The style cannot be tied to any era, like Baroque or Art Nouveau – both in the 17th century and in the 21st houses in the Mediterranean style have something in common, although there have differences between. They can be different in the construction sense – the bearing walls and the tiled roof of a traditional house in the Mediterranean countries are not at all the same as the monolithic frame and flat roof of modern houses in Spain, Portugal or Greece. But this dissimilarity does not prevent such different houses in any weather from creating the same mood: a sunny day and truly southern relaxation.

Old or new, the houses of Provence, Valencia or Cadiz have common signs for everyone: white or light beige walls, a pool or at least a fountain nearby, and a patio or at least a terrace. The roof can be pitched or flat, the house can have the character of a traditional or modern – and probably we can say that the Mediterranean style is traditional and modern also. Traditional, except for tiled roofs, it is characterized by small windows, in a modern house the windows are panoramic. Well, the shape of the house of a traditional house constructed using load-bearing walls, adheres to simple rectangular shapes, without cantilevered protrusions and other non-standard techniques, a modern Mediterranean-style house is free in shape, and can express much more thoughts and emotions.

The traditional house in the Mediterranean style therefore organically looks in its native element, because all its elements are the result of the selection of everything that is rational and useful. The white color of the walls reflects the warmth of sunlight, preventing the wall from heating up. Wooden lintels over windows or arches before the invention of reinforced concrete were indispensable. The shingles of different colors reflect the composition of local clays, and cannot be the same as the tiles of Germany or Britain. Somewhat chaotic, and therefore such a picturesque form of houses is explained by their history and small budgets for construction – houses were attached from above and from the side, following the growth of the family and well-being. The details of the facades – the brackets of roofing overhangs, vents and everything else – on a simple form and white background of the walls look like decorations, albeit not the most expensive ones. Colonnades of galleries, where the columns can be marble and simple wooden pillars – but somehow the gallery will give a shadow and coolness in the summer.

The modern house in the Mediterranean style reminds its ancestor in places, by individual elements, as if quoting it in its own story about the sun, sea and fishers villages. Such a house, made in terraced form, with ledges, will slightly resemble placers of houses on terraced slopes that catch sun and rain all year round, giving life to plants. There, in Cadiz and Valencia – to olives, here – a grassy lawn.

Another important detail that separates the houses in the Mediterranean style is the windows: small in a traditional house, in a modern one they tend to occupy the entire wall, replacing it with a view of the sea or mountains. What used to be inconvenient – a large window area in a hot climate is pretty tiring – now, with air conditioning, it gives only a view of the landscape and nothing more.

The design of a house in the Mediterranean style is not cheap and expensive in itself, it can add to the price only with “additional options” – a pool or a lawn on the roof, a terrace form of the house or non-binding windows. Well, and the house, if you “remove” from it all these decorations and applications, will remain simple and quite budget. Therefore, there is always a choice, somewhere you can add, somewhere take away.