in Missouri--everybody seems to swear by TWP and TWP will tell you to wait 4 or more months to do anything to your fence--let it weather to gray---then wash/brighten it--let it dry and THEN stain and seal it If you go clear---it will weather back to gray in no time flat---the solids in the stain are what provide the UV protection and fight the weathering

You know, kec01 brings up a good point...it's all relative. How much fence do you have...what type of fence...where do you live...the style of your house...and neighborhood. I have a 900' long driveway and am set back in the woods. Had I built a house on Main Street, perhaps a white picket fence would have been more suitable. I have 400 feet of fence total by the pool. About 340' of it 6' tall, the other 60' is 3-1/2' tall. It's 2" square picket cedar fencing. I made the top rails from 2"x5" cedar, the bottom rails from 2"x6". Posts are 5' square. This would be a bear to stain, paint, and maintain. Had we wanted a stained or painted fence, I probably would not have built this style of fence, or I might not have built it out of cedar. Mongo

i actually think the white is perfect. if you had to go dark, then a deep forest green for the porch fence might work. Pea gravel, as mentioned, or mulch, would keep the dirt from splashing the skirt. what I would concentrate on is the walkway. this is such a cute yard, but that walkway is underwhelming. for a little DIY on your part, you could find some old bricks (craigslist) or spring for some pavers, and build up that walkway a bit so that it's even w/the grass. if you want to keep the flagstone, lay a layer of sand/gravel, tamp it, and re-lay the flagstones (maybe putting in a few more). fill in the joints w/tiny gravel or polymeric sand.

It is currently a special mixed Behr deck, fencing and siding stain to the shade of Cromwell gray. You can see the grain/texture of the wood but it is pretty full pigment.