Majestic sea captain's homes, with their shingled exteriors and widow's walks, grace the waterfront of many maritime towns. These houses, frequently seen along the Fundy Coastal Drive in NB, are popular attractions as they have come to characterize the charming and culturally rich aspects of our maritime traditions.

An old art with  a new flare.

Majestic sea captain's homes, with their shingled exteriors and widow's walks, grace the waterfront of many maritime towns. These houses, frequently seen along the Fundy Coastal Drive in NB, are popular attractions as they have come to characterize the charming and culturally rich aspects of our maritime traditions. The corner towers, stained glass windows, front gables, gingerbread trim, and steeply pitched roofs all combine to speak of old-world charm and fine craftsmanship. Look closely at the cedar shingle designs that grace the exterior walls and you will notice shingles with different shapes and patterns. Some of these shingle pattern names reflect their maritime home, such as fish scale and half cove, while others, such as hexagon, round, octagon, and arrow, are the geometric designs that they represent. These shingles are placed in peaks of the roof or wrapped around the elegant corner towers to create intricate designs and lace-like patterns.

Siding as art

The time-honoured practice of good craftsmanship is the foundation for new innovation as cedar shingle designs catch the eye of passersby. Adding charm and visual impact, designs are only limited by your imagination. Whales, trees, loons, salmon and candy canes have all graced the sidewalls of homes and Santa's workshop. Using the same principles of triple layering the shingles over top a protective barrier, such as tar paper or plastic wrap, the design is implemented on the side of the home using a scroll saw and artistic flare.

Michelle Sutherland of Rockville, NS, a talented artist in several mediums, sees this as one more way of expressing artistic ability while honouring the maritime way of life that she appreciates. After being inspired by an Alaskan artist/shingler, Michelle began honing her craft. "What could be more Nova Scotian than turning ordinary dwelling surfaces into art-it's really Maude Lewis turned inside out." She started with the loon and has continued from there.

While vinyl siding has been used to cover some of these glorious cedar shingle patterns because of the ease of application, and relative lower cost, cedar shingling remains on many coastal living home owners' wish-lists. In home decorating magazines the phrase "coastal living" immediately conjures up images of chairs on wrap-around, covered verandas attached to patina-coloured, shingle-covered century homes overlooking the water, inviting one to come, sit and enjoy.  Of course, the prerequisite comfortable white Adirondack chairs invite friends to come and sit for a cup of tea and a yarn.

Jessie and Earl Cook of Pembroke Shore, Yarmouth County began the process of refurbishing their 150-year-old home several years ago but the shingling only started this past summer. They decided to do the job themselves and managed to finish two walls with square-edged shingles. The new corner deck in front of those two newly shingled walls sports two deck chairs and flower pots, ready for their neighbours to stop by for a chat. They both like the look of sea-air tinted cedar shingles so instead of painting them they're opting to let the shingles change colour naturally.

As a do-it-yourself job with the amount of time it took being the only limitation, they appreciated the maritime tradition of neighbours helping neighbours, especially those who could pound a nail. Of course, with all that free labour there has to be a price somewhere, and in good old down east fashion, they had to be willing to be the brunt of a few good natured jokes, especially after Jessie hit the wrong nail a few times.

Creativity and ingenuity have long been admired maritime qualities. Today, traditional craftsmanship is being blended with new technology, enhancing the traditional shape of cedar shingles to include designs that, when placed together, create a larger visual art piece.

Jeff Mason of Seahorse Stables breeds and trains Canada's national horse, the Canadian.  When he decided to re-do all three buildings on his property with cedar shingles, he wanted to integrate a seahorse theme, as well as adding a shaped fish scale pattern. "We started looking at options and came across these amazing designs that are made by cutting and shaping the shingles into different animals and patterns." Integrating the traditional fish scale design with the seahorse above it became an obvious option to grace the façade of the stable and add visual impact. The fish scales placed in the peaks of the house and other out buildings create consistency in the exterior of the building.

Cedar shingling can be easily traced back to King Solomon's temple. In the Maritimes it was during the 1700s that local homes were first sided with decay-resistant cedar. Although 300 years have passed, the application technique is still the same today. Shingling done by applying 18-22 inch shakes, one over the other, with a 4-6 inch exposure to create a triple layer protection to channel wind-driven rain-very common on the coast-back to the exterior of the wall covering. In this way, water does not damage the structure or the siding.

Cedar shingles are graded based on their quality. Number one cedar shingles are cut from the best wood and are noted as coming from the heartwood of the tree. It is 100 per cent clear and 100 per cent edge grain. Number two shingles are cut from lower quality wood and are those that are rejected from number one grade. They are permitted to have a limited amount of sapwood and flat grain. However, the face of the shingle must have at least 10 to 16 inches clear of knots and defects depending upon the overall length of the shingle. Number three shingles are of even lower quality wood and can include rejects from the two previous grades. It is highly recommended that number three shingles only be used for barns and other outbuildings. Shingles can also be treated with fire retardant, however, this is quite uncommon in Canada and needs to be ordered specially through your building supplies provider. Some chose not to let the cedar shingles weather naturally and stain them before applying, or after they a have been applied to the side wall. There are many options available. Those who have homes shaded by trees or with a considerable northern exposure may also consider this, as discolouration can occur quite quickly with a lack of exposure.

Shaped shingles (i.e., fish scale, octagon) are made by taking square shingles and cutting them to the desired shape. Some homeowners may chose to make them with a scroll saw or a local millwright can do them easily. Obviously this can add additional costs and may explain why many use this as a decorative feature only.

Cedars shingles are low-maintenance and can last for decades. If painted they will require repainting just like any other painted siding. They are also a renewable Canadian resource, with appropriate re-forestation practices, and have a carbon footprint significantly less than other petroleum-based sidings that may be processed overseas. They have other environmental benefits as well, says Mason. "Members of my family have environmental sensitivities and we risked adding moisture or even mold with vinyl or some of the other types of siding.  We would not take that chance."

Shingles are colourful and protective , providing a canvas for maritime artistic charm to be showcased. They also allow neighbours to help each other, creativity to be expressed and craftsmanship to endure.