I also love the original bath (black/white) and what looks to be the original tile floor in the third floor bath. Your stone wall and pillars are wonderful, too. Did you remove the rhododenron near those? I'll bet they are lovely in the spring. Thanks for the tip to click on the picture to see the whole album!

Thanks. I like that one best too. Hopefully this series of photos will persuade him as well. I think it is a pretty clear decision. There are 5 doors into this room. What would you do with them? Would you paint those white as well? I kind of like the white trim/dark doors look (see link below for examples). I thought of stripping them and staining (since they could be removed from the house, stripped and refinished off site - easing lead paint concerns), but they are sort of cobbled together (extra wood added top or bottom, whatever necessary, to make it fit). I worry that the old paint might be the only thing holding them together! I also worry that there's milk paint or some other penetrating finish that won't come off (I found that on a built-in cabinet, original to the house, in an adjacent room), or that it just won't be very nice wood under there and won't be worth the expense. Would a faux wood finish (painted) on these be an acceptable compromise? Or do you think that would just look fake in comparison to the real wood floor below? If no faux - white? Or some other color? Here is a link that might be useful: Thread about dark doors with white trim

Cup of Glad this thread is continuing to get so much traffic. I'm curious first, why are you replacing your windows? I ask because what most people don't realize is in "most" cases the best windows for any home are the ones that were originally installed - The exceptions to that can range from poor quality windows, poor install, failure Think about many homes that were built around turn of the century - 75 -100 yrs ago, how the windows have stood the test of time. Yes, they are not "energy efficient" however, from a proper fit & aesthetic view point they work. I think when the window sales people massage the homeowner on the "efficiency" issue - If you are changing out 16 windows let's say at avg rate of $750/window - for product & install that would be 12K - . The equation the sales people negate to offer said homeowner is what the return on investment would be & how long it would take to get there. I have done this, believe me - It would take most folks 10-20yrs to realize any investment. If you have done your homework & still feel replacement is the way to go - other considerations that should be taken; What is the original architectural render of the home? Can a replacement window capture that? think size/scale - muntins, mullions, configuration, trim, fascia - One can't just figure a one size fit & then install without a compromise elsewhere. Pictures of the exterior of your home in daylight & night help with proper choices. This is where I see many failures. One can have a beautiful 1900 home and take out all windows & replace w/replica vinyl - One could put in custom wood in the same home, but that does not guarantee aesthetically correct rendering. I found looking in window books & catalogs helpful only to a certain degree - I had to make sure the size, material configuration was indeed matching to what the original rendering of the home was (that was only for 4 windows!). Yes, it took some doing - when I finally thought I had it right, my architect friend brought yet another issue to light - "The muntins make the window look squatty" huh? - turns out the configuration of the muntins created a rather horizontal appearance in the individual panes rather than vertical - she was right. BTW we used Marvins - the project was a kitchen gut in 1930 Dutch colonial home. The replacement windows were done because the part of the kitchen we replaced the windows was once a screened in porch and PO put in aluminum picture windows w/side casements on front & back - ALL wrong for the home & unbalanced. Research here and other places led me to the Marvins - very pleased with the product. For the rest of the windows (26) double hung - we considered Marvin's sash replacement product (mentioned above) but do to the scope of our original renovation & cost over runs we decided against this. Instead I found "the window doctor" - yes that is the name of his company. For $200/window he replaced all parting strips, re-weighted where needed, all new roping, repaired chalking - Many of the windows were not operational, painted shut etc. Every window is now operational & they are lovely over 80 yrs young & very fitting to the home. I wish more homeowners would give consideration to rehabbing windows rather than ripping them out for a substandard product. Ok, I'm an old house snob - truth is told Best to you - stepping off soapbox

First, get rid of all the shutters (especially on the large lower one), and those silly doors where the garage used to be! What you could use is a garage door like this,,,,,it would bring in light to the room, and still offer you privacy. Plus, it will make the exterior look like it's supposed to look I don't think the brick is anything special. Feel free to paint. however, use Romabio. It's a natural mineral product meant for bricks and requires no maintenance. Use the Classico Limewash, or the Masonry paint you can tint any color. Bonus,,,,,with the lime wash product you can apply the one coat. if you don't like it, it hoses off w/in the first 72 hours. Usually only takes one coat Some other options for color, and the landscaping and front door area: You could even do a very dark charcoal color: If you painted it all white, did a pale blue front door, no shutters, just a dark gray wood trim around the windows, and a dark garage door,,,landscaping,,,you'd have this: Or maybe you want o go full on MCM: