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dmfhistorical

Color and Curb Appeal "Appeal"

10 years ago

Hello Houzz Family:

I could use some color advice. I am currently giving a 1970s ranch a facelift, including paint, new windows and new landscaping for starters. As you will see in the photos, the home is long and low, mostly wood siding with brick at the garage. The other thing you may notice is how prominent the roof is. Fortunately, it's on the new side. Unfortunately, the "gray/black" color has a strong "blue/green" hue to it in the full sunlight. After trying a dozen colors, I have finally settled on Benjamin Moore Stonington Gray (SG) as the best color to paint the siding and brick. I tried a light cream, a taupe, a khaki and several shades of white. They either clashed with the roof or were too severely bright. The SG seems to complement the roof (most colors clashed) and I'll pair it with a crisp white trim for contrast. The color is shown below (all of the siding above the tan color is painted SG), And, the left color swatch on the brick photo is the SG. Now I have a few more dilemmas:

1) Color for front door - It's the original front door, solid wood and in great shape. I was thinking a darker blue/gray might be nice, but I've tried BM Blue Spruce and Sherwin Williams Web Gray; neither seem quite right.


Thoughts or suggestions? I do not want something too loud or bright. I am going for subtle here.


2) Shutters, Yay or Nay? - The house had the standard vinyl shutters in black which I just took down. I am kind of liking the clean lines with no shutters. Any thoughts on whether this house needs shutters?

with shutters

Without

3) If Yay, Shutter Style/Color? - If I replace shutters they will be appropriately scaled for the windows. I was thinking a very simple shutter style, either a flat panel or board and batten. I was also thinking of a dark wood stain on them to give some warmth.

Thanks for your help and ideas. By the way, the landscaping around the house was just ripped out. It was overgrown and half way up the side of the house. We'll be replacing with all new foundation plants and beds. I just wanted to acknowledge that I know that will go a long way to improving the curb appeal.

Comments (41)

  • 10 years ago

    I like the look without shutters.

    dmfhistorical thanked oliviag55
  • 10 years ago

    I like the green that you have chosen. It really updates the house.


    No shutters.


    How about black for the front door? You need to consider not only the color of the roof, but also the driveway and the brick near the entrance. If you were bold, you could do a subdued pumpkin color. But also think about what colors a person would see when they enter the house.



  • 10 years ago

    @yvonne, black would work. The brick near the entrance is being removed, so not a factor. Thank you!


  • 10 years ago

    I really like the green with both the brick and roof. White trim around the windows would look nice, and I like the black door suggestion. No shutters...also, the ones in your pic are too small.

  • 10 years ago
    last modified: 10 years ago

    How about red for the front door? See the red BM recommends, Red Rock.

  • 10 years ago
    As to the shutters I think the addition of the shutters brings the window more into scale with the long wide profile of the home...adding a little detail to a pretty blah presentation at this point...however I get the feeling you are willing to go further to give your home a more distinctive ...sleek ...and bolder ...but simple ...face...there are so many possibilities by adding a few architectural details to take your home to another level...this usually requires a talented architect...but there are so many photos on Houzz to inspire simple but effective changes that will turn a simple ranch into a showstopper..such as a dramatic portico at the front door..some creative lateral fencing creating an impressive courtyard entry..to give dimension to the long flat ranch...try "ranch house exteriors".. "Mid century modern exteriors"...
  • 10 years ago
    Hi all, just for clarification, the green is the old color. The house will be painted the light gray.
  • 10 years ago
    These kinds of changes also require less landscaping as the house design is clean .dramatic and striking...not needing a lot of fluff that is really another job and adds yard maintenance to the mix
  • 10 years ago
    Another observation...since the brick wall at the end of the garage lacks style or beauty perhaps a span of beautiful decorative fencing in front of that could also supply some storage for the garbage cans and a place to tuck thing out of sight...
  • 10 years ago
    The garbage cans go in the garage usually! Nice creative ideas, though!!
  • 10 years ago
    Also I think the gray is a good choice..it will neutralize the roof color a little and brighten up the exterior ...depending on whether you make any changes on the exterior ....painting the brick a shade lighter and matching the trim to that color would add some interest as well
  • 10 years ago

    dmfhistorical, sorry...I missed the part where you mentioned painting the brick. I like Stonington Gray which is a contender for the exterior of our home, but we're not painting our brick. We want a gray that looks good with the brick and gray roof.

    Regarding shutters, the window to the left of the front door is much too large for them. To be sized correctly, each shutter should be half the width of the window.

    I would still do a black door with your Stonington Gray.

  • 10 years ago
    Charcoal may be a good color for door and shutters..
  • PRO
    10 years ago

    Definitely add the shutters. There is a lot of visible roof and you need more visual weight on the window/entrance wall. Are you really set on that gray? Seems to clash with the terracotta stone, might just be my monitor.

    Graham

  • 10 years ago
    Thanks - the terra cotta pavers are coming out and that will all be landscaped with a smaller walkway to door in a gray/buff stone.
  • 10 years ago

    I once had a roof about that color - we also had several spruce trees which echoed it so well - some blue and some green. I'd try that and they aren't expensive.... maybe on the right side [instead of left where garage is already 'sticking out']... our house was a 'natural' stucco color.

  • 10 years ago

    NO shutters.

  • 10 years ago
    everdebz, we are painting the brick. Stonington Gray is going to be the house color (after testing many colors).
  • 10 years ago
    @ritasj, I have been thinking scout what you said. Now that the 6' tall bushes are gone that brick wall is massive and, you are right, needs some softening. I am going to look at the fence idea but also wondered if I could do two barn doors there. Sure, they'd just be decorative but would break up that wall. Thoughts?
  • 10 years ago
    Update: just tested 4 door colors
  • 10 years ago



    dmfhistorical thanked groveraxle
  • 10 years ago
    last modified: 10 years ago

    Oh, @groveraxle, you rock! That is great and I know that took you some time to do. Thank you. I like ALL of your options. I think, though, I like the first one the best. That looks like one of the colors I just tested, Outerspace from Benjamin Moore. The gray green is actually my favorite of your mock-ups, but it looks VERY bold on our door because it gets full sun. This helps me more than you can know! I think I will get it painted, get the windows replaced and then decide on the shutters.

  • 10 years ago
    Door colour -- I prefer the upper left photo, followed by the upper right. You're right that the brick wall needs to be broken up but I'm not in love with the faux barn door. If I come up with a brilliant idea I'll let you know.
  • 10 years ago
    dmf...the barn doors sound interesting...what do they look like?...how big are they and how big is the wall?..love re-using and creating unique solutions ...also wondering why you are replacing the brick at the entry with another stone...that driveway is an overpowering hard surface influence ...wouldn't a little strip of green space with landscaping be a relief between the driveway and house?...don't know how many pavers you will remove but I would save them to use in your landscape plan...
  • 10 years ago
    The visual of the driveway has a huge impact on your curb appeal...you may want to consider having it cleaned and stained in a color that makes it recede a little...if you are interested in investing in stone I would spend that money on a stone border to upgrade the look of the driveway and an more prominent entry
  • 10 years ago
    @ritasj, you are so right! We can't remove the driveway but we are pulling up all of those pavers. To the left and right of the door will be filled with landscaping, shrubs and flowers to soften the hardness. We need a small paver or brick or stone walkway to the front door but will surround it with plants. We just had the driveway cleaned so it's a bit bright and obnoxious right now but I am hoping to line both sides with some low plants, again to soften it.
  • 10 years ago

    I meant to say: don't feel bad cause it's nice to have a roof that color.

  • 10 years ago

    Keep in mind dark colors in full sun may fade faster and not attractively . . . dealing with this issue myself.

  • 10 years ago
    dm...the color and size of the driveway dominates your curb appeal...and not in a positive way...adding a little color to tone it down in the form of a penetrating stain...maybe greenish color to blend with grass..will direct the eye back to the house....check with your paint store it may be just a spray on process ...the stain will probably be costly but this will have a huge impact...also there are good weed killers to stop the growth in the driveway cracks
  • 10 years ago
    UPDATE- 1 coat of paint.
  • 10 years ago

    Nice! My MIL says you have a beautiful yard, as green as green can get... :)

    Now any landscaping will become more beautiful...

  • 10 years ago

    Looks good! Is that the Stonington Gray?

  • 10 years ago

    How about a stamped concrete overlay and a larger, free form planter bed?


  • 10 years ago
    Landscape plan is underway and includes a lot of low planting seeds. Yes, it is the Stonington Gray - only one coat done.
  • 10 years ago
    last modified: 10 years ago

    Thanks...just especially interested since it's on a list of color possibilities for our house.

  • 10 years ago
    Hope you will consider some tall thin evergreens between the Windows to the right of the front door..especially if you are not installing shutters..you mention only low seeding so far and some tall plantings would be a good counterpoint to the long ..low...horizontal ...single colored statement that the house is making as is
  • 10 years ago
    Ritasj, we will do tall at the corners. The previous landscape was taller in several areas in the front and looked overgrown for the house. We will, however, do some large planters around the entry.
  • 10 years ago
    Don't forget there are lots of cool dwarf varieties that will not get too big
  • PRO
    10 years ago

    Hi dmfhistorical. We
    love the idea of changing up the
    color of your front door. Have you considered adding Decorative Doorglass to
    complement those huge, beautiful
    windows and the new coat on paint? Based on the style of
    your home and the changes you’re considering, we think [Cadence[(https://www.houzz.com/products/cadence-prvw-vr~33999939)
    from our Classic
    Doorglass
    collection would be a perfect
    fit! For more style inspiration, be sure to check out our Houzz
    page. Once you’ve found the design that
    suits you, head over to our Decorative Doorglass Selector
    to choose the right shape and size for your
    front door. Let us know if you have any questions – we’d be more than happy to help out.

  • 10 years ago

    Looks great. Have a similar project coming up, so this is inspiring.