exterior makeover

last year

We bought a 1940 house for the location and extra space. I hate to jump on the bandwagon but I’m tempted to paint / slurry the exterior all one color because to me, something seems off, like it’s chunky. What do y’all think would help?

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Comments (9)

la_la Girl
last year
I would first remove the shutters since their sizing is off relative to the windows and then re-evaluate -

I think the brick looks nice, what is the vertical material in the peak? I would be tempted to address that before doing anything with the brick
suedonim75
last year
Yeah, the shutters are really bad. The section under the window is what looks chunky. Not sure why they installed that there.
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I'd leave it as is. Maybe find a softer color for the trim, definitely punch up the shutters and door. I might go with a medium navy for the shutters with a blue a few shades lighter and brighter for the door. The problem with "de-colonial-izing" it is that you'll end up with a boring facade. You should be particularly wary of any photo-shopped makeovers, because it's easy to get the proportions off. If they make the door a bit bigger to get the proportions right, you might not be able to achieve that look. I doubt anyone will notice it much if you change the columns. Fill the empty spots in your gardens with bright annuals, get a pair of chairs for your porch and maybe a pair of potted plants. Make sure the chairs, cushions and flowers use a cohesive color scheme. Lastly, if you're flipping, you need to know your budget and what things pay for themselves and what doesn't.
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jck910
last year
Agree with removing the shutters. If the vertical siding under the window is covering brick remove it. Can all that "stuff" be removed from around the door? It is odd looking. Paint the peak a midtone color. Better landscaping, then reevaluate before painting the brick
Sigrid
last year
The shutters are the wrong size, remove them. The corrugated material under the upper left window looks odd. If you don't have brick under there and can match the brick, at least put something that doesn't stick out.

I'd remove the cluttered of stuff to the right of your funky, but fun doorframe. If you need a light, center it over the door. The house numbers can go in the brick frame and the mailbox further from the door. A dark navy door would be nice.

The landscaping needs help.
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BeverlyFLADeziner
last year
Here is the house with the shutters removed.

I have adjusted the limestone surround at the entrance and painted the ribbed accents the color of the limestone
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Flo Mangan
last year
I believe this front elevation has been poorly modified. It looks like a “remuddling” job. You can see where brick is lighter where there might have been balconies. You might consider a new style appropriate porch/portico to hide the pyramid stone around front door. I might get a stone Mason over and see if it could be removed. Then consider simple Juliette balcony detail outside second floor windows. Here is rough mock up. I wanted to match roof color for painting that peak but couldn’t get it right. Use your imagination. Lol. As part of your landscaping add nice brick or stone pillars with post lights. Nice linear landscaping. Bring attention down from that peak.
lindseybigelow
Original Author
last year
We plan on getting rid of the shutters. Agree they’re undersized.

Flo- I think you’re right there may have been a balcony on the left side. Don’t think there was one on the right side. I really like the door+portico you put in but I’m afraid the dimensions and floor plan might not work. I don’t have an entryway. The house is a converted duplex. The front door opens immediately into a interior stairwell. The bottom and upper layouts are identical around the stairwell (kinda like an h). The front porch is 6.5’ wide.

The below is the interior view behind the weird corrugated whatever on the left upper story. You can see there’s some kind of pop-out. No such corresponding pop-out on the other side of the house.

On our to do is to talk to a mason. I don’t believe I can redo the surround around the door without having to rebrick.

The siding near the roofline looks like older wood to me. I thought painting everything one color might help unify the look but we should investigate what’s behind these bits of siding.

Really appreciate all the input!
ptreckel
last year
I kind of like the funky Aztec looking sandstone trim around your front door. And, like Flo (above) think that the siding on the right is masking something. If you look at the lovely herringbone brick accent on the right side of your home, there is a “shadow” of what might be a box of siding around it. I wonder if there is a similar brick accent beneath that siding on the left. (We should take bets on what is found beneath those windows!). As you strip away these additions, keep us posted!
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Flo Mangan
last year
You can modify portico to fit your home. A single door is fine. Unifying color is good idea. With all the brick and trim variations going with. Romabio brick treatment will be a great choice.