These are 4' T12? If so, reconsider linear fluorescent. Modern ballasts run at 20,00-60,000 Hz rather than 60 Hz so you can not hear them. No flickering either. Even i they are odd length, it might be worth it. You can install T8 or T5. I've never been particularly fond of the idea of dimming arc lamps, but why are you against it? What you might consider is installing the lamps in groups of three in each tray if they fit. Switch them so either one or two come on in each group with a switch throw. That way you have three light levels, one lamp, two lamps or three lamps/group (33%. 67% or 100% if you use all the same ballasts). Adjust the amount of light installed by using low, normal or high ballast factor ballasts. There are now ballasts that can operate at two or three brightnesses as well. They use a separate control wire rather than a dimmer. Light quality and color are better than ever. CRI 90 is not unusual, and higher is available. Triphosphor tubes are available in color temps from 3000 to 6500 with lots of choices in between. You might well be able to use your existing luminaires if that is easier. You have to pay attention to the sockets. Are they instant start types or rapid start? I'd not install instant start in homes under normal circumstances. They are no good for frequent switching. If you can't run another switch loop to the switch boxes easily, you might be able to find a remote that will work. You can keep searching for LEDs, but cost will be much higher, and light quality will be lower. Even lifetime cost might be higher if you pack enough leds up there to have the same light as linear Fl. Installation costs certainly will be very high.

This house is so very much like the home I grew up in, and where my parents still live. It was built in 1967. With that angular roof line, it's definitely not a Colonial. Maybe not a completely groovy MCM, but definitely looking for that vibe. Unlike your home, theirs has no stone, but the brick color is identical, a classic mid-60's color. I wouldn't stain or paint it. The siding (as specified by the architect) was brown stained wood which I think looks great. Find a brown color that looks great with the stone (I selected one of the stone colors for my mock-up.) Not gray, brown is authentic 1960's, with the natural colors of the warm orange brick and the brown wood siding. And we had those yew bushes as a hedge in front, too. At one point they were too tall, and my parents just cut them in half horizontally. After a few months of bareness they filled in and look great, just lower. There are other plantings in front of them but they make a nice green background hedge all year.

I don't like the dark paint. With your light roof and light stone it looks like someone tied a dark green ribbon around the top of your house. A lighter color would be an improvement. I dislike the planters and would remove them if possible. I would remove the rail if it is not needed for safety. It is probably original but it makes the door seem inaccessible You can buy a full view storm door and paint it and the house door the same color. I love your lamp post. Do you have a porch light? I made an amateurish image of a lighter house with no planters. Do you think the stone is original?

For what it’s worth, a neighbor-friend on a street where I used to live put their house on the market a week or so ago, and I looked at the listing, which included a link to street view. I happen to scroll a few houses further, and I noticed that one of the houses on the street — a colonial like yours — had been ”updated” to have black windows, modern door, plain columns, sort of like picture Maureen posted. It truly looked awful, especially since the surrounding homes all still have a coherency of history about them (houses typically 100 years old on the street, not special, but just typical of an era, with variety of victorians, colonials and 4-squares). I think the people who updated their probably knocked $100k of the value, possibly more. It looked like the house had a fire or a tree fall on it, and they couldn’t afford to rebuild it to its orginal charm. HOWEVER: When I actually lived in that neighborhood I was taking a walk one day, and I passed a small group of people meeting on the sidewalk in front of a 100-yr old colonial house where the BACK SIDE of the house had been completely knocked down and rebuilt in steel and glass. I overheard the architect (who was standing right there) explain to the 2 other people) how when they toured the house, they should notice in particular blah blah — I just stood there, shamelessly eavesdropping, and when they started to walk toward the house I tagged along — I think the architect didn’t quite realize I didn’t know the other 2 women. Anyway, the back end of the house was super contemporary (it faced into a hill, so there was no problem with the all glass walls). Why don’t you leave the front of your house as is and do the back as MCM as you wannabe?