Hi,

I have been living in a 1-story ranch in Oklahoma built in 1954 for about 15 years. The paint colors other than the door were selected by the previous owners. They also put up the driveway and front walk metal covers that are not attractive but are very functional.

I do not want to paint the brick. I want to colors to be attractive today but also appropriate to the time the home was built. I do want to keep my teal front door color, although I admit that it is difficult to see it through the storm door. Cost is an issue, so while I am sure there are much more attractive ways to cover the driveway, walk, and porch, if they cost a lot of money, then they are probably not an option for me. Also, I am in the process of replacing the original metal framed single-pane windows with new ones. Due to costs, this will be done over several years. So far, I have done just the 3 windows of the kitchen...these are the ones with white trim. I don't want to get into painting the window trim on the new windows (the part built into the window) and the future replacement windows will likely be the same white. The brick has a bit of grayish tones to it. I will see if I can add a closeup of that.

Finally, one half of the garage has been converted into an extra room that we use as an office, so when they did that (mid 70s?) they incorporated the existing garage door into the front wall so it appears to still be a 2-car garage. The other bay of the garage is used for tools/storage, so I do park my car under the carport. Oklahoma has hail often and gets blistering hot in the summer, so that is useful, if ugly. I am willing to replace the black scroll porch posts if there is something else that is economical...they hold up the porch, so there has to be something there.

So, what are your thoughts? I am not keen on the current bright whiteness of the house trim against the brick, especially of the two garage doors. I have seen suggestions for shades of gray or tan, but not sure how to implement it...where to put what colors. Thanks!