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Exterior Design Dilemma Home Repair

Need help choosing roofing/siding/colors for house with Mansard roof

last year

Hello! We purchased our home about 2 years ago. It’s unique in that it has a mansard roof, which is quite unusual in our area. I’ve tried searching online for comparable homes but they’re hard to find (and I realize a lot of people don’t like these roofs, but we’re stuck with it and I honestly don’t mind it!)

I am really struggling on how to update the look of our house. I think it looks a bit like a cottage, so I’d love a subtle sort of fairytale/storybook or European looks. I like earthy colors. I was thinking about doing the roof in dark brown and then doing scalloped style siding (I think it’s called “hardie” siding) in a complementary color around the windows but I worry that would clash with the roof shingles.

Our roofing and shingles were damaged in a recent storm, so this is a silver lining for us in that we’d otherwise not be able to afford to do all this work on our own just yet. That said, I want to put our money to good work and design something we really love. I am open to any and all suggestions but a little hesitant to paint our brick (but am open to it with the right design!) thanks so much in advance to anyone with suggestions!

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Comments (7)

Sigrid
last year
I'm not a fan of so much roof. What people here do with mansard roofs is put siding on them, instead if asphalt shingles. In most cases, they are Italianate Victorians whuch oncd had fancy, decorative slate shingles on the Mansard part.
cat_ky
last year
No brown roof on that house. It wont look good with the brick. The charcoal color it is now, is perfect, and I would redo it with the same color it is. No, dont paint the brick. Why take something maintenance free and turn it into maintenance. The shutters could be a bit darker than wht they are. I agree with above, your house right now is perfect for the style of the house. Do not muddle up, what already works very well. Put your money on something else, or just bank it and enjoy what you already have, which is a very well done exterior.
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Can't think of a "budget" solution, but I agree that this is closer to a vertical face than a real roof -- if you changed the siding and moved the rain gutters back up to the top, I think it would have almost a Foursquare look. Then, of course, you'll be asking how to break up all the blank space between the upper and lower windows...
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These shingles have an architectural finish to look like slate. These brown shingles look like wood. This building's mansard roof is covered in metal. I think that would look good on your house in the right color. This one, too. I would replace the shakes that are on the walls of the garage and in the entry with lap siding. The dormer windows with metal and lap siding.
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stick w/the charcoal color roof. it goes w/everything. you're keeping the wood siding portion? just freshen it up w/new stain and varnish. you want the wood color to look like this I like the dark trim around the roof fascia, and just do the creamier color around the windows. So look at this color gray roof. Here are a bunch of greens that go w/it: bring in the warm wood tones, and a cedar color deck (not that red, and not brown) cedar color. ditto your siding you could do this combo. I'd do the trim in the gray, or one of the other greens. You could do the deck in this khaki color: I also like the blues. this is a great color combo w/a gray roof.
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Fori
last year
This is pretty nice for a more recent Mansard roof--they can be terrible but this one is not at all bad.

I think this might technically be more of a (steep) gambrel roof. If you look at different treatments of houses with gambrel roofs, you might get some inspiration.

Mansards are on haunted houses. Gambrels are on classy old Dutch-American farm houses. :)

I agree about the brick and roof color (where it shows darker in the back especially) are just right. But I think you can do amazing things with the siding.
Lau Rie
last year
Invest in landscaping. It will be beautiful.
Stephanie
last year
I am now inspired to drive around my subdivision and take photos of all the mansard homes - there are so many here, it was very common in the late 60s. if it was my home i would keep the dark charcoal or black roof and do a very light cream or white siding color (complement not clash with the windows and gutters), and do a wider siding, not the narrow victorian style on there now but the 8 inch or thicker 60s style that would have been there originally. keep the dentils and details and please dont paint the brick. what a cute house.
decoenthusiaste
last year
If you want to go for it, here is more of a French fairy tale look. If painting brick, check into Romabio for masonry paints.
Ridge Lane Residence · More Info

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Denise Marchand
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