gorgeous! stain the red brick grey for a perfect match. Won't peel either, and security screen door will blend in completely.

That's something we thought of. Where would I get such a stain? We have a Sherwin-Williams here, is that a good place to start?

I couldn't find anything on Sherwin Williams but you could call the store and see if they offer a brick/masonry stain. Benjamin Moore makes one called "100% ACRYLIC CONCRETE STAIN 072".

Give the house a good wash with a power washer. Let dry completely (maybe even clean one weekend, and paint the next). Then decide whether you want to preserve the cement mortar by hand painting each individual brick, or roll over everything. I'd go for the monotone, stain brick and mortar look myself-it would modernize the look of the house.

Another thing that would give a more finished look is to extend the bed and rock treatment to the driveway (although I see some potted plants in the back, so you might be working on this already.)

Good luck!

Thanks for the info Stewey! Jeff, that was another idea we had was to paint all the white...grey and then add some more of the stacked slate somewhere else on the home. We thought about the chimney, but are lost on where else we could add it without it making it look unfinished.

dark grey shutters!

Paint your Gutters black. Paint eves in Ben Moore "Galveston Gray", then paint window trim in Ben Moore "Gloucester Sage. Then, add Shutters on sides of windows, in Black. All you will need afterwards, is to Volumize the Greenery around the House, with more Vertical shrubbery, to subdue the brick a bit :)

I have to agree with the grey shutters on the small windows. I always like to see the window coverings match from the outside.

I was thinking dark grey shutters and maybe add a wall on the left side in your landscape. Not sure what's over there so it may not make sense. If not you could use big boulders in your landscape here and there. Or a more asian influence...line your landscape with those dark grey smooth river rocks really even. Or just pile dark stones in a fluid pattern along the mulch.

i like painting the red brick a soft grey or even a soft grey biege....white trim, black shutters and ...black door.

Great ideas here! My suggestion:
If you don't want to paint the brick, I would soften the color contrast by adding different landscaping to the left of the porch area. Enlarge the bed, and add some curves to it. Tall grasses, maybe a weeping cherry, and some great shrub varieties (the layered textures and colors will go a long way to tie the look together!)

I like the gray stacked stone you added!! And here is what I think...
Even though I'm not a big fan of painted brick - have you thought of painting the red brick white?? You need some contrast between the house brick and the front patio and you don't want the patio to "get lost". Also,for the windows out decor I would add dark gray shutters, Flowers planters (for a bit color) and change the door..maybe instead of the security screen put a dark color metal door with the inside screen..

Lovely! I would play off the color and material of the new stone with your garden border to tie it to the greater yard. Make the edge more rectilinear like your wall, and use the same stone of the same dark gray color for your border.

Consider adding a trellis in between those two front windows or perhaps in between the garage door and the window to tie the house to the landscape more.

P.S. If painting the brick is too much (I like the red with the stone and don't think it's a problem), I'm with the people above who suggest painting the trim and gutters. I'd paint them a gray that matches the stone. Or maybe a light gray on the larger outer pieces and a dark charcoal on the inside of the window trim.

Congrats on your new stone - it looks great!

P.S.S. That Grave Digger truck is awesome! I love taking my nephews to the Monster Jam. Alright I'll stop adding P.S.s now!

Love the planter box idea...black...with tons of billowing flowers and foliage. You gotta post a new pic to share what you' have done. I'm excited to see.

I forgot to add that will look better if you move/replant the small tree you have between the two windows since it looks not simetrical. Waiting to see the "AFTER" pics. :)

Thanks for all the wonderful advice! I think we are going to paint the trim, gutters and windows as advised and add shutters. The landscaping will definitely be updated and then wrap the chimney in the stacked stone. We love the idea of staining the brick, but since the entire house is brick, it seems to be quite a daunting task!

--P.S. Becky - Grave Digger is Awesome! My 3 year old runs the battery out on that thing every day:)

My suggestion would be NOT to paint exterior Brick, you will have problems with cracking and peeling, due to temperature changes. Instead, take that Budget, and have the driveway and walkway, stainned to match slate color @ front door.
We have yet to have exterior brick painted, that actually lasts more than a season, before issues start occuring. As a Designer, I know how daunting it is for Clients.
Enjoy your project. It's going to look awesome :0)

Sounds like a good plan, I'm sure it will look awesome! good luck.

what color is the garage door now?

Diana, the garage door is white like the trim

I'm trying to envision a column of the grey stacked stone on the far right of the garage, just for trim. I love those garage doors that look like carriage house doors. Or maybe paint the garage door the same color as the brick. Hmmm...

meaning the red brick

@nelsonjames: there wouldn't be any peeling or cracking if the brick were stained, and it would look softer than paint.

Also @stone_creek-think about the shutter idea-I think with the three banked windows they would look quite odd. Shutters are best flanking a single window-the idea is to give it mass (and be able to actually close them in case of high wind). You don't need any more mass here, nor would you be able to protect the picture window and two side windows. And you don't need any more horizontal accents.

How about a trellis with morning glory or clematis (or trumpet vine-whatever grows best in your climate) between windows and garage.

To give a real polished look, try capping the chimney with a piece of bluestone. Basically 4 half bricks support the capstone at the corners so smoke/gases can still vent. Also prevents rain from getting in. Would look sharp.

You got a lot of great advice so I think you are going to have a blast!

Paint the brick a taupey gray. It would look great!

Paint the brick a taupey gray. It would look great! Similar reno: http://www.flythroughourwindow.com/2009/10/exterior-house-details/

Wow. Magnolia8 is SOOO right. Beautiful. Paint it.

Hi..I know this post is old so I'm hoping to bring it back to life since I'm in a similar situation. I'm very curious to see what you ended up doing. I would like to do veneer/cultured stone in the front of my house but the other 3 sides are brick. I can't stone the whole so I'm wondering if I should cover the other 3 sides with siding or just leave it as it is?

I would love to see updated pics. Thanks!