You have to decide if you're going to just slap some 'lipstick' on the house and call it a day, or if you're going to do what's necessary to improve a typical colonial. These homes are notoriously dark because of the small windows. That's where I would begin.

A color scheme like you see below involves all aspects and materials and you'll have to actually use an app to see the possible variations of what can be accommplished.

The best thing that you can do is get a landscape plan. Evergreen plant material beneath your windows (NOT window boxes) will mask the panels beneath your first floor windows. Don’t think in terms of rows of things. Consider curved planting beds. I suggest you invest a consulting fee with a qualified landscape designer in your area. A one or two hour consultation, a walk through of your yard. TAKE NOTES. One $250 consultation 30 years ago and I am still implementing aspects of the ideas this wonderful, creative, thoughtful designer suggested. From patios (3) to fencing (wrought iron), to a custom trellis with a hydrangea, to a huge focal point urn outside a picture window, to a flagstone walk. 30 years later…. We have the home AND landscape of our dreams. And we did it over time…. Good luck with your lovely home!

I like your idea of putting window boxes on the upper windows. I love the inspiration photo BeverlyFLADeziner posted. It shows that even empty, the boxes visually enlarge the windows. ptreckel’s planting ideas that would mask the panels on the first floor would help ground the house to the landscaping.

Your house is attractively proportioned and won't need much tweaking to bring out its charm.

I like the black upper shutters and I don't think it matters one bit that your neighbours have black shutters too. Your windows will look too small if you remove them. The light green looks good in the inspiration picture, but your brick colour is different and the proportions are different. I think it would be a mistake to paint any part of your house this colour.

I agree with painting the white area under the lower windows. Look for a "camouflage" colour that will blend into the brick. Similar to the brick, but more gray/dull and a bit darker. Use the same brown/gray to paint the downspouts that go down the brick, and also the trim around the front door. I think a dark green would look good with your brick. Because of your cream siding, I think a green looks better than a blue. Use the same paint to paint, for example, a wood chair or bench beside the front door.

Better landscaping would give you a big bang for your buck. Use evergreens to visually tie your house to the ground, year round. Make the bed deep enough that the evergreens don't touch the house, when they're at their mature height and width. Aim to have the base of the house covered at maturity. Fill the spaces with some annuals until the evergreens are larger. If you want to add more annuals or perennials later, add them in front of the evergreens.

The tree to the left looks like it's been pruned hard, and may be past its prime. Consider removing it.

Yes to keeping brick and painting siding a softer medium color, doesn’t have to match brick per se, but make house mass look unified and not one part in top of the other. The example posted of sage is nice, or something similar tgat works with your brick.

Then the landscaping. You may need a local landscape designer for that. But do beware of cookie- cutter designs and planting things that get too big, it too close to house. I had that problem with a designer who was associated with a fine local independent nursery but he turned out to be not very skilled.

I guess there are buy- install economics of a one & done installation, but if you can get a talented planner & pay appropriately for the design, then you could do it in stages. Plus a lot depends on how you are able to water new plantings for the first year or 2.

No to painting the brick. The shutters on the first floor look odd, remove them. The white on the first floor doesn't match the siding. I'd pick a color that you like. I like @Patricia Colwell Consulting 's green, but a slate blue would work, too. Or you could paint the first floor cream or the second floor white. Pick a better shutter color.

A hard no on window boxes. I'm an avid gardener and have window boxes put in by the former owner that I curse. They are hard to keep looking nice. Sure, when photoshopped in, they look great. When someone recently bought some lovely plants and put them in, they look great. But keeping them looking good most of the year? That is not easy. For an avid gardener.

The other thing is, your house is pretty attractive. With a better paint job, it will be good-looking. It's not a wow, but most of us don't have wows for homes, just like most of us don't have drop-dead gorgeous husbands. They are warm, loving, decent-looking great guys. We love them for all the things they are, even if they'll never be modeling for GQ. Take the same approach with your house. Love it for what it is, rather than thinking of all the other houses that are better-looking than it.

Paint all the shutters a light to medium grey to match the roof and the aprons on the lower level too to make it more cohesive..add two big black planters with tall boxwoods to flank the porch…I love the red door with your brick so would keep that…no flower boxes not needed and you will not use them..

No window boxes on the 2nd floor……
From experience they look lovely but are a PITA t8 maintain.

Joining the chorus against window boxes. Even when you spend waaaay more time and money than you thought you would, the results are disappointing. Very messy too against the side of the house. (I am an experienced gardener.)

LOL zero stars, do not recommend!

I agree to get rid of the bottom shutters and paint under those windows to blend with the brick.

You might also consider painting the upper shutters in a medium to charcoal gray.

Add some tall planters on both sides of a navy colored door.

Then you might add a wide curved sidewalk leading to the front door and adding a couple chairs with a table between.

Getting a well thought out landscaping plan will also go a very long way to add interest to an already very nice home.

Here's a very crude drawing of what those small changes would look like, minus the overall landscaping.

Please share with us what you come up with!

As many have suggested - a cohesive paint plan will bring your childhood home forward in time, but I note Patricia, in her first image, has enlarged the ground floor windows so there is a smaller apron below and more window. If your budget could extend to changing the lower windows I think you will gain so much from the added interior light and the balancing of the exterior that you will not even need to worry about any verandah posts or debating whether the shutters should be removed.

Not gray!

Gray is O V E R

@partim brought in a beautiful deep evergreen color for the top shutters. I would use that on the door and paint the lower (glaring) white to match the brick, just as she posted.

Then spend your money on landscaping. We have all pushed that idea because the lack of it makes the house look naked. And I agree with removal of the tree. It is past it’s prime and gives a sad look to the front of your property.

@Sigrid - thanks for the morning humor about husbands. 😂

You’ve gotten great advice here. With a limited budget, you have to make a plan for incremental changes over time. Start with the easy, cheaper options you can DIY (probably paint and plants).

Also, try to love your home for what it is. We bought a 1963 ranch when first married and I had grand ideas about how to make it more craftsman since a ranch is so “boring.” We never had money for my big ideas, so we made small tweaks over the years and I came to love that house for its solid and simple practicality.

Don't remove a tree just because it hasn't leafed out yet and looks dead in one picture.

You have a grey roof you really can’t fight possibly using grey to pull it all together..and no grey is not out..it is a neutral will be timeless….

@Sigrid I agree with your comment "Don't remove a tree just because it hasn't leafed out yet and looks dead in one picture."

But based on the trunk size and the shape of the branches, it looks to me like a too-large tree that has been badly pruned to keep it from damaging the house. You can see where the ends of the branches have been cut off, and the tree has sent out a bunch of brushy twigs behind the cut. There are plenty of those where I live - planted too close to the house 30-40 years ago.

Given the age of the house, it may be time to replace it with a tree that is better suited to that location size-wise. Maybe even a native tree to where you live, to support the environment.

Too many times, those trees aren't the problem. The problem is the people who don't know any better, and just think the trees are a problem. So too many trees that are either large, or are going to get large get taken down from needless fear. Almost all of those 'native trees' that 'support the environment' are big, except for the ones that get really big.

So no, we need to know an awful lot more about that tree to responsibly recommend removing it.

Where I live in Toronto, Serviceberry is a smaller native tree that is often used to replace the non-native birches that were so popular 50 years ago when our subdivision was new.  Those birches are at the end of their life now. As you say, some native trees such as the oaks are sadly too large for us here on smaller city lots.

The post from Home Interiors with Ease about the gray roof needing to be addressed led me to modify the color scheme. The siding to match the brick, but change the trim to charcoal. I agree that you wouldn’t want to take care of window boxes on a second story, so a trim piece instead to give the same effect of lengthening the windows might be nice.

I can't thank everyone enough for all of the fabulous suggestions and replies! The edited photos of everyone's ideas are so so appreciated and have been immensely helpful and inspiring.

The tree currently without leaves will not be removed. It is a beautiful mature Japanese maple that will remain until the end of its life. The odd green behind it in Picture 1 was a japonicus shrub tree that has already been cut down.

The bottom shutters are off the house and thanks largely to your fabulous example photos and suggestions my husband is now full speed ahead on putting in new 1st story windows that fill most of the white apron space (though not on the garage bc its an uninsulated space). My next question will most likely be - what do you put in the 12 inch gap between the brick and new windows??

I so appreciate all of the landscaping advice and will be working on a plan asap!

A controversial note: while I am not painting the brick front of the house yet, I am painting the back the off-white color I mentioned. Will update this post with a photo when done.

Thank you so much again for the input and help! I love hearing it and look forward to more!!

The bigger windows will be a huge game changer. Glad to know there is a healthy Japanese Maple there - great species and a favorite of mine. Which color scheme did you and your husband like the best? Keep us posted.

I totally agree that you will get a lot of pleasure out of some sort of landscape plan - one thing that would be simple would be to mulch a much more generous circle under your Japanese maple, your mulch could extend to the edges of the tree's branches for the right proportion, and you could create a hard boundary with brick that matches the color of your house. The curve of a circle will soften all the straight lines of the house.

As I understand what you have written, you have relatively new vinyl siding on the second storey facade, so that color will remain the same and can't (or shouldn't) be changed. (I don't know if vinyl siding takes well to painting.) I had window boxes on the ground level of my house. Having window boxes on the second storey will be a royal pain for you to maintain. I advise against it.

I'm going to swim against the tide: I like the decorative panels below the first floor windows. I recommend that you think long and hard before replacing the windows on the main body of the house but not on the garage. Your house has symmetry. Having very different windows on different sections of the first floor will ruin the design. I think that either all of the windows on the lower level should be replaced or none of them should be replaced. Further, having a 12" band of trim between the brick and the bottom of the new windows will look odd. I'm afraid that it will look like a "remuddle" instead of a "remodel."

I actually like your house! But I’m often a love the home you’re with kind of person. As someone with painted brick, I would advise not to. It’s not good for the brick (keeps in moisture) and adds a lot of upkeep. I saw you said you are painting the back but if you haven’t started, look into a German schmear or limewashing if you want light color. And I 100% agree with everyone commenting on working on landscaping. It can completely transform the look.

• For several reasons, we had to paint the brick when we purchased our home and remodeled it. Seven years later and no problems whatsoever! The house wasn't just outdated, it was actually ugly, but the lake location was perfect. Since the remodel, we love our beautiful home, but that wouldn't have been possible without painting the brick.

Since the roof will remain, use that as a major factor in how the roof will work together with any colors you choose for shutters, trim and even the future painting of the brick. Many "grey" roofs are the color "weathered wood" which will go well with green grey undertones. If you have a weathered wood roof, test to see if Benjamin More Hale Navy will work for door or shutters. I agree that landscaping would work well in defining your home's curb appeal.

We updated our home by painting the siding (it was gold) to a muted green, and painted our shutters a color that blended with the brick. In addition we , updated our front door and all the outdoor lighting. We also redid our driveway, making our home look almost new.

Remove the fake shutters from upstairs also. Make the colors blend better - cannot tell color of roof, but make house colors blend - all cool or all warm colors, not mixed up.

First add white/cream shutters next to your front door mount lighting in the shutters

Second as tim and moneys allow add shallow concrete poch so that you can add wiod columns playing up the color if uour screan/frint door and add wooden arches to columns soften the front. Minimal landscape beds with white rock not mulch, will help as well. Add plants later again as the budget allows highly recommend a walk way leading to the front door.

I'd paint the shutters, but painted white brick is already dated. It also peels and looks awful if not done very well with the right paint.

There is a new trend if using creamy, almost early 90s colour pallets in a new way. Its very warm, neutral and monochromatic.

Large trees make a house look rich. Rich fancy neighbourhoods all have large trees. Check with an arborist before you take down anything, and its a wise move to get a professional to take down any trees near your house.

Small update… sans lower shutters & larger right side windows 😊

You're on your way! The longer windows look good!

You must be getting so much more light inside. The lowered window looks great!

The white squares under the lower windows bug me are you going to paint them charcoal that's in the brick and what color are those shutters?

Hello I hope all is going well with you I don't see any updates here do you have any updates or did something else happen that you haven't been here? Thank you

Almost a year later!

Progress can def be slow with DIY, but the larger lower windows are in and the light is great and was much needed.

Tried painting the surrounds a coordinating charcoal, then grayish green, and they both looked awful so back to white it is for now.

Lower window boxes as the next addition?

Thinking about similar length grid windows for the uppers (with different shutters to size), but tackling that project is intimidating as we haven't done window replacement with siding and needing flashing before.

Landscaping is on the back burner - still dreaming of a front porch with simple columns in the space under the overhang. Bigger dreams of a brick or stone walkway to the front door.

We painted the door BM Cochineal Red for some brighter color (slight Christmas effect with the green shutters) but viewing the whole exterior as a process and in flux.

Ever debating painting the brick cream (slightly whiter than the cream of the siding). I know it can be foolish to paint perfectly good brick for a myriad of reasons and often find myself on the keep unpainted side of the fence when discussing, but do love how painted brick can look and am so tired of this brick's brown but also somehow pinkish color. I know many are against, anyone on the go for it side?

So appreciate your opinions and ideas and find them super helpful - thanks again for your thoughts and looking forward to more!

Also I need to power wash :D

You are going to get all sorts of comments about NOT painting your brick and how you will regret it if you do. We remodeled an older home and had no choice, for several reasons, about painting our brick.

Brick needs to breathe, so consult experts about the right paint to use and hire painters who have painted brick before.

it has been 8 years since we painted and we don't have peeling or chipped paint. It's beautiful! Good luck, whatever you decide to do.

You could get those wicker type of boxes but they're not real quicker Brylane Home.com has them and they can sit in front of each window on the porch or you could do low lion bushes that flower in front of each window in front of the porch I think the upper part of the house needs to match whatever color you paint the bottom part of the house pick the color that you want if it's a white paint the lower part that color or pick a color in the brick do not paint the brick the brick needs to breathe you could always go to a lighter shade that's in the brick couple Shades lighter would be fine

I would definitely paint the brick if it were my home. But as mentioned, get the appropriate paint! Good Luck!

Your lower windows look great.,

One idea with painted bricks...

Planting evergreen shrubs will give you a big bang for your buck. And please consider a different front door colour. The red is clashing with the brick.

Painted the door BM "Van Courtland Blue" yesterday. Loved the BM "Cochineal Red" but it was giving "Christmas" with the dark green shutters - hoping the blue works better? Add a kickplate?

Matching the shutters with a dark green door is an option (and the original door color when the house was built in 1964) but wanted something brighter and happier. New shutters and a new color would be awesome - but I loved your ideas of elongating the upstairs windows and am putting off replacing them as our children's school is a whole arm and an entire leg.

Still thinking of painting the brick cream to match the siding.... (have painted brick before on my 1880s row-home in Philly with much success, as well as my previous 1940s cape cod. Do not worry - have the brick paint down!) Husband also likes the idea of a more whitewashed look instead of the opaque look. Thoughts?

Also - has anyone ever put decking down under their overhang? Could it go over the existing concrete step? Decking would be much more affordable than pouring a concrete slab and would achieve a front porch. Frankly, I don't understand why it wasn't there to begin with when the space seems so obviously defined and is already covered.

I know landscaping is a greatly needed update but we are DIYers and slow haha.

As always thoughts, critiques, opinions, ideas are so appreciated.

I recommend lime wash—I lime-washed our brick 5 years ago and have never looked back. You can apply it and remove some of it to expose some of the brick, but I covered ours completely and really love it. If you apply it and don’t like it, you have 24 hours to hose it off. It has held up under harsh conditions and looks as good as new.I used Romario lime wash.

If do that don't hold the power on an area. It's looking great! I like the 3 windows uppers as is.

I really like the blue door. I really don’t see a need for the kick plate unless you just want it.🙂 Either lime wash or cream to match the upper siding. I also wouldn’t worry about the upper windows at the time. We poured our concrete patio under the bay windows overhangs and never had a problem. So I can’t imagine that it would be any different with a deck. As for deck over the concrete step, I would just confirm with an installer the it is not a problem.