Sometimes also referred to as clapboard, the traditional or standard style has the appearance of a board that gradually widens towards the bottom. Back in the days when these boards were cut by hand, this flat profile was the most practical and cheapest to produce. Historically it was the most widley used option.

This variation of siding style had a notch cut out of the top edge of each board giving it a nice, distinguished shadow line. Because of the extra effort required to produce it, this style of siding was expensive and mostly used for more upscale homes.

Another variation somewhat less popular today is Beaded Lap which has a slim notch etched down the length of the board right at the bottom.

Traditionally this style of siding was very effective at sealing structures up tight. The thin boards nailed over the seams between the larger boards created a better barrior to the elements than did their horizontal countarparts. The same is sometimes said about todays vinyl variaty, but most often this is chosen for style, or as an accent rather than for more practicle reasons.

Designed to look just like real cedar shakes, these vinyl alternatives require no painting and only very simple maintenance. Shake style siding sports deeper wood grain detail and a more complex shape to mimic their historical ancestors which were hand split rather than sawn. Today these shingles are a popular choice as an accent for more common lap siding styles.