The Ultimate Window Grille Design Guide

Adding a custom window grille design to your windows is a great way to add architectural style to the home and increase curb appeal. There are several window grille patterns to choose from, including beautiful and traditional designs reminiscent of historical architecture. For a more modern or unique look, you can customize your window grille to create a design of your own making!

Window Grille Patterns

1. Colonial
2. Craftsman
3. Diamond
4. Farmhouse
5. Gothic
6. Prairie
7. Vertical
8. Victorian
9. Custom

It’s impressive how window grille patterns have developed over the centuries, and now you can choose the perfect design to complement your home or commercial windows.

By understanding the different window grille patterns, you can select the design that best reflects your architectural style. But before picking a pattern, it’s important to understand what a window grille is and how you can customize it to meet your design preferences.

What is a Window Grille?

Grilles, also called window muntins, are the parts of a window used for decorative purposes. They are either wood or metal pieces that divide the glass into a decorative pattern of four or more sections.

Historically, they served more of a functional purpose than just for aesthetics. In the early 17th century, when windows started to include glass, it was easier and more affordable to use smaller sections of glass than one large pane. Window makers would piece the small glass sections together with strips of metal or wood to create a window. In this way, the glass was fully divided, and the individual glass sections were each known as a divided lite (light) or pane.

Window muntins typically used larger and wider wood or metal pieces to divide the glass panes, which distinguished them from window grilles, which were usually smaller and thinner. Muntins were used as structural support and helped distribute the weight of the window.

Today, the terms ‘grille’ and ‘muntin’ are used interchangeably, as they are no longer used as they historically were. Now, they are used as an accessory on decorative windows. Rather than holding individual glass sections, a window grille pattern is either overlaid atop a glass pane or inserted between two glass panes for an internal grid. The different methods of adding window grilles to new or replacement windows is known as simulated constructions. For example, one method, simulated divided lite (also known as simulated divided light (SDL)) creates a more authentic and traditional look than the other methods.

When purchasing new windows with Rustica, we’ll be happy to provide you with the different window grille options for your custom windows so you can best select the design that meets your needs and goals.

Top 9 Window Grille Patterns

Purchasing a new decorative window is an exciting process, but it’s important to know the various grille styles available, the architectural era they represent, and the design styles they complement. This way, you can confidently match the grille design to the home’s interior and exterior design.

1. Colonial

The colonial grid is a popular window grid style that creates a traditional look featuring a symmetrical rectangle or square pattern.

Colonial style homes, originating on the east coast in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, are typically rectangular with symmetrical windows on each side. The key features of colonial style are clean lines and symmetrical patterns. This style typically features a single or double hung window with the same grid pattern on both sashes. The square/rectangle pattern can range from six divided lites to nine divided lites.

The colonial grid pattern is perfect for traditional homes with historical east coast architecture. Moreover, the clean lines make it suitable for industrial, minimalist, and midcentury design styles.

2. Craftsman

This window grille pattern is similar to the colonial style in that it features a symmetrical grid pattern of squares or rectangles. However, unlike the colonial grid, which is on both sashes of a double hung window, the craftsman grid is only on the top sash. This leaves the bottom sash clear for an unobstructed view of the outdoors.

Because of how simple and clean the craftsman window grids are, they blend seamlessly with a variety of interior design styles and architectural designs. For example, they would fit well with contemporary homes or minimalist designs or styles, including country farmhouse, midcentury, and transitional.

3. Diamond

As the name suggests, the diamond grille style features crisscrossing diagonal lines resulting in multiple diamond shapes. This grille pattern is often found on Victorian and French countryside homes.

The elegant symmetry of multiple diamonds creates a stunning design that would fit a variety of styles, such as the ones already mentioned, as well as shabby chic, English cottage, gothic, and midcentury. The diamond grille style is most popular on large picture windows, and it looks impeccable as a metal black window grid.

4. Farmhouse

The farmhouse style accentuates natural tones, wood furniture, and charming rustic decor. This style also emphasizes simple, natural beauty. The farmhouse window grille holds true to these characteristics by offering clean, simple, thin lines that form a four-piece pattern on the home’s windows.

The grille can be constructed of wood or metal, and is typically painted the same color as the interior walls to match the existing home decor. The idea is to have a design that emphasizes simple beauty, so farmhouse grilles are almost always the standard four-piece pattern with thin lines.

While the grille itself features thin, clean lines, it is usually the window frame that adds character to farmhouse style windows. The frame is wide and wooden, and the grilles always match the color of the frame. With single or double hung windows, the centerpiece of the frame that separates the top and bottom sash is typically thick and wide, which beautifully contrasts the thin grille design and creates the classic four-by-four pattern.

5. Gothic

The gothic architectural movement left Europe with magnificent cathedrals and castles that visitors still look upon with awe to this day. With key features, such as high vaulted ceilings, stained glass windows, and pointed arches, it is a distinguished style rich in history and aesthetic.

Now, you can add that touch of gothic history to your modern home with gothic window grilles. The gothic grille pattern starts as a simple nine-piece square pattern at the center of the window, then transitions into crisscrossing pointed arches at the top.

With a style as distinctive as gothic window grilles, you’ll want seamless integration with your unique interior and exterior design. With this in mind, the gothic window grid pattern is perfect for shabby chic, vintage, gothic, and traditional style homes.

6. Prairie

The prairie window grille features one or two thin horizontal lines on the top and bottom of the window pane, and one or two thin vertical lines running the length of the window pane on either side. This pattern leaves the center of the window open for a clear and unobstructed view. Small squares form in the corners of the window where the vertical and horizontal grille lines meet.

As a simple, yet elegant design, the prairie window grille is a popular choice among window buyers, as it can blend seamlessly with a wide variety of design styles. This includes traditional, cottage core, midcentury, contemporary, modern farmhouse, and more.

The prairie window grid pattern is often seen on a casement window, which is a classic window style for traditional prairie architecture. However, it can also be on used picture windows, sliding windows, awnings, and single or double hung windows.

7. Vertical

If you want a modern window grille style to complement a minimalist or contemporary style home, you’ll love the vertical window grille. This grille style features two to three thin vertical lines running the length of the window. Unlike the other grille patterns discussed, this style does not have overlapping lines.

Because of how simple and clean the vertical grille design is, it’s perfect for modern homes looking to add a touch of architectural flair to the windows. The thin lines create an unobstructed view of the outdoors, and perfectly match the simplicity of minimalist design.

8. Victorian

Victorian architecture has influenced many older home designs, and it continues to be a popular and traditional style in the modern era. The Victorian window grille pattern captures the eccentric and ornamental tendencies of the Victorian style, as it features a rectangle pattern along the sides of the window pane. This rectangular pattern forms a larger rectangle in the middle of the window pane, creating the staple piece of the design.

The Victorian window grille style is unique and expressive, making it a perfect fit for shabby chic, cottagecore, transitional, and midcentury style homes. As bay windows are a typical feature of traditional Victorian homes, this grille style on a bay window will transform your space into an authentic Victorian design.

9. Custom

While it’s nice to have a selection of traditional patterns, sometimes the patterns available don’t match the design you had in mind. When that’s the case, it’s best to create a custom window grille pattern.

Designing custom window grilles ensures you receive the one-of-a-kind design you’re dreaming of. Plus, custom window grilles are necessary if you have a non-traditional grille pattern on an existing window that you wish to duplicate.

What Color is Best for a Window Grid?

When selecting a window grid pattern for custom windows, one aspect to consider is the color and material of the window grilles.

Window grids come in a variety of colors, though the most popular are black, white, beige, and stained wood. When selecting a color, it's best to match your home’s existing interior and exterior colors. In general, you want the grille color to complement the siding and trim of the home and interior wall colors. For example, black windows with a black grid create a complementing contrast to light-colored trim and siding.

Window grilles come in a few different materials, including wood, metal, and vinyl. As with color selection, you want the grille material to match the window frame material. If you have wood windows, you’ll want the window grid to be wood for seamless integration.

Design a Custom Window Grille with Rustica Today!

Window grilles are a beautiful and elegant addition to home windows. They increase curb appeal, generously complement the home’s interior style, and add to the overall architectural design. And what's more, there are many patterns to select from, so you’ll be sure to find the window grill design that best matches your unique style.

However, if those patterns don’t stand out enough or don’t match the design you had in mind, you may want to create a custom window grille pattern!

Contact Rustica’s design team today if you have a dream window grille pattern you’re ready to bring to life! We’ll be more than happy to help you design a custom window grille that’s perfectly complements your unique space.