Thanks again for your feedback and input everyone! Olychick, I'm thinking color everything, though on the fence about trim (dark vs light). I imagine we could start by painting the body of the house first, see how it looks, then proceed with the trim. I agree that the dark trim helps blend the bow/bay windows. Very light paint with dark trim works also but would rather avoid too light of a main color. Just personal preference. Cmarlin20, we like contemporary and aren't particularly attached to the current look of the house. I think we're just afraid to commit to painting the brick as it'd be more-or-less permanent. But so far painting or removing the brick seems the way to go.

Yes our exterior could also use lighting. You cannot tell in the pictures, but at night the only lights are the one by the front door and a motion sensing flood light by the garage...with all the trees its impossible to see at night!! I also like the suggestion for the concrete planters and the bench updates. We have a pretty big backyard with a large patio and are planning to build a fire pit, so the front yard won't be used for entertaining much, more so for curb appeal!

Is there a walkway to your front door? It isn’t evident in the picture. Can you take a straight on photo and post it? I think landscape pros would love to get their hands on your home! I could envision a sweeping driveway, a half circle, that would approach your front door. A portico with pillars. A beautiful color on your front door. More color on your shutters, where appropriate (single windows only!). Please post a more direct shot of the front of your home.

Good morning, Beth, I never answered you. Yes, we are in SoCal. Stucco box land! I didn’t think I could achieve my “dream house” look with *this* house, but I’m hopeful now. I gleaned a lot of inspiration from this feature on Mediterranean farmhouses. https://decomg.com/75-beautiful-rustic-mediterranean-farmhouse-exterior-design/ I can’t tell you how helpful this thread has been...helping me understand what it is exactly I like and don’t like, and what terms get me images of what I do like. It’s not modern that I like necessarily, but minimal, simple. And maybe it’s not black and white, but contrast (I.e. not all beige, ugh!). And I do love farmhouses, but it’s really the metal roofs and industrial lighting. And I absolutely adore black steel windows, but I can get my fix in a front or back door. I’ll be sure to share a photo of what we end up doing. Here are a few of my favorite images from the website I posted. I hope this discussion helps others!