Porch across the front on both sides and add a pergola roof. Would be inviting and give some architectural highlights. Paint the door red or lapis blue. Add landscaping. Widen the stone wall to make a larger entrance to the area. A curved cone-like shape for a stone path from the wall to the steps. Wash the steps with white.

You could also paint the furniture white or red.

Sylvia, if you post what zone you are in it would be easier to make suggestions for your landscaping. Also which direction does the front of your house face?

In a small space use large swaths of color or larger elements to create a feeling of depth. Think of either massing in a few shrubs or adding possibly a decent sized water feature.

What a charming new home. The entry transom gives a lovely historical feel - so I want to suggest we keep the colors very historic. Consider sw bees wax for a buttery sunshine front door, and take the shutters into either slate blue gray or test sw needlepoint navy - a nice weathered navy tone. If you prefer the slate blue gray for shutters, test sw storm cloud.

Just behind the rocks, flowering shrubs, just in front native wildflower seeding. Plant more bushes of a different type along the foundation - test something historic like abelia grandiflora - neat architecture / color/ plant them at 4-5' centers all along the front - they will fill and stay looking good yearround - kind of a dark red leaf / terrific contrast to the green flowering shrubs below - will get high enough to fill under windows.

Try leveling out the Shade area under the tree for your chairs and make a charming near round with flagstone and decomposed granite underneath / between to level and pack them. I see the flagstone paths - get stone that matches the tones in the rocks and path you have. That will keep it charming and rustic assuming you don't want screening from the road / view (the chairs were my clue). Bright chairs are a bear to keep clean - if you paint them, the slate gray would work best. You may want to use the same tone in wood stone for the entry deck wood, since it will complement the gray siding even if you go for more contrast with the deeper blue shutters.

Add shutters to bare window to right - I think the historic surround on the entry door means you want paneled shutters, and historic hold back / frog hardware. Or match the shutter style you have but make them as wide as the actual window so it helps fill the expanse visually but also look useable.

Charming house & setting. I like libra's suggestions. A buttery yellow front door would be awesome & so welcoming!!!

One more detail - change out the security light on right area for an oversized lantern fixture with a sensor built in - it will come on for movement - they have sensor lights in all styles now. You can get a really large one so the scale will work on that elevation, and get one the next size larger for by the front door / move that one to the rear. You could get the house number in sscript iron aand hand this on the house centered over the front door.

Thank you for all the great ideas and suggestions. It's given us much to think about. LB Interiors - I think a pergola would be just lovely. I've been toying with the idea of building up the stone wall a bit and creating an archway with a pergola at the entrance and then allowing vines and moss to grow over. It would be nice to have a bit more privacy from the road, but don't want it to feel too closed-in either.

Timberland shutters - I hadn't appreciated all the different types of shutters out there, thanks for giving me something to think about!

Thanks .. Your ideas sound great! Good luck! and keep us posted with the progress. We love befores and afters!

Hardiness Zone 5a is our planting zone, Ginkgo Leaf Studio. We face south-west, and have two, very tall pine trees in the front. We've been experimenting with a few different flowers this summer (like bleeding harts, lilies, hydrangeas, and many that I don't have the names for) and they've all done surprisingly well. Would love to have a bit more form and architecture to the garden (and expand it) but in fitting with our surroundings, would like it to look very natural too... Thanks for your post!

libradesigneye - thank you for your insightful suggestions. A warm, inviting yellow door is exactly what I would like to do, and would compliment a slate grey shutter update as well. It's a great validation of what I had in mind. I'm totally with you on the landscaping ideas too. Thanks a bunch!

Sharon Charboneau - I couldn't agree more :)

This cottage is close to the street, has a stone wall and the cutest gate.

And, yeah, on the shutter suggestions...authentic, only.

Your house is beyond adorable!

Thanks, LB - Hopefully next Spring we'll have some before and afters to share!

I love 'judyg' pic inspiration!

Judyg - thank you for sharing the photo! I've admired similar adaptations to the traditional stone-wall (with the wire-mesh detail) and perhaps something like this would give it a bit of an updated look... I also love the idea of installing a gate/door. Since the front entrance walk-way is a bit artificial (no one really uses it) I wondered if having a gate would seem odd.. But now I'm reconsidering it... Thanks for giving me something to think about!

I'd be wanting to peel that siding off and get to the logs!