our first house . . . needs a serious face lift! seeking advise?

[jo_mama]

hubby and i are finally home owners!  i am thrilled about our new home and i've been decorating the interior like crazy (something hard to do fully in a rental), but i am overwhelmed by the exterior remodel.

this is my house:

it's a lovely little house, but it's just not me.  i am colorful and lively, and perhaps a bit tacky at times.  how can i add some flavor to the house without becoming "the tacky house", as i live on a main drag in the middle of town?

my current thoughts are to replace the storm door with a full glass storm door, then replace the front door to something paneled and paint it a light aqua or seafoamy color. 



a new address plaque in in the plans, too.  i had originally planned on ridding myself of the granny handles, but we have already experienced an ice storm in this house and those granny bars were a life saver!  i strongly recommend granny bars wherever you can put them!

and i don't know what to do with the garage door, but it has to change.

i'd love to hear any idea's y'all have!

jo

[FrankieBeans]

I LOVE ranch style homes.  Check out http://www.atomic-ranch.com/   They have great ideas for little changes outside that make a big difference.  House numbers, topiary, colors ect. 

[schizo319]

I'd paint the white part above the brick a color, something closer to the brick in tone, maybe a charcoal gray? Add a few window boxes and paint that garage door too (I'd go with the same gray color on it). I like the idea of a brightly colored door and a full view storm window.

[nadx]

created this quickly but some ideas:

the tree is a river birch in "island"....mulch island features a spill over flower pot design...
i took off the black stripe on the  garage...
full glass storm door...
landscaping mulch along the walk with bushes...
ornamental tree on left side of garage...
lastly---curbing along the street (may be able to see if the city will help u go in on half the cost in some cities

[jo_mama]

created this quickly but some ideas:

the tree is a river birch in "island" island features a spill over flower pot design
i took off the black stripe on the  garage
full glass storm door
landscaping mulch along the walk with bushes
ornamental tree on left side of garage
lastly---curbing along the street (may be able to see if the city will help u go in on half the cost in some cities


https://www.craftster.org/pictures/data/500/50777_09Nov11_quik.jpg

wow!  that helps a lot!

i really like the idea of a small tree in that spot.  the window that it would block is the one above the kitchen sink that we open on nice days - it would be nice to look aout and see birds instead of a street full of cars.

we have discussed the curb, and we are considering a small recessed wall cutting slightly into our property, which would allow us to claim that as private parking.  we live across the street from a restaurant giving us reason to need this extra advantage.

on the left side of the house (where you placed the ornamental tree) in the rear is the door into the private-fenced back yard.  it's also the path we take when walking our daughter to school every day.  i am planning on a paved or stoned path of some kind.  we also store the trash and recycle bins on that side of the house, so lots to be considered.

what about removing all the bushes along the front of the house and creating something of a porch that stretched from the front door to the breezeway door?  hmmm.  i wish i had craptons of money so i could just will it to be done.

thanks for the help.

jo

[suereal]

That is so funny jo_mama!  My Hub and I are just moving into our first house too...and it's a RANCH

We are just painting and cleaning the insides now.  I'm looking forward to seeing what you will do

[nadx]

oh yes, love the idea of adding a front porch or deck---great idea

[nadx]

also, u wont lose too much visibility with a small tree blocking a window...and when the tree matures just cut it so the canopy is taller and not blocking your view if you so desire

[shainakhan]

What a cute house! Congratulation!!  I just wanted to comment that we had painted our ranch style home recently with a light blue/gray body and a darker trim. The body is SW Grassland and the trim is SW Connected Gray. I often think I should have used the darker color for the body. Maybe you can photoshop some colors before actually painting to be sure of your choices.  Good luck!