Recognizing a Juliet Balcony in a Heritage House

Who doesn’t adore a Juliette Balconies? This nostalgic scaled-down variation of a portico was made noteworthy by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. In most cases, a Juliet style Balconies is constructed of a concrete slab, wood foot and handmade wrought iron rails.

Not every person knows what a true Juliet Balconette looks like and if you have acquired an Character Home, and plan to restore a balcony back to its prior state, it would be all-important to know what type of balcony you have. Here is a short list of part of the most paramount and uncommon features of a Romeo and Juliet Balcony:

•    A Juliette balcony does not project from the building like a regular balcony deck or terrace would. On a Romeo and Juliet balcony there is routinely very limited space – regularly just enough for a person to take a gander outside.

•    A Juliette balcony is NOT a French balcony, which is a false balcony without any room to walk out (essentially just an overdone hand railing).

•    A Romeo and Juliet balcony is very nearly always situated on an upper floor (2nd or higher) and not ever on the main floor of a true century or character house.

•    A Juliet balcony has balusters only on the facade. In almost all conditions, the ends are like walls and are bolstered by fancy yet grand corbel style supports.

Many homes in mainstream Manhattan, NY are seen displaying the trendy Juliet balcony on their external façade. Many are original to the age of the residence but more and more are being custom crafted new “to look old” and mounted on renovated buildings to strengthen visual attraction and mood.

Whether you are rebuilding an old balcony or creating a new one to your character home, your choices are limitless in terms of materials. As long as you stay true to the fundamental features of a Juliette balcony (as outlined above), you can pretty much pick whatever materials you want.  For example, you may select handmade wrought iron balusters with solid cherry side walls and hand carved corbels stained to match the shutters on your home.

The wisest advice I can propose is to take a walking or driving tour around any older neighborhood. Check out many original styles of Juliette balconies, and be sure to snap many digital photos of what catches your eye for future reference. Then pin down the features you love best and have a solid wood railed balcony constructed for your century home.

Perfect Fit Blinds in a Juliet Balcony