Thank you for your suggestion. Are you referring to a lime wash like this?

Should have left the brick off and just had siding.

It looks caked with dirt so that's not helping me embrace it. I am thinking if it could be replaced, all siding would also be an option, as suggested already.

Attractive landscaping will add a lot. More than you think. If you’re ready to plant things, give us a picture from further back that shows the whole house on its lot so we can see where trees and shrubs should go.

This would soften the appearance of the brick.

The rick is too high on the wall. Should only have gone up to where your first floor starts

That brick will disappear after you put in landscaping and look way less dirty than if you had siding to the ground. I personally wouldn’t limewash, it’s not a great look for a new house and not for your style of home IMHO. Work with a landscaper and get some seating on that porch...you’ll like the end result much more.

If in your budget I would consider removing the brick on the house and replace with siding. I think longer term this will look the best. You could leave the columns bricked.

I don't think there is anything wrong with the color of the brick, it just stands out because of how it is applied like "waders" for the house. Kind of like a fisherman wears waders, he doesn't look particularly stylish but there they have a function, whereas on the house it serves no function. It doesn't have a structural element to it or even simulate like it was structural and with the tie in at the corner by the garage it is very clear it is not structural. Our brains tend to notice the things that doesn't make sense to the brain and I think this is one of those cases.

It looks like a nice house. Here's an illustration how it would look with the brick removed.

Will you have a railing between the 3 posts? A white railing could improve the overall look IMO.

Has it been acid washed and scrubbed yet? It will look a lot better after they scrape and scrub the mortar off.

My brickwork during the cleaning phase:

It just looks fake and stuck on, specially were it meets the side walls and you can see that it is just a veneer. If removing is out of the budget, I would paint it the same color as the siding.

The house will look better without brick or stone.

Like the style/shape/roofline of the house.

Probably would have left the brick off and used siding all the way down to the foundation. That said, shrubs will minimize the visual impact of the dark brick on the side of the garage and the visual impact of the dark brick on the porch will not be as great with white railing.

Thank you all for your suggestions. I am thinking about adding some large planters with greenery/ flowers to break up the heaviness of the dark brick.

I think it will blend in better with landscaping. If it is bothering you in a year you can do something to soften the color or make it less contrasting.

I tell myself that if I do not love a detail that I chose, I would have still bought the house with that detail had I looked at it used. I think it is the luxury of choice that we hope to love, that makes us torture ourselves that we would have been happier with a different choice......we could have just as easily made back when we were making the choice and rationally thought we were choosing the best choice..............

Ask me how I know.................

No gable decorations.

It is not just the color I find objectionable, it is the fact that there is only brick on the front facade and that the height of it appears arbitrary. As if the builder only had a set number of bricks and had to get rid of them somehow.

I did brick on outside to help with not looking as dirty over time as my house is white. I think landscaping will help.

OP: What do you think of my brick?

Houzz: It's terrible.

OP: Ok, I'll keep it.