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missymoss00

character to house

7 years ago

I am wanting to bring some character and femininity to the exterior of my house. I don’t know that I like the panels and the top windows, and I don’t know what color of brick to choose. Suggestions?

Comments (15)

  • PRO
    7 years ago

    I have no clue how to add femininity to a house unless you do it with flowers in the landscaping and no idea why you want to. As for the brickI assume you are adding it where the gray parts are , choose a bick you like get a nice front door with some glass in a color you love IMO the window in the gable looks silly but the one above the garage is okay. I hate that frilly black trim above the entry and what material are those panels in the entry

  • PRO
    7 years ago

    Yeah, not sure what character and femininity mean. Houses don't take on gender roles, and character is in the eye of the beholder. Jan is right about the window you've circled. A round or hexagonal window in that gable would look better. And landscaping will go a long way to soften the look of the house.

  • 7 years ago

    flower boxes under the windows, add some pretty peonies. would you also like some fairytale gargoyles or whimsical toads? the small window looks like it barely fits and corners clipped short? do you like yhe black trim?

  • 7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    Pick a medium-light gray stone or brick, or a taupe, any of which will soften the black and white color scheme a bit. I think that's what you mean by adding some femininity -- just softening the stark color scheme and geometry. A nice bright front door color will be cheery too and draw the eye to the entry.

  • 7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    Pink and frilly with lots of sugar and spice.

    That's what little girls are made of.

    Just not all of them.

    Capital Residence, Moscow. arch. Zaha Hadid

  • 7 years ago

    Some things are not possible given the preset constraint.

  • 6 years ago

    I’d take out those dormer windows. It’s not too late. Are they rooms? Impossible to clean and always look grungy.

  • 6 years ago
    <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><md>Lol ok! Thanks for the help even tho I now get what a dumb question it was
  • 6 years ago

    I don't think it was a dumb question at all.

    I have read countless descriptions of architectural styles, where "masculine" and "feminine" are used. I've seen French (anything) described as feminine, and Spanish described as masculine. Victorian is "feminine" and Craftsman is "masculine." I can 100% see and understand these associations.

    So, to answer your question, I think landscaping is probably your best bet at this point, in addition to house color. Soft pastels are feminine. Trellises with climbing roses are feminine. A walkway to your front door, flanked with flowering evergreens (as opposed to rocks), window boxes, fat or hourglass shaped flower pots and planters, are all feminine.

    I think there's a lot you can do!

  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Silly me.


    Angles and towers in black and white are masculine. Curves and pastels are feminine. And then come the distinctive styles of the LGBTQ+ variations.


  • PRO
    6 years ago

    Lets leave that alone. I am always of the belief there are no silly questions but sometimes just worded wrong. In this case I think you have some good ideas to work with and maybe just forget the feminine part as that can be added with plantings in softer colors and maybe a door painted in a softer color the rest is a fact it is a house and has limitations as to that part.

  • 6 years ago

    Maybe it's having had several college professors who were working on studies in gendered space and architecture (and worth even queer space and architecture...which is more about function than aesthetics), but those topics are where my mind went with this discussion. The OP on the other hand is simply looking to soften their house. Plants and flowers and the things you put on your porch are probably the best and easiest way of doing this.


    I think you could also add some softness with the brick. In this case I would not do a gray brick. That's too much trendy monochrome for this house to take. Consider a brick that is white or beige with red undertones as if it had been painted or allowed to weather. (Look up Acme frosty pink, even though that one is discontinued for an idea).


    If you have the opportunity to change out the window over the front door, I would change it to one that matches one half of the garage dormer window and is not so tight to the peak of the roof. I would also change out the black soffit material on the vertical face of the porch to painted wood in white (without the inappropriate vertical grooves), assuming you are also doing white posts (which I recommend)

  • 6 years ago

    Take the gable over the door off the roof completely.

  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I agree with cpartist about the gable it doesn’t seem proportioned right and the window is way too big. But if it must stay I would eliminate the window entirely and put another rectangular decorative gable vent so it matches your other front facing gable.

    Instead of the black tin beam covering I would change it to something warmer like a wood beam same color as your posts. Some pretty railing to the right of your doorway would add to it as well. But I think your stone/brick will add a lot so you may want to just take care of the dormer business, wait for the stone to go on and it may be enough. You don’t want too much going on. ( I always thought Victorian was more feminine because to me it’s like jewelry for a house. That is my opinion; I don’t want to offend anyone. )