1. Take off the shutters and leave them off…they don’t fit properly and your house was not designed for shutters.

2. Before you decide on an exterior color, suggest you have the roof washed to get the true color.

3. Do you know if the brick is applied? Could it be removed?

Bottom line for me would be to paint the entire house one color.

As JudyG said, and a landscaping plan.

JudyG Designs, so no shutters at all? We just bought the home so not sure what it’s suppose to look like. I was told by a brick layer to not paint the brick. Could create a moisture problem? The brick was there with a wood siding up top originally and current owners put up the white siding. We definitely wanna take up the bushes and stuff and red lava rock they left (it just looks too muddy and red and dark and depressing) and do a concrete patio on side under the two windows. I’d love to talk to you Judy if that’s allowed on here? I’m new to this site but I’m really desperate to make it more appealing out front.

This is what the home looked like originally from 1960 until 2012 when new people put up siding and shutters

Current look of home. Black shingled roof @JudyG Designs.

No shutters…showing you this photo because of the design of the extended front step…(I wouldn’t have shutters on this house, either.).

I have heard the opposite about painting bricks, but found this article which may help you decide what to do.

https://bearmountainpainting.com/brick-painting-or-staining-which-is-better-for-your-home/

BTW, your house is great…lovely setting.

Have a simple idea for the driveway run-off. Called a dry stream, you could do some landscaping along the edge to make a “vignette” (if that word can apply to a garden).

Share all the ideas!!! And yes I already told my husband I wanted to extend the front stoop all the way to the one side that has the picture window and do a concrete patio on side that has two windows towards blacktop driveway. What’s your thoughts there? Should I paint the door? So if I paint the brick I should paint it all white like the siding?
I saw this after of a brick home but this brick home is all brick with no siding and I liked the shutters and stuff but I guess my style of home shouldn’t have them ya said. Do they make the home look smaller or? Just really curious. Never had brick or a home like this style.

And when you don’t know what to do with your money:

@JudyG Designs here’s the house I found online that I liked the appearance of.
I wish I could see what my exact style of home would look like painted but I don’t have any programming nor am I tech savvy enough to figure out how to do that. Haha

This is what I thought looked very pretty. I’m an old soul and love vintage styles not too much into modern dark colors and stuff this just looks nice and inviting

I agree that the siding and brick/foundation should all the be the same color. The current color division makes the house look shorter, so having one color will make it look taller/bigger. The door color could then be whatever makes your heart sing -- navy, burgundy, spring green, pale yellow, orange...

Thank you jewelisfabulous. That’s what I’ve been saying too thinking paining the brick and foundation same color as siding would make it look bigger
But then didn’t know if it would be “too much white” LOL
Not sure how to add color since the shutters would be removed and just painting the interior front door idk if that would be enough.

A poster ^^^ notwithstanding, that style of house USUALLY has shutters. The ones you have are very in keeping with the style.

This is maybe a 1960's house? It looks to have been very well kept.

I'm thinking you might want to live in the house a year or so before making any decisions about the brick. You might find you get used to it and like it just fine.

Your hill could use some trees, though! This is where I would focus in Year 1: landscaping.

@tangerinedoor thank you so much and yes that’s what I am going to focus on first is landscaping there was two trees in the front yard however they were taken out because they were growing in towards the house we have trees in our backyard :-) would you recommend any other color on the shutters besides black I’m just not a fan of black and painting the front door to match them because of the red brick I feel like I can’t use red like on my door in my current home So I’m not sure what color would look good shutter wise and door wise having the red brick I’m not sure what complements that I so wish I had that creative design ability :-) thank you for sharing as well :-) And in reading the link that the one lady sent and some others I’m just not sure I even want to paint the brick because of the maintenance and possible problems that could or could not be with it I’m just too leary I guess

There would be a big improvement with Judy's suggestions. The windows are simply the wrong style/size for shutters. Even decorative shutters should be sized right.

https://www.lifeofanarchitect.com/residential-architecture-101-shutters/

LOL Chloebud this was the best article and made me
Laugh. Love the honesty there.

Jess, he is pretty honest! He does have a good point with...

"One of the very basic premises that all shutters should have is that they look like they could actually protect your windows. That means that if they could be closed, they would cover the window."

Seriously, most shutters I see are sized wrong and/or put on the wrong style windows. Sometimes you can fudge it a bit with size, but you don't want to go so far you end up with "shudders." I have a friend who even put them on her kitchen garden window and a bay window. :-/

Oh wow! Yea we just bought this home and move in Thursday. So excited. I love that it was built in 1960 and the views we have. Just gonna have to figure out what to do out front. Paint the door? take the shutters off or change shutters? paint the brick leave the brick? all the thoughts ha ha I wish there was some kind of computer program with the picture of my house showing all multiple different ways so I can get a visual LOL

I worked up some options for you to look at. It's always easier to picture these things with a picture! The first has the shutters, the second has the shutters removed, the third takes the white down to ground level.

I second Tangerinedoor's suggestion. I know you are excited, and you should be, but, too much excitement can result in things being done, that you will not be happy with later. Your house is quite attractive like it is. I like the shutters, and I like the brick, and even the darker red foundation. Move in, get settled, take care of anything you have to do with the interior, if anything, and then quietly enjoy what you just got. Once the excitement has tamed down a bit, then revisit what you want to do with the outside. You may find, that your ideas and your taste has changed a little too, and what you think you want now, before you are even moved in, will not be what you want after a few months of living there.

@pds290 wow! Idk how you did that but my gosh a visual has certainly helped me!
Any chance it be easy to do that pic again without and with the shutters but leaving the brick and painting just the foundation white? Sorry I know that’s asking a lot.
And @cat_ky you’re soooo right! I feel like between you and my mama you’re sharing such wise advice. I’m so grateful!! 😁🙏🏼🙏🏼

Check into Romabio for masonry paint with a bit of a guaranty.

I hope this is helpful. I'll let someone else play with your landscaping, but I think that could have a big impact as well.

@Jess Whisner I really like the soft colors in the sample photo you posted above....the aqua colored door.

I've noticed there are many posters on this forum who opine that shutters should be removed and/or they have to be sized "right" for the window. Fact is, in 1960's homes they weren't sized to fit (or as though to fit) the windows. That was the style.

@pds290 thank you for taking the time to do that. That has helped someone like me who needs visual for sure! I’ll be sure to post as updates happen on this thread. At least for sure we will start with painting foundation white to go with siding for sure. And work on landscaping before I decide to paint or not paint the brick. This home will be about 3-5 years for us before we have to move again sooo I wanna make sure it’s resell value is there and curb appeal too 😁

@tangerinedoor yes I love those soft colors as well. And my husband wants to keep the shutters he says it looks weird without them. LOL not matter if we paint it all white or just the foundation. He said we can paint them or maybe make our own ones using cedar or something or staining them a wood color like in that photo.

I think painting the foundation white, extending your front landing area, and updating the landscaping will do wonders. If you’re not planning to stay beyond 3-5 years, I would not paint the brick. There are too many people out there who long for brick and hate to see it painted. Enjoy your new home!

Yes ma’am for sure. Definitely painting the foundation and definitely extending the landing to the one side for sure. I’ll be sure to share pictures and any questions that might stump me in this thread ha ha would you recommend any colors differently for the shutters or the front door? I don’t know if you saw that picture of a home I liked posted in the thread the kind of turquoise green looking door with the cedar color shutters? I considered doing a privacy screen as sorta a “backdrop” once we pour the concrete patio on the left side of the stoop and placing all my vintage retro patio furniture in front and around it.

My recommendation of not replacing shutters, which do not fit properly, is not an opinion.

When spending money on your home, keep in mind the curb appeal and the style of your home when adding exterior decor and landscaping.

A raised ranch is not a cottage. There is no room for properly sized shutters on this house.

There is barely any header between the top of the windows and fascia.

Architectural Digest “shutters to make you shudder"

https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/home-exterior-fails

I just really love those colors @Jess Whisner, the aqua door and the soft shades on the house, and they don't look like anyone else's house. I also think the green lawn color does very well with those. What might be tricky is getting the paint shades so they go together well, but a Benjamin Moore (or similar) store might be able to help you get a pretty combination.

Do you have budget for more of a little porch and some wider steps, as in your sample photo? There'd be room for some bright hanging baskets, too.

********

On the shutter question....

There's no fact that legislates how you should/must/have to/couldn't possibly not do shutters on your home. Indeed, certain periods of American architecture do have a shuttered style like yours, and yours is entirely in keeping with the 1960's, whether the Architectural Digest or some designers on this forum like it or not.

For an 18th century colonial home in New England, I'd want to do shutters that fit the windows, because that was functional and not merely decoration. These shutters kept wind and storms out because glass was much thinner, and there were no storm windows. That's my opinion, but it also is a matter of historical verisimilitude.

@tangerinedoor you’re so kind and helpful and I’m super grateful! 🙏🏼☺️ we do have a budget and in fact talked about extending the porch like you mention. Soooo, I just have to learn it won’t all happen in a day like I want. Haha