Toronto Star

You've seen them in Hollywood movies, in small English towns, in major shelter magazines and even on the streets of Toronto. Distinct for their unusual rooflines and thick pillars to support steep roofs, dormers and wide porch overhangs, the Arts and Crafts home – or Craftsman bungalow as it's more commonly called – is making a comeback. In fact, Googling "build a new craftsman home" turns up more than 200,000 sites, including hundreds of architectural firms offering mail-order house plans. The movement has so swept the landscape south of the border that several recent books trumpet the return of the style: Bungalow Nation; The Bungalow; Bungalow Kitchens; The New Bungalow. The increased interest is likely to do with the times. The Arts and Crafts movement began in the 1880s in England as a reaction to the alienating factors of the Industrial Revolution. One need look no further than the inhuman, fast-paced, technology-based culture of today to see why handcrafted human-scale housing is so attractive.