Need Help with Curb Appeal Design - 1920s Classic Colonial
Lindsey
5 years ago
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White Brick Colonial needs some curb appeal!
Comments (47)A few more ideas: I think if you continue the banding along the top it would do loads to help unify the addition with the brick house. Don't use the same fancy molding, just a plain band to go with the simpler style of the addition. Yes to a pediment/eave over the window. It would "cap" it and give it presence. Use beefier trim on the sides of the window so it looks like the trim is supporting the pediment and to make the window/trim/pediment look like a whole. More substantial trim around the garage and on the corner of the addition. Splurge for a pretty garage door and pretty lamps. I didn't care for the window box. It didn't look like a graceful length to my eye, and the black was distracting. If you still want a window box, paint it white to make it part of the window/trim/pediment element. I also found something odd about the way the siding goes all the way to the concrete (or maybe it just looks that way in the picture). If you had a little foundation showing like over in the brick section, that would also make the addition look connected to the main house. I've drawn in a "foundation." Others had wonderful landscaping ideas, especially about balancing the plants and putting a planter or trellis under the octagonal window....See MoreHelp - Need design ideas to add curb appeal to red brick home!
Comments (14)"This front is just a mess." That is your first impression. I suggest you live with it for a few months before doing anything. Surely you will change it, but you don't yet know what it's like to live with the existing garden. The experience of it may shift your understanding slightly. mad_gallica said "you have Sun Ra but you want Bach" -- maybe. But maybe you don't know what you have or what you want. Give it time to sink in. What's the rush. No film crew coming, is there? There are philosophies that result in what someone has carefully planned and built in what is now your front garden. It may not be your philosophy, and that's fine, but just "try it on" and spend some time in those "clothes." Then you will come to know not only what you don't want, but you will know WHY and you may even know what you DO want, and why. I don't see it as a maze, but someone in a big hurry undoubtedly sees it that way. In some gardens, indirect paths or spirals are made for meditation or for giving the inhabitant a few extra seconds in the day to smell the roses, or in other words, to appreciate the peaceful feeling a walk through greenery can bring. With combined families, whose garden is it, anyway? ;) Last comment -- when entering the house, you may find you never use the front door, but enter through the garage. If you entertain a lot, a meditation front garden may not be quite the thing. But don't be too hasty. Live with it for a time....See MoreExterior design help! any recommendations how to improve curb appeal
Comments (7)As Beth said, move the cars and take photos that scan the entire width of the property. Stand on the public sidewalk approximately opposite the front door and take a series of photos without moving from one place. Start facing the left property line and rotate your body to take a series of slightly overlapping photos that goes across the front of the house and any associated front landscaping until you get tot the left property line. Being able to see The Who front of your property will give us more to work from and get you more helpful suggestions. You can just add the photos in that follow up comments....See MoreDesign help needed to improve curb appeal of L-shaped ranch
Comments (17)briggs whitaker, I do commercial electrical work for a living and many of my fellow coworkers have gotten solar installed. Depending on your state, at least here in NJ, many residential solar installers are offering new roofs, new electrical services and clearing of solar obstructions like trees. My one coworker had 20 trees removed and a new 200amp service done at no charge after they quoted him the system. I'm not saying cutting down mature trees for solar panels is a smart move or the right move. I'm just saying if it was ever a possibility or you liked the idea and wanted to investigate then now would be the time before having work done. You may be surprised what could be done at no charge as many solar companies are getting subsidies to get solar on roofs at any cost. It's not for everyone, not every house or site benefits from a grid tied solar system. I also find it's better long term to invest in one more high end item vs doing several smaller cheaper or compromised projects. Say for example the front door. You might use that door daily instead of someone who parks in the garage and uses the interior door. Investing in a higher end door gives you better build quality, better finish, better feel and better air sealing and or thermal performance. Then hiring a good contractor with good references and local examples of their work, who has a great attention to detail may be better than trying to do a stock door from a box store and using one of their installation contractors. It might not be large overall sweeping change you are looking for but long term doing something like that once a year will get you there. Same goes for roofing. Try doing a little research to see what makes a good roof installation. I'm not saying you need to necessarily learn how to do it yourself but knowing that the use of higher end underlayment products (tar paper vs some of the new synthetic wrb's to a full peel and stick membrane vs a liquid applied product), basic understanding of flashing, proper valley treatments or proper roof ventilation (ridge vents and eave vents) etc or as simple as knowing basic fastening requirements (architectural asphalt shingles get nailed on the manufacturer marked nail line). We waited on a short sale years ago that we had to walk away from because during inspection our contractor friend and I got on the roof and discovered the all the shingles were nailed incorrectly and the counter flashing was installed backwards. I spoke with the neighbor and they informed us the previous owner did it themselves. The bank didn't want to move on price so we had to walk away. Long story short is, just because someone gets paid to do something doesn't necessarily mean they are good or the best. Sometimes knowing some basics of the job you are hiring for can present you red flags of a potential hire during an estimate. I always suggest to buy good materials but more importantly hire someone who installs the materials correctly. It doesn't matter how expensive something is if it's installed wrong. Ymmv....See MoreLindsey
5 years agochloebud
5 years agochloebud
5 years agoBarnes Custom Builders
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