Robert Hutchison says. “We love how the black color makes the building recede into the background, and how it in turn allows the trees on the site to emerge as the highlight.”