A charcoal gray for roof line gutters & trim. The brick is beautiful.

Your house shape, roof line and colours are common in my Toronto neighbourhood and I have always liked them, including the black shutters. I know that technically the shutters should be wider but I think they look good as they are.

Fat lot of help I am if you want a change!

I’m just here to say you have a beautiful garden, and I appreciate what looks to be an intentional focus on native plantings too.

But since I’m here— your home is great also. If you kept the body color of house white (which I kind of like) you could try a lime wash on the brick to lighten it up. In general I agree to avoid painting brick whenever you can, but a limewash would still retain some of the brick’s character and any later maintenance needs wouldn’t be tough as it’s all easily within reach. Or as others have suggested, you could keep the red brick and find a warmer tone house color to make things feel more complementary/ cohesive.

Either way you’ve got a great house + yard!

First, you have a very nice home on a lovely piece of land. To update you look a bit, I would choose a deep blue/gray siding, keep trim white. Enhance your beds by adding some large boulders for more texture and interest. Here’s an inspiration photo. Most siding providers have a deep blue/gray color.

I love Boothbay Hardie siding. I think it will look great with your brick. I would keep the windows white and add wider trim around the windows for interest.

I would not change the roofline.

You have a solid, good looking home.

Good luck!

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I like your home this is one of my faves with brick and hardie comes in some nice grayed green shades , BTW painting brick IMHO is the fastest way to devalue your home and usually I love black windows but I think I need more info as to what you mean by bringing the house into the 21st century This is a style tha has been around forever and to modernize could be big expense so more info. I like the roof line . A new garage and front door will help and a walkway to the front door is a must IMO . The landscaping can be tweaked to be less traditional .I like black windows but IMO this house needs to have some thought and planning before adding them to the mix.Please post some pics here of homes you like the style of that helps us help you.

I’d be cautious with black windows in that while it’s being done a lot now, it might look out of place on your house. On the other hand, it might look fabulous. Like other commentators I’m chicken about painting brick. For your upper color, keep in mind roof color and brick color. Which is not easy! Replace shutters with larger and louvre type. I’m seeing mismatched windows and door. Pull those together and it will make a big difference. And pick a front door color that you love.

Thing is, you can’t really make this house 2022. That would be like trying to make an ultra modern house into … well, your house. It’s really quite a lovely home in itself. I suggest think in terms of the overall style of your house, the tones of the brick, and go from there.

Your house looks like a good candidate for a modern farmhouse style.

Hi everyone - thank you all so much for your feedback - I really appreciate it! I also really appreciate your points about the brick, and the house in general. I should say that our original reason for doing the update is that the windows are well past their lifetime and don’t seal well, the siding has a fair amount of damage, and the place is generally under-insulated (we will add insulation when doing the siding. I also should have been more clear in my title - we aren’t really expecting to make the house look like 2022 construction, just to update it as it best allows since we’d like to make it more energy-efficient anyway - may as well make it prettier while we’re at it!

Some of you gave some specific suggestions, and asked for more information about what we are interested in, so I thought I’d try to add that here. I’m posting the same photos as in the original post, but that I drew on (badly) using some Hardie plank colors we are considering. I made the windows, door, and garage doors black, but did white trim. I think it looks nice in the side view when the yard is in bloom, but from straight-on, I’m less sure about it. I also added a photo from today (with lots of snow) to show how the walkway goes from the front door to the driveway, since one of you asked about that. And, I will make another comment with some pictures of other houses we like.

And, here are some houses I like, although I’m not sure they are necessarily practical for our place. We do like wood elements, but are not sure about integrating those with the brick.
I realized I also didn’t respond to the helpful suggestions about possibly updating landscaping. That is on our list, although we will preserve some of what is there. We are also considering putting a patio off of the front porch, between the two beams that are closest to the front door and landscaping around that.

With brick, somehow I picture a dark bronze window frame instead of darker black.

Hardie siding SW Urbane Bronze; trim is Titanium. Door paint is 'Redwood'.

Maybe your door red?

As to Urban Bronze type of color, course idk if good with roof... might blend?

Mid-Century Modern · More Info

Tristy, all the houses that you posted have a siding more to the blue side than the gray that you posted on your projected drawing. I think in a location that gets snow and dull skies for some of the year, the blue-ish gray would work well. Also, almost all the homes that you posted have white framed windows that offset the siding color. If you remove the shutters and change the windows to black, the windows will appear smaller than they currently are and I'm not sure that's the result you were hoping for. Please reconsider white for your replacement windows If the shutters are going.

You all are amazing!
Good point about the windows possibly looking smaller if black, jayapple21. And the mock up does look gray, doesn’t it? I think it’s more blue in reality, but is coming out gray on my screen.
I did this mock-up, which is one of the richer blues that is in the inspiration photos I shared (Hardie Evening Blue), and took everdebz suggestion of a red door to see what it would look like (everdebz, I am also not sure about the color you suggested with our roof - but I plan to try another mock-up).
I am actually kind of liking this darker blue. But I’m worried that with the front of the house facing south, a darker color will negate any energy savings we would get from the insulation and window upgrades during the summer heat. Anyone have thoughts on that?

Not expert, but possibly more heat gain from darkness of a roof. I sort of like the classic look you just posted..

I think I was “channeling” you! Yes, I love the Boothbay Blue best. I think white windows are more historically correct so I would do white for window trim. The darker blue would be less desirable to my eye but personal choice.

Thanks, everyone! I redid my Boothbay Blue mock-up - I think the first time I did it, I grabbed a shadowed region of the color sample and it looked more gray. I’m thinking it is a bit bluer in reality - maybe in between the lighter blue in this post and the grayer blue in my earlier post. I also updated the dark blue mock-up. I’m leaning towards the dark blue, but nothing is decided yet. And I think, thanks to your comments, we are in agreement that white windows and trim will work better on our house than black. Just thought I’d share the status since I really appreciated all of your comments.
I also wanted to note - I really love that dusty green that Patricia posted, but it doesn’t look like we can get anything in that neighborhood with our siding, unless we paint it. So, sticking with the blues!

I’m also wondering if the white (especially on the porch) is too glaring against the brick. We like the idea of natural wood finishes (cedar, perhaps) for porch and garage doors, but aren’t sure if that would be odd with the brick. Any thoughts on natural wood on our house?

It will look good with brick. But it will need sealing or staining.

Cedar can be natural.

I still think the lighter Boothbay blue is better with your brick. Lessens the contrast. The mock-ups are never true to real color so get some samples including white trim color. While I like a cedar look, it might look like a "fix" rather than an update. I would keep the trim and pillars a white, but maybe not a stark white. Get samples so you can better see the impacts in your actual natural light outside and with other elements like trees and grass, etc. You are on the right track though. Hang in there.

Yes, I think you are right - time to get some samples. Thank you!

A few more thoughts - when you consider your color ask your siding contractor for some addresses that have the same colors you’re considering so you can see how they look for real. A sample can’t convey the actual house color. If you’re lucky you’ll catch the home owner and you can ask them how the whole thing worked out. Also, get a whole plank and put it on different parts of your house, especially the section above the porch roof, which will play a big role in how the front of your house looks. I’d even bring a sample to your favorite paint store and ask them what color it is - meaning is it a greenish gray, bluish gray, etc.

Thanks, joots07, those are great ideas!