Thank you! So much great feedback. Sadly, the paint job is a necessity rather than just aesthetics -- paint on the back side is failing pretty badly & peeling off in layers. (After reading up on the paint forum, I think it was just too many layers of latex on top of old oil paint without adequate prep.) Maybe we will keep it close to current color. I'm not sure what color it is, but I'll have to stop by the BM store and pick up a tab for Briarwood. I think those color visualizers are just a bit off, at least on our monitor -- Down Pour is a very smurf-y blue on my screen. Luckily, SW store is right down the street. Of the SW colors, we liked Mineral Deposit -- gray, but not quite so dark. Johnmari, my wife said exactly that about warm trim looking bad with cool gray field color. I just want to get away from the current ultrawhite, just tone down a bit but not too much. Shutters? I think we will someday, after we've finished the essentials. Of course, being picky, I don't want to just screw aluminum shutters that don't match window size on there, so might be a while given that real shutters & hardware are pricey. The suggestion about doing the sash black is good--that could look really sharp and make the windows pop a bit more until we can dress it up a bit more with shutters. Absolutely agreed on the landscaping solutions. Could be more varied and it would add a lot. THANK YOU for all your suggestions, such a helpful group & nice little corner of the internet.

You probably already have an idea of what type of house you like: Farmhouse, bungalow, modern, whatever. Keeping that preference in mind, search for a location that suits your needs and will work well with the type of house you like (for example, I'm in a rural area; an ultra-modern design would look out of place here in my county). While you're searching, consider what services are nearby: Public transit, doctor's offices, etc. Once you have secured your location and you know whether your land is flat or whatever else, which direction has the best sunshine and views, etc., then you're ready to think about a house plan. Do not rush yourself in putting together your plan; a year or more isn't too much to allot to this process. Start now studying plans and educating yourself about what you like and don't like (we started out with a list of "must haves", but after going through X number of plans, we've determined that three of them were always iron-clad necessities, while we're more flexible on the others). Likely you won't be able to fit EVERYTHING you want into one plan; compromises will be necessary. Most people here are enamored of the Not So Big House series, and it's a good place to start, but you'll find other books too. As a part of that studying, be sure to pay attention to the things that'll make your life easy as you age; for example pay particular attention to the bathroom design -- what's popular isn't necessarily what's useful to an elderly person. Yes, you should consider budget, but only you know whether that's a big deal or not. Speaking only for myself, we are building a house far beneath our means, so we're not really thinking about it much. Rather, we are choosing to build a modest-sized house that will be easy to maintain (both in terms of cost and effort).

The dilemma you have is how to stay somewhat true to the style of the exterior of the home, while finding your happy place with Nordic look. With your brick, I think some form of blue with white trim would achieve that sweet spot. This is a blue/gray with close to your brick. this is a good combination. They used black on the windows which I think looks very classic. By keeping the exterior to two paint colors you will minimize the "Gingerbread" look. That is the trick here. What a great home and I am so happy you are taking care of a great old home! Love that.

Almost anything can be painted to last with the proper material and prep. That said, those two things don't come cheap, especially if you are looking for a warranty on the finish. I agree with the others that a restocking fee is probably your best bet, assuming that it is not accompanied by crippling delays or simply being too late to cancel.