I think a blue and brown color scheme works well for you exterior and keeps it classy at the same time. Good Luck.

I think shades of blue would be purty.

Mediterranean blue shades ( you know that almost navy color)
Carribbean blue on the Garage door and area above it.
Blue lobelia plants and then accent with yellow coneflower, impatiens etc.

I think you have a great base to work with although I don't know if I would run with a dark blue... Though the colors look great together--leaves sort of a drab impression as far as curb appeal goes. I would look for something a little lighter and brighter and then run with creative landscaping as Christine suggested :)

Color is not my forte, and don't even know what a French/English color scheme would be.

That said if you like Dytecture's photoshop colors, I would suggest painting the garage door the same color as the house (tan) and not the dark brown. You don't want the garage to be the focal point. I would paint the front door the same blue or perhaps a third complimentary color. I would then find a few blue flowers bushes and place them along with other flowering bushes to bring your home together on the outside.

I would look at the lightest color in your brick and then paint all the trim including garage doors that lighter color. (You could white wash your brick if you want to lighten it up but not paint it) Pop in your color with a brightly painted front door and then put color in your landscaping....I don't know what part of Florida you are in, but as a fellow Floridian, I know that your color choices are more limited in the summer. Winter can bring on a beautiful show with impatiens. Try some large pots with color around your front door too.....Good luck and have fun!

I think that Norma may have really uncovered what is bothering you about the colors. It really isn't the house colors, but the landscape. The color you have is really quite fine and a change would be OK too, but the landscape is overgrown and lacks color and focus. You might want to get some landscape ideas (perhaps from a professional) and plan the house color with that in mind.

I would lose the shudders and make the wood above the garage very neutral - I love the garage door and the front door on the blue/brown pic. Possibly paint the brick and see if you can remove the grid on the windows. Modern it up a bit.

I think the fundamental problem here is that white garage door. I wouldn't make a feature of a garage door personally. I'd paint it a taupe/beige that tones with the brick and pick out the window frames in cream. Then I'd dig out a flower bed along side the pavement where the lawn is now and plant it with a mixture of winter flowering low bushes and annuals in the summer. Then paint the front door a bright cheerful colour to add some spice to the mix.

I like the shutters and the area above the garage the color they are and it will tie into the roof color. I think your trim work and front door needs to be in a lighter tan color picked from your brick but what I think would make the biggest difference is either painting the garage door the same trim color or replacing it with a more decorative one with windows in the trim color. Your double garage door is playing a large role in the appearance of your house, ours does also. We replaced it with a barn door type look with decorative hinges and windows and it changed the whole look of our house. I don't like the blue color ideas at all. I do agree that your landscaping needs to be brightened and the small tree that looks like it is against your bay window at the end of your house opposite your garage needs to be removed to uncover your window. With just a few changes you really will have a lovely house.

You have a beautiful home but I agree with others that garage door needs to be painted out. I'd do it the same as the trim colour on the aluminum windows. I would not paint those windows bronze! As for the shutters I am having a little trouble with the colour. That brown looks not bad over the garage door but a tad on the reddish brown side on the shutters. Maybe it's the photo. For a more sophisticated look, consider a blackish ash brown for the shutters and over the garage door. (See Sherwin Williams 6006 for what I mean.)

As for the entrance, here's how I would draw more attention to it. This is where you can satisfy your penchant for bronze; put a beautiful big modern light fixture to the left of the door. Or, if there's a light overhead, find some bronze metal wall art to hang there. Change the front door to something more modern (browse through Houzz for inspiration; definitely not a run of the mill new door with insert as far as I'm concerned). Look for something that offers a repetition of the square of the windows or which has no ornamention save fabulous hardware which could be bronze or brown/black.Remove or trim back the two shrubs on either side of the entrance step. I think you need something low there to 'widen' and make the entrance more gracious. Then, depending on the room you have on your entance landing, you could put a planter (again modern; boxy or round or tall tapered) on either side of the door so you can have some flower colour there. Golds, corals or oranges would be good choices that would tone in with your brick.

Then paint the front door a lighter colour. Hard decision that. The greyed out navy that Dytecture suggested looks like a good choice if you want to go with a blue. Forget periwinkle and other 'fresh' blues; I think they will make your brick look dirty. (Same with yellow flowers; I think it's a good idea to add some 'yellow' but make sure it's a golden yellow, not lemon yellow.) Don't be afraid to experiment with a few shades of blue. Or get out of blue mode and think about a golden tan (Sherwin Williams 6383 or a terra cotta (Sherwin Williams 6342) for the front door. And, no, I don't work for Sherwin Williams! Those are just examples I have easy access to at the moment.

Other ideas to up the ante: change out the light fixtures either side of the garage door. Make them bigger, modern and simple (no ersatz Victorian). They could echo the one by the front door but shouldn't be the same in my opinion, nor as big. Center one on the narrow wall to the left and then adjust the other to be equidistant from the garage door on the right. Also judiciously trim the big shrub hiding part of the window on the left side. I don't think it has to be removed, just tamed. (I say that as a landscape designer.) Then paint your post/mailbox the same colour as the window trim and garage door so it doesn't stick out like a sore thumb.

My two cents. Good luck!
Janette Higgins

Several good thoughts from Norma and Portpiro. Let's take a look to see the difference a little landscape maintenance on the existing mature plants would make, It sort of freshens the property. Perhaps the circular drive ?? deserves more definition with border planting ( done quickly to give you an idea) . No color changes yet, maybe paint garage door beige as suggested. just Adding a kick plate on the front door and widening the entry with mulch , Now the owner can evaluate some new exterior light fixtures ?

Two things jumped out at me.....the white garage door and two huge shrubs. You have dark trim and the white just doesn't blend. For the garage door I would go with a lighter version of your existing trim color and maybe paint the front door the same color as the garage door. The big shrub next to the driveway, by the sidewalk leading to the door, needs to be trimmed back - it's blocking the view of the house. The same goes for the big shrub/tree to the left of the window to the viewers left; I would just get rid of it. The finishing touch would be to paint the mailbox to match the garage door.

The house trim pant needs to be a brown - maybe Chateau Brown from Sherwin Williams. The landscaping is very overgrown. When I look at the photo the first place my eye goes to is the round grassy plant by the garage.
Have you ever thought about adding a lanai to the front and making a porch. You could add nice benches under the windows. You could add a light on either side of the door.
Highlight the lines of your walk way with flowers and landscape lighting. Make the whole front yard a garden.
Whatever you do - you need to make everything focus on the front door - instead of
the garage door (paint it the same color as the trim). The front door could be painted a different color - you could experiment here to see what looks best. I usually just paint a large piece of cardboard, set it in front of the door, and stand back. A dark leak
green might look good.
With careful landscape planning - you could eliminate the grass in the front yard. You can have a virtually maintenance free landscape - and be the best looking house on the block.

Shutters Black or Dark Olive, house taupe, trim around windows dark dark olive, door a Deep Red or Blue. Go to Benjamin Moore, they have the best paint and color selection for exterior homes.

If you decide to change the exterior garage lights, we just ordered some very nice ones on sale online thru Restoration Hardware. They are currently on sale and the prices are good after exhaustive comparison. Your home looks very nice.

The greater the contrast the more the emphasis...so if you want to accent width of the home contrast the lateral lines. Obviously the garage door jumps out because of the high contrast. The house is buried by plants...pull them away to the front of the yard.
Could create a sitting area...with a brick patio to the side of the walkway.
You can take a picture of the house and put tracing paper over it and sketch the lines and see how you can revise the details.

The greater the contrast the more emphasis...so if you want to accent width of the home contrast horizontal lines. Obviously the garage door jumps out because of the high contrast. The house is buried by plants...pull them away to the front of the yard.
Could create a sitting area...with a brick patio to the side of the walkway.
You can take a picture of the house and put tracing paper over it and sketch the lines and see how you can revise the details.

First --cut down the trees and shrubs that touch the house and Garage & roof. Feels better, eh? Definitely pull out the 2 big shrubs by front door. Paint the shutters and the wood over the garage door a color that complements the brick...there's enough brown in the roofing. Color the front door a totally bright and cheery color! say light turquoise (Floridian color?) shutters (and above garage) and a deeper turquoise door! Build a narrow pergola over the garage (anchoring 2 pillars on each side) (Taking OUT the big bush on right-hand side of garage) Build a substancial "box" around the mailbox, for mail AND paper...paint to match house--maybe planting a vine.(my fav is a ChinaBerry vine w/varigated leaves--has tiny little balls of teal, burgandy, & white "fruit")over the mail/paper boxes, and on either side of garage, to train on the new narrow pergola. It would make the garage look a bit dressier (like a necklace to a dress). more 3 deminsional. Lots of wild Colorful flowers in all shapes & sizes of pots (w/drip irrigation, for ease, of course!) Cut out about 18 inches on each side of walk-way, plant low growing, for-ever replenishing colorful (get the jewel mix) Moss-roses or other low growing ground cover like phlox. just cut any stragglers on the lawn-side w/lawnmower! Definitely new and larger lights at sides of door and maybe even some "christmas" clear rope lights on the pergola (hidden).

The main thing that "labels" the house as being from the 80s is the rust color. I think that if you removed all rust from the front, choose the LIGHTEST color from the brick to paint above the garage door and any currently rust-colored trim. Next, I suggest that the garage door not be white. A no-fail choice would be to use a slightly lighter color than what you use on the trim. Choose a fresh color for the front door (or if you are afraid of color, paint it the same color as the tan shade you use on the garage door. Replace the current storm door with a full-view variety. Paint the shutters black and replace the light fixtures with something larger and in a black finish. Last, but not least, keep smaller shrubs, but remove the larger ones to the left on the picture, those at the sides of the garage door, and the large one next to the driveway. If your taste is to keep everything green, then I recommend choosing plants with different shades of green, possibly some bluish, or yellowish. Choose plantings that have different size leaves, etc., which will add to the "texture" of the landscape, making it more appealing. Enjoy! It will be beautiful. I hope to somehow see the finished product!!

Look at Benjamin Moore "Cabot Trail "for the garage door & "Boxcar Red" for the front door...

Please not blue!

Usually Dytecture has some great ideas but I think she missed the mark this time. Her suggestion looks more like a "before" picture than your actual house does. I agree with the posts that suggest to paint the garage door a neutral tan or taupe taken from your brick. You want it to recede, not stand out as the white does. The wood shutters and wood above the garage are what make your house ... I wouldn't change them. Paint out your front door for your pop of color ... the blue might work there, but not red as it will clash with the rust color of the wood. It's hard to tell what is there now, but if it is a screen door, remove it and paint your existing door or replace it with something with a little more style.

Can you post a close up of the color of your brick facade?

Something similar to this photo with perhaps the trim around the windows a dark color, not necessarily black, but dark dark green or brown.

Not a fan of the angled shutters--maybe cream straight(rectangle) and add some black wrought iron large hinges to give it a french look.And do agree paint the dark wood above the garage cream/light and you will probably have to paint the garage door--too starck--maybe a color in the brick?

I've got a 1958 rancher in Toronto , Canada. I'm right there with you. Lot's of potential, a fortune to realize!! I'm 10 years into trying to improve this baby.

If it were my house, I would paint out the garage door to blend in visually with the brick colour (looks like it might be taupe) and then paint the front door a brighter attractive colour to draw attention to the entry way - could be blue or could look at shades and tones of orange or coral (from light to very deep) that work in your light. Here in Toronto Canada I would use charcoal grey because of our light. The shutters and gable could match or be two tones deeper if your house is in full sun, or two lighter if it faces North.

I would add some larger, modern lighting to the roof gable to brighten it up and add drama to the "arrival" experience

I would also look at vintage and restored ranch houses for inspiration . . . In Florida, in the 40's and 50's lots of tropical colours looked fabulous. I might be looking at some version of coral like a Flamingo feather for the front door, or citrus, and I might consider turquoise. The rest of the house would be neutral to the brick (not contrasting) with just a punctuation mark of black in some detail,

I would remove the kick plate. It's a 19th century detail inconsistent with the style of the house.

I know roofing is expensive and you have said it's not in the cards. It is very heavy and dominates the "eyes" of the house (windows and door) making the house seem unwelcoming. (I have the same condition) Down the road, lighter coloured and shaded shingles may help or even metal roofing. The roofing shape and colour needs to be tied into the landscape. Small verticals help to connect the lower parts of the roof line to the landscape and if left clear the high parts showoff. Here in Toronto I uses Emerald cedars. it creates a more dynamic roof line and can frame the arrival as well.

In Florida you have access to some beautiful and very architectural plants. In Sarasota, I have seen Agaves used. I would look for some great bold architectural specimens to frame the arrival path up the drive to the front door.

Posted some pics of my "project" - love some comments back!!

I have a similar house and am in the process of remodeling the front. I agree with the others to pick two shades of tans or cream from the brick and paint the gable and garage door. The gable having the darkest of the two and also painting the shutters the same color. I do like your idea of painting the window trim bronze and I would also install some updated lighting on the garage that is a bronze. I think by using some bronze will make your house look richer. The door could be updated with a bronze door also with maybe a glass and iron insert. I had one installed and it looks great with bronze windows. I would also cut back some of the overgrown bushes or remove some and replace them with some grasses and add some spiral evergreens. I'm not sure if they would work in your area. If you want color, plant some flowers or use colored foliage. A couple of planters by the front door would look great.

I am overwhelmed with the response and it isn't even my post. I think it would be helpful, if commenting to read the post already made and maybe number your ideas. All those ideas running into each other in a paragraph is overwhelming.

That being said, I like Dytectures picture ( and mugsy, Dytecture is a guy). I have no idea if those are French colors. Maybe a bit lighter brown.

Also like Memorylane1 color idea.

And cut the overgrown bushes back so you can see the house.