Binsd--The Ranch Style lives! Love this thread because I too am the proud(?) owner as of last Feb of a 1960s ranch home. I got all the cool stuff from the 60s and 70s: avocado appliances, gold flocked wallpaper, pink tile, gold colored accents. Oh yeah! Immediately took the house down to the studs to turn it into a Modern Farmhouse. I took inspiration from these: Walker-Warner Sonoma Farmhouse (http://www.walker-warner.com/indexf.html#POR-GRC-001) Christine Lane, Boston, MA (http://christinelaneinteriors.com/) I think ranchers are particularly suited to blend styles. They were a bit funky then and they can still be. Yet, if you want to lean slightly more traditional, they can sustain the transitional. I think they are way more flexible than many styles. Your home in particular has some good bones! The raised ceilings and open one-story floorplan are great for toddlers since you can see them from most rooms. If you can mix some of your Spanish furniture with some more contemporary pieces, I think it will have that California Spanish casual style--with a cleaner look. Love it! In the green bathroom, take out the brass and replace with frameless glass. It will immediately look more contemporary. A glass company should be able to make the shower enclosure (this one's traditional, but you get the picture): From Misc photos If you want to embrace the modern look, peruse: Atomic Ranch (http://www.atomic-ranch.com/). I think they have more Eichlers than Ranch, but it gives you an idea of that style. Here's my old house and the old stuff that was in it, then here are two exterior shots of what it looks like now: From Menlo Farmhouse From Menlo Farmhouse From Menlo Farmhouse From Menlo Farmhouse From Menlo Farmhouse I wish I could cite all of the great pics I have seen in magazines where they have remodeled a ranch. Each had their own flavor: slightly more modern, slightly less modern, more funky, somewhat traditional, etc. Search: mid-century, modern, ranch home. Have fun! I think your house is a great choice!!

We also have a plain vanilla ranch built in 1950. It was never MCM nor any style. It was just churned out as a tract home. The basic layout of bedrooms and living space was ok, but we opened the wall between the kitchen and living room, extended and moved the kitchen so the old kitchen is half of the new one and partly as our new main level laundry room. The rest of the kitchen is part of the extension and is adjacent to the new den we added on. Due to budget constraints, we only cathedraled the new extensions' ceilings and the master bedroom ceiling was vaulted as we extended there too. Where we did not raise the ceilings we added in skylights and a 5ft eyebrow window in the front of the house, boxed in like a skylight (and we have a skylight over the den up high). The greater amount of natural light is fabulous and it feels so much more spacious with the openings for the skylights and eyebrow window. We had hated the all low ceilings when we moved in. Our previous house had vaulted and cathedral ceilings over the living spaces and it was hard to adjust to low and flat. I truly think that being able to raise the ceilings and/or use skylights is one of the best features about a ranch. Since the house was built with little style and updated with no style either (unless cheap and ugly are styles, lol), we felt free to create our own vibe. We went for retro modern with a 40s feel. What a modern person would have done prior to MCM is how I'd describe it. It has some deco feel to it but the lines are simple and not ornate. Crown moldings would not have worked, so we have done simpler ones. We chose modest looking but well designed materials. No one would ever think it is fancy or frilly. We wanted clean lines but not sharp edges. It is supposed to feel homey and unassuming. Like a well worn pair of jeans that fit well. We want guests to feel at home. If you come up with your own style mission statement you can check your choices against it. At one point, we fell in love with white marble and wanted that for our counters. Then one day, we figured out it went against all our other choices and was too elegant. We ended up with Corian in their Rain Cloud pattern, which mimics the feel of a white marble, but is not trying to fake anyone out. It has a softness to the look but with all straight lines and an eased edge profile, it looks neat. We ended up with Carrera marble in our master bathroom for the counter and in the faux rug part of our floor. That space is meant to be more grown up and fancy since it is our private space and not designed for the kids. The veins that make it great there would have been too busy for the kitchen. If we had gone for another look, I'd have loved to use the marble as I usually drool when I see it used anywhere. If I ever do a kitchen again, I would want qs oak with white marble or some other medium toned stained wood. The door style would be different as well. We are happy with our vision and how the look has turned out (the gc screwed us on condition, but that will be fixed, someday). It is not plain vanilla any more! Our house looks like no other in our area and I dare say, it is now one of a kind. Hopefully, you find your groove and your end result reflects your style and vision, and makes you smile too ;)

Unless a person knows they will be in a house for a short time, I think it's better to plan for the long term, knowing that there may be a period of awkwardness until the final concept rings through loud and clear. In this case (if you're going to be in the house for a while) I would not let the stone and roof colors limit where I go with future house colors. Personally, I don't find the stone attractive enough to call it a "keeper." If budget allows, I'd consider replacing it. If budget doesn't allow, I'd paint it and that will be an improvement and open up color choices for other things. Roofs eventually wear out an need replacement. At that time, you could select a better roof color that goes with your improved house color. Eventually, you could transition to a whole new, improved color scheme. The new pictures help. To be perfectly frank, I don't think the stone columns and fencing help in the least to make the entrance more inviting and appealing. If a courtyard effect was still desired, I think it would be done completely differently than what is there now. So getting rid of those things would be an immediate improvement. The walk needs help, too. Ideally, it would be redone. But if that is not in the budget, then strategically adding to it would be a big help. It especially needs an area of expanded paving near the entrance door. The small "trees" inside and outside of the courtyard are not the right plants for those spots. Is the budget or DIY interest level sufficient to make some sizable changes to the entrance area?

Everybody has an opinion, which you asked for, but you have to do what is best for you in your neighborhood. If you are replacing the siding and thinking about doing all the work of painting brick, maybe you should just remove some of that brick altogether. If you leave some of it, have it be lower and even across...maybe 1/3 of the height of the walls instead of half. Keep the excess brick for edging or patio like someone else suggested. I liked the trim-work you added. Definitely do not paint the garage door the same as the front. Keep it in the lighter tone of your siding color choice. This way the front door is a focal point. Do not replace the garage door if it is not needed. There's no reason to add the expense ($1700 or more). I would use the existing shrubs as background to a much larger planted area. Allow budget for mulching that planting bed and, for what it's worth, consider using rubber bark mulch. It definitely is more expensive, but it is worth it in the long run if you're planning on living there. Rubber bark does not attract termites or roaches, it doesn't fade, it doesn't disintegrate, and it doesn't blow away so it doesn't need to be replaced every 2 years like bark mulch. It keeps tires out of the landfill! Anyway, updating is a great idea, but keep in mind why you are choosing to do so. If you are going to live there, spend what you want. If you are updating to sell, keep your budget as low as possible because you won't recoup much of it and expenses can only be subtracted from profits on the house. If you're losing money on the house then not even the realtor fees are deductible. Best of luck with your project!