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mick50

Please help with updating our Cape Cod front

13 years ago
We are building a porch cover to mimic the angle of the dormers. We want to either paint the brick or cover it with cultured stone, siding, or some combination thereof. The brick is only on the front of the house; the sides and back are Hardie board planks, which also need painting. What materials and colors would you suggest for the house, door, garage door, and shutters? Thanks!

Comments (20)

  • 13 years ago
    I'd paint the door red and change out the daffadil patch to flowering shrubs, its a lovely home and has a welcoming exterior already.
  • 13 years ago
    A warm off-whitepaint for the exterior, slate blue for the shutters and Teal for the front door. Leave everything else alone. Cape house is supsed to be historic, not "updated". All paint stores have American Colors. Choose from these.
  • 13 years ago
    A warm off-whitepaint for the exterior, slate blue for the shutters and Teal for the front door. Leave everything else alone. Cape house is supsed to be historic, not "updated". All paint stores have American Colors. Choose from these.
  • 13 years ago
    Sorry, but there was nothing "historic" about a 1975 brick facade and vinyl siding! By "updating" I mean "improving" but keeping with Cape Cod style.
  • 13 years ago
    last modified: 13 years ago
    Do you mean the new porch roof is directly over the front door? Will there be new railing? Cute house, very welcoming.

    Like this?
    St. Louis Park · More Info
  • 13 years ago
    last modified: 13 years ago
    When you add your gable styled portico, are you going to extend the landing? I guess yes. Anyway, you have so many options for paint colors. I have Horizon Gray from Benjamin Moore on my home. The shutters a deep dark green (almost black) and the trim is creamy white.

    This charming home has Horizon Gray on the bricks:
    Recycled 50's Rancher · More Info
    But the photo is washed out, the only place you can see the true color is the brick on the far right of the porch. The trim: White Dove, the masonry: Horizon Gray, the stucco: November Rain and the shutters: Storm Cloud Gray
    Horizon Gray 2141-50 Paint · More Info


    This house, houzz=
    Traditional Exterior · More Info
    was painted in
    Hawthorne Yellow hc-4 Benjamin Moore · More Info
    I like the dark green on the window muntins.

    If you like blue, this is a pleasingexample:
    Craftsman Cottage - Rosedale Ave · More Info
    The door is York harbor yellow and the siding is Benjamin Moore Van Courtland Blue.

    This is a attractive scheme:
    New Old Farmhouse: Brick Pathway leading to front entry · More Info
  • 13 years ago
    houssaon, I like how you attached the colors with the pictures. Very helpful.
  • 13 years ago
    Your dormer proportion seems off, so I hate to see the effect tripled with the porch.. Maybe a dark paint would minimize the width of them visually. Think about a bigger project like like #2. I like the colors here in #1 which looks like what you're planning (except for proportion.)
    Home Renovation and Addition in Decatur · More Info

    Outdoor Living · More Info
  • 13 years ago
    I have a similar house like yours and I just bought this front door light from Lantern & Scroll (www.lanternandscroll.com) They were awesome to work with, if you email them with pictures they can definitely help figure something out. I think your house is just lovely, and a new light would make a brillant first impression. Cheers!
  • 13 years ago
    Thanks for all the ideas -- I really appreciate the pictures. To clarify, decoenthusiaste, the porch roof would have to be wider than the dormers, like the Decatur example. I just meant that we want to echo the gabled idea of the dormers. Also, the porch will extend out further because the current porch won't accommodate decent sized posts. Thanks!
  • 13 years ago
    Since you indicated possibly covering the brick with cultured stone that is exactly what I'd do. Can you imagine your home a little stone cottage? How nice!!!
  • 13 years ago
    Kathy - I agree! I found these pictures of stone I like.
  • PRO
    12 years ago
    What a great house!

    Here is a picture for inspiration. You could keep the shutters black and paint the brick a very light gray color. The front door would look great painted a vibrant red.

    The paint color of the house listed is Benjamin Moore - Sandy Hook Grey

    Red Paint Colors - Benjamin Moore - Safety Red in High Gloss
    Martha Stewart Paint - Barn Red

    Good Luck
    mick50 thanked Architecture Studio, Inc.
  • 12 years ago
    Thanks for the ideas. We have since had two developments ...we wont be able to do a porch cover (too expensive) but we have replaced the roof shingles. Still gray-black. Thinking about making a frame around the door to make it stand out. Need new garage door and porch railing. What do you think?
  • 12 years ago
    Funny I never noticed how big the dormers are. I guess they are a bit out of proportion. But im worried about painting them dark and having the roof look top heavy.
  • 12 years ago
    If you pull up cape photos, the only ones with white dormers have white lower level as well. Put in cape cod exterior into the houzz search. They need to be darker.

    My door frame has a little peak at the top, they carved notches out of the frame pillars. Very cute. I think I like the grey, red, white colors best, but the cream, white, mocha with a red or aqua door would also be pretty. ( just not as traditional)
    mick50 thanked missreneerow
  • 12 years ago
    cedar shake on the dormers would also look really nice. Stained in a complimentary color of course, or painted.
    mick50 thanked missreneerow
  • 12 years ago
    Here's a similar cape with three different color combos, done in the Benjamin Moore color visualizer.
  • 3 years ago

    We’re doing the exact same updates to our home. What was the final result?