I like a gray or green exterior with white trim.

Thanks for your response. Should shutter color be the same as the trim or a contrasting color.

My trim and shutters are different. May be your own preference

I agree with darker trim for the windows- you can do almost any color shutter. What colors are inside your home? I ike these for trim and shutters.

I think you are trying to go too light---jump up on the color scale, try BM cromwell gray with lighter gray trim & black shutters

I have noticed that most homes with that style go for earth tones

you definitely need plantings to break up the straight lines.

Door color options

Plantings are next! A new craftsman door as well.

The porch and entry look good, they would be better in a dark shade. Also need to add some beefy trim around those windows and paint them.

A crew of Two - Interior colors are grays, cream and terra cotta. The terra cotta is too bold and has got to go, I grew tired of it almost immediately. I'm after a peaceful, timeless look and feel.

The trim has actually been beefed up! They are primer gray right now, awaiting shutters and the correct paint choice.

With the new door style then, I think I would go for gray trim and shutters and then a blue door. Very peaceful and timeless.

You have created a lovely entranceway and patio. I agree with Lynn that the plantings, or at least the plans for some landscaping and some outdoor furniture, a few planters, along with a new front door color will help make this entranceway come to life and give it curb appeal. You might consider putting 2 comfy chairs with a table between on the side under the higher window. This will help give some visual balance to the front. Some sweeping gardens in front of your patio will give some interest s https://www.houzz.com/photos/ridgeside-vineyard-farmhouse-farmhouse-porch-dc-metro-phvw-vp~2428863

Paint's not the only solution! A neutral tone house can be spiced up quickly with a few additions. Consider adding planters with flowers in accent colors or a walkway with pavers. A walkway always makes a home feel more inviting. Good luck with your project!

I would beef up those portico supports--surround them with 1-bys to give them more weight. Perhaps connect the stone pillars to the house with low stone walls that have generous cap stones for built-in seating. They would also be good places to put large potted plants.

Some nice pots or planters would be a nice addition to the front. Add some beautiful, colorful flowers that set off your new paint colors.

The stone in front of the house is wonderful and on that right side you have the perfect place for an outdoor room, fronted with great landscaping. Dark house colors would ruin the contrast that defines the ground from the house. Plus with the stone pillars everything above that visual line should lighter than the shades in the stone. Could you please post a closer photo of the door. I have no idea what's going on there, just that it is recessed. Does the hose attach on the front left side of the house.

A long wooden bench with arms and a high back wld look nice under those high windows. Love that paint color Sparrow above by BM. Pull out some colors of your stone pillars for reference also.

I like the bench idea. What about expanding out the stone and framing it with flowers and bushes to create an area for a round table, chairs,.. or adding an over hang from the roof lines on each side and add matching flagstone to the other side? Would that look too weird with the window on the left? If so, what about extending fencing in keeping with the current overhang moving out to the right giving an expanded patio privacy. I think some outdoor lighting would help as well. Still how to balance the other side? Anyway I like the current house colors.

You have a beautiful entryway however, I think it could be enhanced by either a fake (or not fake) rock facade at the top of the front of the portico. Weight could be an issue but there are so many products which I know nothing about that might be used which would allleviate that proble.This would pull in the rock below and make everything look even more put together. When I first looked at your photo, I actually thought stained glass would be lovely too. I can't tell for sure from the photo but, is the rock built around the posts?

The reason I asked about the posts is they I think they could stand to be bigger. Maybe even round and still bigger.

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Your house has great bones. A couple of beautifully shaped( in the French style) shrubs on the porch would be a great start. Some dark leaf plants along the front with a really nice outdoor couch with colored cushions would really lift this house. I don't mind the color at all. I think you need more accessories than re painting.

Any chance of changing the window on the right to match the size of the one on the left? I like the idea of a light/dove gray or taupe body with white trim. My choice would be white trim around the windows. Someone told me years ago houses should be painted 3 colors, even if the third color is just the front door. Not sure if that's true, but it seems to work well in many cases. I like the "Ocean Floor" color from Benjamin Moore. I would put some type of tall/narrow potted plants between the windows and portico to fill in the space. Some type of boxwood shrub might be nice between your stone and grass...I like the "velvet" variety. Maybe add a variety of Japanese maple(s) somewhere in the landscape...if they do well in your area.

What bothers me about the light colors is that there is no warmth showing thru. With the rustic portico and the vertical siding, it feels like a ranch trying to be a mountain house. Go with the portico as your lead ... Because it is really beautiful. Beef up the posts as mentioned and use thw BM Sparrow color as your trim ... And a slightly lighter color on the same paint strip for the body. Get the new door you mentioned ...but don't paint it....stain it a beautiful maple color. Go lodge look all the way.. No light colors will give you that feel.

A beautiful hanging light fixture, deep colored door (dark wood or painted a rich color) dark shutters, trio of large pots in different sizes filled with brightly colored but hardy plantings under the left window with a long, low farm style bench next to them.

This photo was taken before the posts were beefed up, and the roof of the portico was extended about a foot so the decorative element at the top is more recessed. The door and sidelights will be changed out this week, to a craftsman style. Thank you all for your help.

How about black shutters on the windows too as well as flowers under windowsils! It's all in accessorizing!

How about sending us a photo Lynn, when you are happy with the result? Love the front of your house, it is timeless and stylish. Start gardening Girl!

I think you may need to stay lighter on the trim as it looks like you can't paint the mullions(?). If you go dark around the white mullions- it will look to much like outlines in a drawing. I always go dark on the mullions with a transition color at the sash to the base color. But with white you have to stay in the same family- or use white on all trim. I would do a white trim with grey and great color door. A crew of two has some great door choices.

The windows are vinyl so we really do have to stay with white trim. I'm waffling between two body colors. Sherwin Williams analytical gray7051 with brown shutters and Sherwin Williams Hardware 6172 with black shutters. Thank goodness the painting keeps getting delayed but I really do need to make the choice. Today!

If you add more weight to the porch you will make the window trim look even more out of scale. The porch belongs to one house and the shutters and window to another. Something needs to tie the two styles together. The mass of the porch is too heavy for the light weight siding and trim.

I think the body of the house should go into a deep tone to give it balance. Keep the porch and window trim light but go warm earthy and deep on the siding.

Craftsman trim does not sit shallow of the siding and wrap around like a picture frame. That is a contemporary style. The head of craftsman trim sits over the window and is usually thicker than the side trim pieces and it overlaps by an inch or more. Try searching for " craftsman trim" in photos.

Add some lower trim to your shorter window to try to add symmetry with your other window. Aim for the same size total frame size as your larger window and you can use the craftman's style as you porch overhang. Your entry alcove should be enhanced with color. Use lighter brighter colors for portions that you want to stand out and darker more muted colors for those parts that should recede.

Be enhanced with color. Use Lighte or bright colors for portions that need to stand out and darker shades for parts that need to recede.

Put your money into double paned windows and doors if they need replacing, and landscaping. These are long term investments that could save you $ and be great for resale. I don't know if you have children or pets or if your lawn slopes, where the light falls or if you are planing on putting in a fence later, but from what I can see I would go on a curve starting from the left side that arches the same way the stone patio on the right does and start with some trees or bushes, find a local independent nursery and ask for advice.

Outdoor lighting enhances the beauty of your property, makes your home safer and more secure, and increases the number of pleasurable hours you spend outdoors. And it is an investment that pays off handsomely in the value it adds to your home.

Not a bad start...here's the deal ...add a stone wainscot to the bottom of the window on the left, and continue the wainscot base also on the right side of the house. Use the same stone that you have on the porch posts. Cut and attach a curved sway brace on each front post made out the same wood material. Add substantial shutters on the windows with ornate shutter stays.
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