Congrats on your new home! It will be charming. I think the awning spoils the lines of the house, and doesn't let you see the interesting angles of the brickwork. I would take it down. However, if you think it is really of benefit and you want to keep it, I would paint it the same color as the siding OR the same color as the roof. I would also paint the brown wood the siding color - it makes the front windows feel like they are sitting in a hole, and doesn't really do anything special for the house. I would also love to see you take out those bushes in front of the porch. They really date the house, and exposing that brick and stone would give the front porch more substance. A wider, curved bed in front of that with low plantings would be nice, and then perhaps a larger evergreen on the left corner of the porch. A second curved out bed in front of the left half of the house, perhaps a birdbath in the middle of the bed, and then a small tree of some kind on the left outside corner of the house, but a bit away and in the final curved planting area out even a bit more into the yard there. The ironwork is also a dated look, but I don't know if you want to replace that right now. Personally, I might take out the pieces in between the vertical posts, and open up the front porch even more. I think I would leave it white, like the rest of the trim on the house. Finally, I would think about a strong accent color for the front door. A rich navy would be very pretty, and a good transition between the cool grey tones in the roof and the warmer yellows and oranges of the brick and siding.

Thanks for the additional opinions. You have all given me a lot to think about. Especially with regard to darkening the house. Our house gets a LOT of light. The way it faces allows the most light to get in. In fact both windows that would have awnings, are office windows. My husband and I both have our desks up against those windows looking out. To be honest, the light can be a bit much. Even with the blinds up, sometimes I have to drape a blanket over the window because its too bright. To avoid darkening the room too much, I was planning to have the awning sit above the window. This would lengthen the window. Normally they would sit inside the window frame and block the top half of the window. I also don't want the awning to have sides on it, which will hopefully let in a bit more light. They will also be retractable, so we'll have the option of just having the valance showing to avoid blocking the sunlight. Here are two pictures to show what I was thinking of. Only the awning would be much shorter, by about half, and sit higher up above the window. As far as awnings looking "grandma," I see your point. If they aren't done right, they definitely look dated. When they are done well, they can look really classic and charming. We live in a historic district and many of the shops uptown have awnings (similar to the shop in the picture above). I'm hoping ours will have a similar effect. I will do a little more thinking before putting down a deposit though.

Thanks, abbisgram and cathyyg! I appreciate both of your answers. Abbisgram, I hadn't considered the idea that after changing out windows the awnings may no longer fit. Thank you for pointing that out! Cathyyg, folks out here use awnings more for rain than sun, perhaps because it rains so much here! :-) However, after reading your and abbisgram's advice, and finding out how much awnings cost, I have abandoned the idea for now. I'm lucky in that so far the windows don't appear to be leaking. The water marks on the ceiling in the LR and back bedroom appear to be coming from the roof. I'm hoping the snow coat will stop that until I can afford to get the roof over next summer/autumn. The two places where the floor has soft spots are by the front and back doors. I just put in a new screen door in the front, and I hope that will help until I can get the roof over. I had first thought of awnings for front and back doors, just to try to get less water cascading down from the roof. Although the windows aren't leaking yet, I was acting with an over abundance of caution. Of course, you are both right: awnings will not stop 100% of the water, but I was thinking that even if they stop 85% of it, that would be better than nothing. The previous owners put in two new double pane windows. But when I put in new windows, I'll do all of them so they match. Yes, cathyyg, the new roof over will be sloped. We don't get snow like you do, but we get some, and once in a while we get a lot. You and abbisgram are right: water/moisture is the enemy! My renovation will take nearly three years, because I'm paying cash for everything as money becomes available. I'm prioritising the structural integrity of the house first: roof over (with insulation), siding and insulting the walls, all new vinyl windows, insulated skirting, repair subfloor where necessary and overlay with 3/8" plywood, insulated vinyl or laminate flooring throughout (use large area rugs in LR, bedrooms). Am I missing anything here?? When that's all done, we can start the beautification phase, lol. A big kitchen overhaul, remodel bathrooms, paint/wallpaper throughout, etc. And knock out big/ugly china cabinet separating LR from K/DR to make it open concept. I had originally thought of the awnings as a stop-gap measure. But WOW are they expensive!! So I'm not going to do that; however, what would you think about awnings just for the two doors??? I would really value your advice! And anyone is welcome to chime in with their two cent's worth! THANK YOU!!

A good carpenter can build a "triangle" awning that will fit just under your existing roof line. It will require sturdy support buttresses that are screwed into the studs. The existing siding will need to be removed and re-cut to fit around the supports. Cute house.