Thank you! I'm definitely thinking of painting the door a bold color possibly blue I hadn't considered getting rid of the hedges, they are pretty large.

The header beam stretches all the way across. Maybe add a wider door. Current door looks to narrow and is not centered

And i like the brick steps and railing pic above

Yes, definitely remove the bushes and get a landscape designer to help you plan some soft plantings on that side of the house.

Paint the garage door the same gray as your trim to lessen the boxiness of the white doors. Take off the shutters and substitute the window boxes as Amy suggests.

The blue door is a little too close in color value to the gray unless you go with an electric blue. Other colors to consider: yellow/orange, bright red, lime green?

Sorry for the double image. Can't get rid of it. Here's another.

Are you wanting to paint or just landscape? Not sure what you are considering.

i think the door paint is a sure thing but the landscape and stairs are giving me a hard time, the bank put a non strained wood railing around the 1st stair landing since this picture was taken before we bought the house. I was trying to figure out if i could make steps toward the street with a path or hardscape or sedges, just something but i have a corner lot so i have a lot of empty space to fill.

You could also add some Carriage garage doors. They are beautiful when there is so much garage showing.

Would a patio in place of the bushes look trashy?

It's difficult to say what a patio will look like since we can't see behind those tall bushes. Those may have been planted there for privacy inside. If you do a patio, use the same bricks as the existing brick trim so that it's an extension of the house with a brick path leading to it. Have you considered brick steps in the same bricks as the trim? That would add some color as well.

Well-planned soft landscaping--gracefully placed bushes, grasses, perhaps a small flowering tree will help a great deal as well as some of the excellent suggestions--painting the front door, adding an architectural element over the door, painting the garage doors or replacing them.

Just one last suggestion. Once you remove the bushes and the brick lower level is visible, consider carefully matching a dark red door that coordinates with the brick. I'd suggested other door colors, but since you'll have the red brick to make your façade less blank looking, match your door to the red brick instead. A dark red door and gray garage doors instead of white will change things quite a bit without a big expense. Down the road, wonderful landscaping, brick steps/patio, etc. will finish the job!

Are there windows behind the wall of shrubs? Do you have a current photo?

Ok here it is, Be kind! lol
And yes there are windows behind the shrubs and i honestly kind of like that they block light. But I know i could also just get light blocking curtains :)

Not sure what you mean be "Be kind!" People ask for suggestions about places they're wanting to improve, and others respond with suggestions for improvement. You asked for ideas about improving the "sterile, blank" façade--your words. Some solid suggestions were offered--paint the door, remove the bushes to expose the richer looking red brick, plan some landscaping. Have we offended you somehow? We were basing ideas on what you asked in your original request for ideas not about a possible patio that you might want to add-whole new ballgame. Over and out!

Are you asking about the addition to the sides of the driveway and the railing? Sorry, not really loving the railing in front of the entrance. Is that rock you added? I would love to see a few colourful plants there too.

Windowboxes would definitely be a great addition to the front of your home. I would love to see you also install a flowerbed along the right and left sides of the driveway to help soften all that blacktop. The hedges under the window are overly uniform -- consider replacing with several plants with varied leaf textures and colors for a softer, more interesting effect.

ooo i like those! I just mulched the sides of the driveway and i tried to plant english ivy but it almost immediately died, i definitely need to fill the space with some plantings. And @housegal200 i only said "Be kind" because i posted my updated photo of my house which is still blank and sterile and now it has the rail that the bank added before we bought the house. It was meant to be a self effacing joke. I am very very grateful for input as I've been completely stuck on how to proceed.

Got it! I thought maybe you didn't care for everyone's suggestions and thought we were putting down your house.

There are some great suggestions various people have made. A well thought out landscaping plan, after your remove the bushes, is the way to go instead of half measures. (English ivy, for what it's worth, is an invasive ground cover that grows like mad in unexposed areas. You probably thought: "I've got to do something. This looks easy." Not! Ask a local nursery what might work there as perennials. A variety of amazing grasses look great year round and come back year after year. But get professional advice. They can tell you how to mix up grasses with some perennial flowering plants in the right heights and colors. That way you don't have to plant every year. Maybe one of Houzz's landscape designers can give you advice on those mulch rows if you mention where your house is.

If you want quick bang for the buck, put in the window boxes mentioned several times. Make sure they run the length of the windows, and ask a nursery what plants would work well. In the winter, if you're in a northern area, you can fill the boxes with evergreens. ) I do think exposing what looks like brick behind those bushes will soften your "sterile" façade because of the color and texture of the brick. That's an easy fix. A nursery can advise you on lighter plants that will provide some more delicate screening and light blocking in front of the window.

As people are suggesting, you need a master plan. Is there a nursery in your area--not a chain big box store--that can help you draw up such a landscaping plan? They will advise you on what works in your zone and light conditions. They can envision how plantings will look against your house as they grow in. Otherwise, you'll keep having your English ivy experience over and over, which costs more in time and money than starting with a plan and carrying it out in steps. Good luck!

I trimmed my crazy evergreen bush! :) Didn't get much done other than that though. There is always next year! I think my first fix will be to stain the rail that is a different color from the rest of the railing the same color since that is the quickest and easiest. i'd like to do a tiered perrenial garden to the right of the front door since that hill is annoying to mow and not really adding much to the house.

New photo with trimmed shrubs?