Old House... New Color? Painted Brick?

7 years ago

We just bought a new old house, and the outside definitely needs something... a refresh... I've gone through all the discussions on here and still can't quite figure out what we should do. My wife feels that we should paint the house all one color (brick and siding). She likes all grey with white trim. I'm still on the fence on wether to paint the brick, but i will say that at least 5 houses on the block have their bricks painted over, so our home wouldn't be out of place if we went that route. So should we paint the brick?

The bushes are definitely overgrown, my wife wants to just trim them down to half the size, but everything i read says that these bushes, Arborvitae, can't just be trimmed down that low. So should we just remove them and replant something else in their place?

The garage door is being replaced, any suggestions on what color we should paint it? I think the same color we choose for the shutters

Any design help from this community we be greatly appreciated...

Featured Answer

PRO

Norwood Architects

7 years ago

In my experience your house would benefit from painting (siding and brick). Just remember, once painted, brick can never be unpainted. So, if you commit to paint the brick it will be a forever commitment. Yest to trimming the trees around the house (if possible). I agree with cat_ky about hiring a landscaper or landscape architect. They should be able to produce a design that accentuates the house. If you are replacing the garage door I would replace it with one that has light (windows) so that door doesn't appear as just an expanse of wood. Operable shutters would be an awesome addition. Your entry porch could use some enhancement. If the floor of the porch is more than 30" above grade a railing would probably be required. Good luck!

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Comments (7)

cat_ky
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
The arborvitae are all on one side, and make the house look lopsided. I would call in a landscaper to draw up a new plan, that will look good with your house and your area. The hedging on the side are way overgrown too. I have also read that arborvitae cant be trimmed to look good. A landscaper would most likely know the answer to that. I would also paint the garage door to match the brick color, and then maybe not do anymore painting, until the rest of the exterior comes together nicely. Its a shame the previous owners let everything get so oversized. It may be too late to save any of it now. Congratulations on your new home. It looks very nice and what I can see of it, your neighborhood also looks well maintained.
User
7 years ago
Remove those trees. They are too big and look like they are about to attack the house and you are correct about not being able to lop them off. I suspect they may be doing damage to the foundation since they are so closely planted.
jeffq7396 thanked User
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PRO
Anew Home Design
7 years ago
I agree with the above. I would like to see the gutters a color matching the roof , the front door a dark grey (SW6257 Gibraltar) and the home siding and brick painted an off white ( check out SW 7631 City Loft)

Good Luck with it!
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acm
7 years ago
Can you stain the brick and then paint the siding to match? I agree it would be an improvement in this case, because the division between the two finishes was set way too high (to acommodate the big gable). Agree with darkening the garage door, too, to deemphasize it.
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decoenthusiaste
7 years ago
Looks like the brick on the side is faded and pale. I think this may be a case for German Smear on your brick and another color on your siding that minimizes the harsh divide between the two. Then go with a blue gray for the shutters that works well with your roof color. This will help get your wife's grey desire satisfied and you can add a red front door.
jeffq7396 thanked decoenthusiaste
PRO
SOLSTICE Planning and Architecture
7 years ago
I agree with your wife! Paint the bricks and siding all one color. That will look very nice. But I would go very light with just the slightest wisp of grey in it. The result will be vert classy. (Attaching a picture of one of our projects. We always go light - the whiter the better!)
Cherokee Park West · More Info
jeffq7396 thanked SOLSTICE Planning and Architecture