Ugly Asymmetrical Colonial NEEDS HELP
Britt M
3 years ago
Ugly Asymmetrical Colonial
We are planning on renovating and giving out house a facelift. the previous owners somehow really enjoyed the gray, yellow, green color scheme which is not our style at all.
Wondering if anyone has suggestion on updating the front. We want to balance out the asymmetry, change the siding, color. We are also planning to put a dormer above the garage (on the left). Trying to decide between shed and gables or a combination. Also deciding between porch Or portico, which is why there is no landscaping. I ripped all the old overgrown and poorly groomed landscaping out.
Any recommendations would be great!
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Comments (15)
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3 years agoRelated Discussions
Help--Circular Driveway planting bed is ugly
Comments (28)All I can say is Wow! I am so excited to see the changes and the mock-ups. I was dying to get on the computer yesterday but I didn't get a chance. Thank you so much pls8xx and laag, those pictures are so helpful and really make it easier. A picture is truly worth a thousand words! pls8xx, the yard looks great, I think this is the best the house ever looked. Can't wait for hubby to see the pics. He was looking at the spruce's this morning and saying how well they were growing (they really are). I hope I can twist his arm to change things. I definitely like the look of the loop with the wall around it and the stone wall on the left. We were thinking of doing a stacked wall on the left of the drive. Laag, what is the change you made from the original pic? Is the drive wider on the left side of the loop to encourage people to look there, and drive there? As for the circular drive, it will stay some circular shape as it is a good thing if it is wide enough for a car to park on the side and other cars to get by- which it is. We have triplets who have their friends drop by all the time and we need a lot of parking. We have other parking but they do so much better with the loop. you would be surprised how many people (even adults)can't really drive with their cars in reverse. For some reason I like the grass border, I think it keeps things less formal looking. It does set the plantings off. While the front of my house is more formally landscaped, I don't want to make it more so. I also think that the grass border around the bed gives people some mistake room so they wouldn't hit the wall when driving. I love the look of the mortared wall, but I am not sure we can afford a something like that. Do you think we can achieve a similar look with a stacked stone wall, I think the mortared might look better? Would stacked stone even go with my style of house? I have looked around at driveways and most around here do not have circular drives as space is pricey and lots are usually small. A lot of drives have a curve but only so you can get in and out- there is no parking. I know we have to work on the circular shape and straighten out that sharp curve on the left of the loop. Do you think that a "circle" shape bed would be good or should we do a more free-form bed? (or is that a taste thing?) We have planned to use Pennsylvania blue stone (slate looking) for the pathways and want to border the beds and driveway edge with those paver things. The blue stone is something was has been used with the old houses around here so we want to try and keep with the feel of that. If only we could do it all right now! Does anyone do hardscaping? What parts have to be done first, can the jobs be staggered and done in stages? It would be so much more affordable to do it that way. Also, am I the only one who thinks the height of the house needs to be brought down and softened? Won't deciduous trees do that or am I totally off the mark? I have looked at a lot of landscaping and I have noticed that people have trees really close to their houses as foundation plantings. It looks really nice, but I thought that was a bad thing to do as the tree will have to replaced when it gets larger or it will need to be trimmed a lot. misslucinda, I laughed when I read your post. I hate to redo things so I want to do it right, it is funny that I only saw the plantings in the bed and not the real problem. Now I have so many more variables.........I am SO glad that I posted this question. Could you imagine if I had redone the bed and still hated it. Hubby would have killed me. It bugs him when I move some perennials so you can only imagine....See Moreugly beach house - pic is good for a laugh but I need help!
Comments (3)I went to check the pic again but it's down now. Anyway, Is it siding you can paint? Sometimes you can get away with unifying different surfaces by painting them the same color, or similar colors (two shades of the same hue). Some things look a little weird when painted, but I'd rather have the right color paint than the wrong color original surface. At least blue isn't horrible with cream or white or yellow....See MoreMaking an ugly colonial beautiful (or at least acceptable)!
Comments (13)how much do you want to spend? obviously paint, maybe new siding or shakes, and something w/the door/porch area. maybe a portico? landscaping? here are quite a few Garrison Colonials to give you ideas on coloring and what to do w/front door entry/porch. https://www.thenopressurelife.com/our-home/ I posted this one so you could see the landscaping. it will make quite a difference w/your house. if you went with all white and black or dark blue shutters. tan or taupe w/new white windows, no shutters, wood door teal colors,,this is beautiful. lime washed brick on the lower, gray shakes, white windows/shutters. and notice the entryway overhang and landscaping. white and black, but built on portico w/stone steps and porch, and brick walkway. black windows, no shutters, white siding and custom portico w/wood railing. at the very least ditch your 1960 iron railing and do something like this....See MoreUgly 2-story brick fireplace needs HELP!!
Comments (27)I don't even think it needs a new mantle, just a giant piece of art. OP, since you said you like boho, I do still think the fireplace should be painted for that look. if you look up inspiration photos, boho rooms tend to have solid color backdrops since the decor is so full of color and patterns. (those brick colors look really 80s to me, not the best backdrop for the current boho look IMO.) however like the others said, you might want to wait. paint the trim, decorate, live in the space for a while. it might grow on you. painting brick is super tedious. you'll want scaffolding because you'll have to stand up there for many hours. I'm a DIYer at heart but would 100% hire somebody to do that one. so you might want to give it some time and see!...See More
loobab
3 years agolast modified: 3 years ago
PRORL Relocation LLC
3 years agoI think the first question should be what style do you like? Dig Doug gave you a beautiful traditional look, but you can pull this house any way you like, you could do white, board and batten, with dark windows, and a metal roof or you could do dark navy with white windows and a portico, I can see so many ways, what are your feelings style-wise?
houssaon
3 years agoDo you need to replace the siding? I would keep the board and batten. Paint the house any color you like.
How is the roof? You might want to replace it with a Weathered wood or charcoal color.
I would get rid of the bay window.
A cantilevered portico would look good. Definitely update your door to a cottage or traditional style.
Portico · More Info
Recent Projects · More InfoOr a classic approach.
CustomWorks Contracting, LLC · More Info
Green Door Colonial Renovation · More Info
katinparadise
3 years agoBritt M
3 years ago
Thank you everyone! We are really in the planning phase. I really like Dig Doug’s idea but my husband thinks the dormer and porch should have some more style. As requested I attached photos of possible ideas. Obviously we are gravitating towards white exterior. I did a mock up of what my original thought was when we under contract for the house, knowing we wanted a facelift. We bought the house mainly for its bones, land, location, and the ability to make it our own with renovations.
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3 years ago suezbell
3 years agoBritt M
3 years agosuezbell
3 years agoloobab
3 years agosuezbell
3 years agoBritt M
3 years ago
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