I would not paint the brick because once you do, it will have to be done every 2 or 3 years, from what I have read and heard. Changing the other paintable areas on your house will be a great way to refresh the look of your house. Here are some ideas of color with your brick:

Your house is really lovely and a few tweeks could do wonders. I'd cut back the number of pillars on the front patio, and just loose the pillar separating the two garages. Instead of thin, white, round pillars I'd create thicker, square stone pillars (maybe 1.5 x the size of the thin ones) to compliment the brick (with careful placement - one on each edge of the house, and one separating the garage from the house.) You're going to make your windows really pop so you don't want to compete with them. I'd use that same stone from the square pillars to build up the garden area in front of the patio. I'd want that to come up at least 3' off the ground and plant some beautiful flowering shrubs. This will bring dimension to the entry, and the stairs will be the focus, so dress them up. The matching stone pillars and planter would really bring the front of the house together. I'd also remove all the white shutters. I'd replace with some thick trim outlining all the windows top and bottom to match, maybe a dark blue or deep red, just definitely not white. I don't see anything wrong with the color of the second story. Those changes should be of minimal cost- no major remodeling. Good luck - you have a beautiful house!

Your home can be changed into many different "styles". Phone some architectural firms, bring good well-lit photos of your home and pictures of homes you like. Reduce the amount you can spend by 20% - that's your budget. (Because...you will always go over your budget.) What you want are renditions of what can be done within your budget.

Thanks everyone for the great feedback- I appreciate it! I do love the idea of changing up the columns and adding height to the planters in front. I don't know that I can change the quantity of columns (without a big bill at least), as they are providing support. And I don't mind the brick, but it does bother me that the brick and siding are divided so equally...I wish there more of an integration of the materials somehow- and that's what pulls me to paint it all. As for the trim around the windows- is that something that can/ should be added on the bottom level given that the windows on the bottom floor are encased by brick? Thanks again!

And, Home Interiors with Ease, I have that picture saved in my inspiration pics! I am glad to have your validation that it could work with our house :)

No new shutters: just remove. Not "outdated" just undersized.

The garage doors and entry are the stars here but are being overwhelmed by the dated elements (70's columns and shutters.) I think you could do German Smear on the brick, painted square columns and siding, as well as new shutters that repeat the garage and door color or go a tad lighter, and a terraced landscape out front.

German Smear brick with painted columns wood shutters and door.

Thanks decoenthusiaste! It sounds like the columns and shutters are a must-do (I will likely remove the shutters first, then see if the house feels too 'naked' without them). Do you (or anyone else) have an opinion on the best style of siding to do? We could just repair and repaint what we have, but it's 40 years old, so we can also excuse replacing it, especially if a new style is warranted. Thanks again everyone- this is really helpful!

I would like to remove the columns and replace with cross beams to tie the garage door style into the house.

Our 1970s house is similar to yours. When we purchased it 19 years ago it had the ugliest pink/peach brick. We painted it back then and only recently repainted it just because we wanted to change the color. We've never had a problem with it peeling or anything. Our brick is also under a porch like yours. If you want to paint the brick, I say GO FOR IT!

My house is similar to yours. We just sided with James hardie rich espresso with Arctic white trim. We removed the shutters totally. I love it.

Thank you eveuchan and lhutch13! Do you happen to have before pictures you can post too? And I think the brick will get painted- I don't mind dealing with a re-paint every 10 years or so....

I don't have a before picture. We painted it way before phones had cameras. Here is a picture of it painted.

Our house also had black shutters on all the windows. I think it updated the house by removing them.

your house looks great! thank you!

All the comments above are great! One tip I would like to suggest is to make sure that any materials that you use on the exterior of your home are water resistant. There have been so many new materials come out over the last few years that will last a lifetime on your home! Make sure to do plenty of research. Polyurethane is a good material for exterior for trim and shutters. For the columns a stone, fiberglass, or aluminum will be your best options.

Gosh with those beautiful wood doors I would not go dark on the body of the house:)....with the brick painted out a white the columns will just blend...and they would look great if boxed out....draw the eye to the shutters in a soft green or blue like the Fixer upper house. Hard to see in your images what the front door is but I would be sure to do a warm wood stain to match garage doors! Good Luck you have a very beautiful home and backyard to enjoy!

I concur upgrading to more grandiose shutters that match the garage doors would set a more cohesive theme. Yes also on #4. Paint the upper floor siding to match the columns!

Thank you both! The front is a double door that matches the style of the fixer upper house from the pictures above.... and I also really like the light paint for the whole exterior (a creamy white I think?). I think I will start with that, with the shutters removed, then if it calls for shutters after that, I will get new ones sized to fit and likely follow the light blue of the fixer upper home too. I think boxing the columns would be good too- but I might wait to see post-paint how much of a difference it might make. Does anyone have advice on the style of shingles if I were to replace them too? Thank you!

Essbee, here are the before photos. I also have double front doors.

Here are Joanna Gaines paint colors....

I have those same columns... Wondering if you ever changed them or figured out a way to update them?

Eveuchan I love your house exterior. Absolutely gorgeous. What paint colors did you use?!