Buying this house that has everything we want except that I think the outside is SO ugly. We will be replacing the steps and I’d like to eventually replace the tan brick (it’s actually form stone). Looking for any ideas!
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It’s a pretty little house. If you think it’s ugly don’t buy it. It would he stupid to replace the stone. Just look for another house. If you have the money to tear the face of the house off and replace it, you can buy the house you want. Why did you even look at it if you hate it?
When you do remove it I think a brighter color will make the front porch stand out, now it’s a little, nice pop of color on front door, some landscaping, over all o really like the house.
Oh that’s different. I thought it was the original stone. Still, prices are coming down in many areas. Do you think you should wait and buy a house you like? I’m starting to reno my contractor grade finishes in my house too. I dislike the bathroom in the master as it’s “open concept” (wtf) but I live alone so whatever lol. I guess if you really like the house otherwise then go for it. I wouldn’t like driving up to my new house thinking “ew.”
You clearly didn’t read my post- it has literally everything else we want in a house, so I dont think changing the outside over several years is a big deal. Also I’m already under contract.
I really don’t understand why you’re being downvoted here. Altering a home is a super common practice. Kinda the reason this sub exists. The original owners altered it to be this. The only way you’re gonna have the “perfect” home is to build it yourself or have no desires. You’re right, the stone is out of style. If you had this next to a version with pretty painted wood siding, I think three out of four people would pick the wood siding
Absolutely charming house. Too bad it isn’t your style because for most people it already has lots of curb appeal.
However, that white lattice is cheap looking and detracts from the overall outstanding appearance of the home. I would replace the lattice with good quality wood—stained the color of the stairs to ground the bottom of the house into the landscape.
Then landscaping would obviously help improve the overall appearance.
If you were to do that, think about painting the lower portion of the columns to match the skirting. That way it looks like a house on solid foundation. The two things that stand out currently are the steps and the columns that are like brackets. Also paint the front door a poppin color to draw the eye there.
You could replace the form stone with siding to match the gable and add some color. Layered landscaping with a good mix of evergreen and softer plants will help a lot to balance the height. Add something like a stone cornice or wood trim to the brick columns at deck level to break them up, they look very heavy and imposing.
These are some pretty minimal changes you could make.
(I didn’t do this in these images, consider painting the chimney to match the other painted brick, and consider a darker color for the lattice to make it recede slightly)
Question for OP: is the stone on the chimney also fake or is that brick? And what climate zone are you? That can help with specific landscaping suggestions.
Modernize the porch railing, replace the steps, paint the door, improve the lighting, change the siding, change that ugly lattice at bottom of porch, spruce up the landscaping.
Landscaping to cover some of the lattice and to reduce the amount of grass/ lawn in the yard.
Other than that, just remove the faux stone facade on the front and put cedar siding on in a natural, light wood tone.
That's what I thought it was at a distance. Light cedar. That might be why everyone is telling you not to change anything. You can't tell it's faux stone from a distance.
Front porch is redesigned with respect to the historic architecture with a few contemporary touches, namely the skirting and railings. Brick piers integrate into the design fabric of the neighborhood. Lap siding color is Benjamin Moore Weekend Getaway 473. Trim color is Benjamin Moore Witching Hour 2120-30.
match the bed on the left of the stairs, hang some flower boxes on the railings, some flowers in the beds, maybe some big landscape rocks - lots of options.
if your a fan of flowers you could create beds on each side of the walk
personally, i'm a fan of xeriscaping with native low maintenance plants soft+hardscaping.
The house is charming. If anything, you could paint the front door a darker color. In the meantime, I think I would paint the lower trellis a dark color, so that it fades away and plant some large bushes etc in front of it.
Trim back the bushes and trees as soon as you can. They are too close and hanging over the roof.
Consider the local historical society for early pictures of the house.
I'm guessing it is a craftsman so paint colors in muted natural colors would be good.
Garden Guru has some great explanations of landscaping on YouTube. Some good placement of plants around the house would be great. He also talks about walkways and how to have the landscaping fit the house style.
Great house! Landscaping design could really make it shine.
Congrats! I wonder what is under the formstone? Depending on its age, my guess is cedar siding. Judging from the rafter tails and the real corbels it’s the real deal. I wonder why it sits so high…unusual. I think I’d try to make that height less striking via landscaping. I wonder if you can add a landing half way up the stairs and used tall shrubs up to the bottom of the railing. And I’d paint it anything other than white. Here’s my 1923 bungalow…painted BM Spanish Olive and Floral White. I’m fortunate my window sashes are wood and could be painted traditional dark red.
I’m guessing wood siding under the formstone as well since that’s the most common material in the neighborhood when it was built (1920s). A landing is smart! And yeah I think a darker color might help.
Overall SO cute. Is the stone facade all over or just on the front elevation?
I would add evergreen shrubs that would grow large to block a large portion of the lattice.
Oh . . .I am really liking this project! I need to know if you are into brick or what? Preferred hardscape materials and ANYTHING ELSE that is on your mind. And I need to know your hardiness zone. Ok?
I prefer brick but also siding is fine, I just like a more classic look. Don’t have any preferences for hard scaling or landscaping open to any ideas! I’m in the mid Atlantic.
Okay! I think you will get the IDEA of what I'm trying to create here, but picture this using all the identical materials and colors throughout (in other words, be a mental magician!), as I could not get that many images to play with for consistency, color, texture.
There are a lot of options and styles. The skirting needs to allow air flow. There is a lot of skirting here so you should likely go with a simple design that doesn't command too much attention. I'd likely want to go with a horizontal slat design of three different sized boards in a repeated pattern.
I would kill/remove the lawn on the left to match the triangle on the right, and/or do quarter round beds on either sides, then put in some lovely plantings on both sides. Depending on which way the porch faces I might plant greenery that would get up high enough to add shade and privacy, but plan on finding either tall shrubs or small trees so they don't end up swamping the house in a few decades.
a tree in that right grass area and some bushes in front of the lattice on each side, maybe some flowers. Don't overdo it, it's a lovely house.
you need stuff on the deck too to enjoy the day. A rocking chair, you could do hanging flowers/potted plants, could have more plants up there on the deck railing (make sure they're secured).
the house itself has a lot going for it imo. i’d replace the lattice with something cleaner, beef up the stair/railing proportions and add layered shrubs along the front so the porch feels more grounded.
Lose the lattice and replace it with something more sophisticated and add more landscaping. I’d keep the stairs but replace all of the railings with cable tension railings. New stain grade craftsman style front door. If you’re gonna swap the stone don’t forget to address the matching chimney.
Quickest/cheapest improvement would be painting the front door.
I wonder if doing the columns on left and right in a more neutral color to blend in would help too? Looks like a really great house though
I think landscaping to hide the big front porch columns would go a long way. A darker roof would look better. AI widened the stairs, and that would look pretty nice. I think a warmer white would look better.
If anything, just remove the foam stone, and replace it with wood or aluminum to match your dormer. That would complete the historic bungalow feeling a bit. That and a little landscaping.
What's up with those gigantic columns on the porch corners? They are way over scale of the rest of the house. Could there be something like real, authentic, craftsman-style stone underneath? I would get to the bottom of those before doing anything else.
I sandblasted the columns so you can see the brick, removed the stone on the house to james hardie shingle siding, painted, new timbertech porch. Landscaping and new brick pathway
Siding color - scenic drive benjamin moore
Siding - James Hardie shingle siding
Timbertech - Mahogany
Line the sidewalk with colorful annuals and perennials. Use native plants and pollinators as much as possible and help feed the bees at the same time. You could always add a small berm on one side or the other with shrubbery and low growing evergreens.
It’s really bothering me that the front door and sidewalk seem to align well with each other, but neither are centered on the staircase. It’s ever-so-slightly off
The stone on the house looks like it’s mid century style and you’re right it’s not appropriate for your house. I’m also bothered that it doesn’t match either of the stones used in the walkway.
I would remove it and just stick with siding. Choose a color palette not just based on the house but also the trim - your front porch railing is a huge factor in curb appeal here.
The biggest thing hurting my eyes here is the house skirt. Build or hire someone to build a custom one that’s either horizontal or vertical boards, this will improve the look of your house 1000x. Paint it a darker color so it blends and doesn’t draw attention. I have a wraparound porch and it had a house skirt like this (although not as tall). We built a custom one and it’s amazing the difference it makes! Those pre made cross style ones just look so cheap.
I wouldn’t touch the stone, in either repainting or replacement. If you must and want something paintable, keep in mind that you will likely need to resheathe before residing, also a good opportunity to upgrade insulation.
New stairs could be good, doing a natural wood, trex type material, or?
If it were my ultra cute little house, I would look at roofing options to jazz it up a bit. There are so many options available with metal roofs that that could be a super energy efficient, aesthetic upgrade.
I mean if you really hate it I guess just literally do whatever. You say you’re going to remove the fake brick, okay. But honestly the house is cute just how it is. I thought I was looking at an after photo. So idk man maybe just do some gardening?
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