I like your plans will be a great improvment. As far as colors I reconmend something far more nueteral. Drive around or pay attention to homes as you drive and pick a color sceme you think is plesant.

Try reloading the new plan: this one is rotated 90 degrees.

Thnx Lee, yes a great improvement to this poor home!
Dytecture ... I love the example you posted .. perfect colourings, thnk u.
Attched is the new plan .. the right way! oops sorry.

The new design makes it look like you are redoing the floor plan. The door gets moved to a current window location, more or less. The front right gets smaller new windows. Is this correct?

I think the front gable (and overall design) would look vastly better if it started the fretwork design at the same level as where the roof starts sloping.

Yes you are absolutely spot on re: the floor plan .. we are actually gutting the inside & extending out the back. We needed more space in the front room which is the master bedroom. I think your idea is excellent and will put this forward to the draftsman. Thnx 4 yr time.

I am not crazy about the Victorian details in the gable and the fretwork. Would rather see a more Craftsman style. I'm not sure that the brick adds anything to the design. Do like the idea of a metal roof and the James Hardie siding, which seems to be a good product.

I would do a standard shake detail in the gable end. I would do the whole side in clapboads in a wider exposure than noted on your drawing and a more craftsmant detail to the porch. I would also do a Craftsman door:

For color I would start with the James Hardie and look at the standard colors they offer.

I think with a medium gray metal roof, these colors would look so fresh: The exterior is James Hardie Cement Board and Azek Trim/Corners/Casings. The siding color is Summerhouse Beige and the trim color is Canvas Tan.

This siding is Boothbay Blue and would look great with gray stone and gray metal roof:

This is the third inspiration example in Woodstock Brown and Arctic White: This home has a great front door that would be perfect for your home. Again a gray metal roof and stones in these colors would look good on you home.

The gable detail is very dated looking. It looks like it was designed in the 80's. Please look at some of the great examples above.

Thank you Houssaon for your advice, ideas & pics they are all awesome.
II Inc. thank you also for posting. I should have given a little more info .. we live in the hinterland in Qld, Australia. We have the most adorable Queenslander homes here but unfortunately we cannot afford one so for the time being this is what we have to work with. Yes they are very old ... way older than the 80's and to some perhaps are dated looking, however this is the look I love. I was trying to replicate something like the attached pictures ... and this is what the draftsman came up with .. also keeping in mind our budget as we are totally gutting the inside and extending out the back. Cost of 'everything' is triple to what it is in USA.

I got you. Search "gingerbread" in photos in the exterior category to see what is in Houzz.

ohhh how cute! the real 'gingerbread' houses look yummy too! Thnx kindly will have a good look at whats there.

ca69: thanks for posting the Queenslander photos. Now I see the look you are going for. The balance of the major architectural lines is the same for good design in the US, too. It's the distribution, type and details of the gingerbread trim that differ. Also window sizing and type are different. I agree with houssaon that the details on the original plan look very USA-of-1980's because of their rounded and elliptical shapes. I see more angular and near-Tudor shapes on the Queenslander photos.

The colors in the Queenslander photos are pale pastels with white accents. I don't see any brick. Are you planning to paint your brick the same color as the house?

apple: Thnk u for your info. The Qlders that I posted are painted in very modern colours apart from that yellow pic .. quite different to the older style colours ... however I prefer the more modern colours. I would prefer to paint the brick ... unless I can come up with a nice colour scheme that ties it all in together with the rest of it.

uh that looks like a garbage but blue any way I love it

If you are going to paint the brick, then don't add any. Just go with the James Hardie siding. I think a mix of clapboards with shakes or board and batten will look great. Then add your gingerbread and you're all set. Pick out the color you like best from James Hardie - they have a great selection here in the U.S.A. Then get your metal roof color and trim color.

Good luck!

Thnx houssaon for all your ideas. Pity I wasnt in the States ... pretty limited 'down under' especially when on a tight budget, but we'll get there.

You're welcome. Post a before and after when you finish!

Oh yes ... I certainly will. Merry Christmas wherever you are :-)

I too do not like the gable detail. I, also have never liked having houses with a mixture of Hardieplank and brick; I would avoid this look at all costs.

I would not change the windows from all aluminium to a mixture of aluminium and wood. That will look mismatched. Aluminium windows can look fine but they should never be mixed with wood: avoiding this disaster will actually save you money. Its the same as mixing Hardieplank and brick: you should only do it if you have NO choice.

I do prefer Colourbond to tiles, but if I was forced to chose, I would leave the tiles on the front and put Colourbond on the back.

I'm not sure what colour to paint the Hardiboards. You have beige bricks and white window surrounds. Beige and white are hard colours to get to match. I would go with white trim to match the windows and paint the rest, perhaps, cream, or an onangy cream, like Taubmans Moo half, if it can do outsides.

I think the Queenslander is similar to what we would call a Queen Anne Cottage or Folk Victorian here.

I'm a little confused by a few details of the elevation. For example, why doesn't the porch extend all the way to the left wall? Why is there brick on the left and the right--is there a part of the house we don't see in the photo that is wider than the front? The front gable angle seems a little off on the elevation, so I wasn't sure.

Anyway, here is a rendering (sorry, very low resolution--should have used your first post) of what I would do to balance your facade.

1) Beefed up the square pillars a little bit--they are too spindly to visually take the weight. They are slender, but would look better bigger than a 4x4, and picture #2 (shows them with a slight base and some shape to them. If extending all the way across for the front porch, might need to adjust spacing.

2) Changed door and sidelight--arch type "colonial" is wrong style for house. Simple 4-panel, or something with glazing in Victorian pattern--perhaps a half or 3/4th light, or a divided light as shown, would work. Could be frosted or reeded or beveled glass. Also added door casing and moved it over a bit so it isn't smack-dab next to the wall. Or put sidelights on both sides, not just one.

3) Added casing around windows amd door, including sills and header (like pic 3) and thickened fascia. Added trim board that continues porch line across gable and to top of window trim. It is tight, so will have to be fudged a bit.

4) Really important that you don't use wimpy standard fascia. The bargeboards on the gable in particular needs to have some weight to it. Would be nice if gable could project slightly out from porch, possibly with some small support brackets (not the big Craftsman type, but something like in pic #3). Possibly could cantilever the sheathing a few inches and add the brackets, preferably attached to the studs.

4) Made the gable ornament a bit heftier and taller (pic 1 &3) and added lattice strapwork over vertical panel sheathing, something like Pic. #2. I feel the starburst design doesn't really work and emphasizes the fact that the windows and door are not centered on the gable.

5) Extending the lap siding to the edge of the building.

6) Add a tall pointed bush to echo the gable ornament (could be an ornamental element too, like a garden oblisk for training vines) and some foundation landscaping to camoflague awkward gap.

7) Pay attention to where the downspouts to the gutters are going--I really hate it when they are attached to a porch post, especially when there aren't many and the downspout is about as wide as the pillar. If you can, run them back to the building, and then make sure extension is well away and downhill of the house, and not interfering with walkway or porch. May need to be partially buried.

The color you pick for the roof will impact the color you paint the house. I don't normally like to see brick painted--it becomes a maintenance chore, but the brick you have won't match the new house style. If you paint it to match the new siding, it will blend in but those odd bits on each side if not aligned with the edge of the window or anything will stand out.. I would get rid of it all except for the portion level with the bottom of the window, or even with the sides and bottoms of the windows.

victorianbungalowranch: Wow! So much of your time and expertise ... I'm blown away & extremely greatful. What I need to do now is make an appointment with my draftsman. I totally agree with pretty much everything and particularly like your mock up drawing as it gives me a much better idea. When you mention pic 1,2 & 3 .. what pics do you mean? Not sure if this is a stupid question ... can we cover the brick work with cladding? Sounds like it would make things a little easier. Thanks so much again.

apennameandthata: thank you kindly for your advice, all your points have been taken on board. An appointment with our draftsman is needed.

It is not a good idea to cover brickwork with cladding--it will trap moisture. It is possible to stucco or paint modern brickwork, which is just one layer. May be possible to install a bit of trim over it, but it will need an air gap, or the brick chiseled out.

Otherwise you have to rip it out and replace. I just did that because the elevation showed that it was changed. You could keep more of the brick and even it with the right side of the right window to make it look like it is supposed to be that way, or add brick all the way across the gable end because where it ends now is awkward and anything else will look patched in.

Pic 1-3 refers to the pics you posted of Queenslanders, clockwise. I should have been clearer. I used those pics and others I have seen as style clues for your desired house design, combined with practices common in the Victorian era and the revival. Most Victorian revival houses don't look quite right because they get the details and proportions wrong--doesn't have to be (and can never be) exactly like it would have been 100+ years ago, but fancy trim looks tacked on and unbalanced if isn't done with care.

For example, note the door styles of all your pics, esp. 4, and look at the rendering--it is all wrong. You could save a bit of money by reusing the door you have (can't see details, but looks like a basic 6 panel) with sidelights on BOTH sides. No room for a transom over the door.

If money is a big issue right now, I would stick with modified mid-century modern styling and pick simple square posts, perhaps with a little detail, the right doors and windows you want. Or simply repair what you have now, esp. the windows and doors and brick, which is fine, and go with board and batten or vertical planks for now, landscape and save up for bigger changes later.

It is usually much cheaper to keep the existing materials and style than to redo. A restrained hint of Queensland might work as shown below.

Option1 (pic1) is the first one I did above.

Option 2 (green door) is keeping the brick below the trim board all the way across the gable and adding a pilaster.wide trimboard and bracket on the corner for the porch and simplifiying trim a bit. This is actually less additional brick than indicated on your elevation.

Option 3 (blue door) is eliminating gable trim and extending brick just to trimboard and ending where it ends now. I didn't change all the siding, but I think board and batten would have a cleaner look and better transition to the brick and around the corner. A trellis is another option to soften the transition from materials--it always looks better in elevation than it will in real life because the line will show without some landscaping.

Option 4 (orange door) eliminates most of the trim, except possibly a gable spire (That could be eliminated too--just hard for me to draw without more work--might be OK to keep spire) and all vertical siding, no pilaster, and keeping existing brick cladding all the way to roofline.

I kept the new windows in all the renderings and deeper facia (trim on roofline). Door could be the one you have or new, or with sidelights on both sides. Option 4 is the least elaborate and expensive, and requires the least amount of demolition..

Roof, siding, landscaping and color choices can change the appearance of what you choose to do quite a lot as well.

I personally like the cleaner lines of version 4 and it still has a cottagey look to it. I added a trimboard to match the fascia and porch trimboard to the edge of the brick. If you added the Queenslander trim, I would leave off the brackets, but it gives a clearer view to the door and windows without it.

Try a cedar shake vinyl siding in the gable for an alternate cottage feel!

victorianbungalowranch: Thank you so so much. You have shown my husband and I a completely different view on every angle. Some of it was out of our league but we will be taking it all to the draftsman. I cant describe how impressed we were with your knowledge and detailed information. Once again thank you so much for all your time and effort. Merry Xmas!

I like the cedar siding ... not sure if thats available here in Australia. Thank you for your post.

Wow. I didn't mean to be rude with my earlier comments. Its just that when typing, might as well say what you think.

Victorian Bungalow Wranch, you have an eye. That is what a difference skill makes. I suppose that by having heavier elements, you take the emphasis off the brick/board texture, but then you said to use heavier boards? Too, I see that the circles focus the eye.

ca69, maybe you need draftsman with an eye. Otherwise, you will be at his mercy for all of your house.

apennameandthata: Thank you for yr post & no offence taken! I posted to get others opinions and I'm so glad I did. I was very happy with your points and meant that I'd listened to everything you commented on and would pass this onto our draftsman.
I agree with you Victorian definitely has an eye ... absolutely blew me away. Mmm ... I'm definitely a little concerned now .. I'm just going to hand him everything from victorianbungalowranch!

Not sure if you have snow where you are, but if you use a metal roof, you will need snow brakes at an additional cost. There are metal roof tiles with various styles that dont require a snow brake

Here is a pic of the metal tiles, this is in the standard tile profile, but the have shake, shingle, roman styles

okI have seen this beautiful house and its colors go perfectly with ur plans here is the adress look it up on google maps
2632 Oakwood Dr SE 49506

pic

Not the best redo, but the cheapest. LOL!

Hehe, snow in Queensland, that one made me giggle.

The metal roof tiles are very interesting, I have never seen anything like that here in Australia. Either that, or it is so outrageously expensive here no one uses it!

we are manufacture in China , looking for distributor of solar garden light, web:www.oksolarled.com Email: kinglingelectric@gmail.com if someone have interesting pls send me email.Good quality and competitive price.

I would say they cost about 3x of doing regular shingles. Not sure how much your metal roof will cost. They come with 50 yr warranty but i think they could last longer. They are a good alternative if you are not doing shingles. I've worked on many roofs and this would be my first choice if my budget allowed. You can aldo look into rubber roofing. Not totally a fan because the rubber has some qualities that i dont like. They can be problematic during winter but i don't think you will have those issues

Have you seen the recent articles and pics on Houzz showing homes with black exteriors. Black would look great with your existing brick.

Thank you to all your contributions.

Huy Ho: No snow here in Qld! I'd love some right now though ... its sweltering! The metal roof tiles are very interesting I'll if we have them in Australia ... probably way too exy but thnks for your ideas.

smcmanus: I havent seen the black exteriors but will look into it, thnk u.

hbatesau: hehe snow .. Qld! that put a smile on my face. 've not heard of metal roof tiles either .. yr probably right .. outrageously exy and as usual we get ripped off down under :(

cyn222: cute ideas there, I like what you did, what program is that you use? I'm thinking a pergola will look nice.

Hi ca69. I haven't read through all the comments but wanted to point out that my eye keeps getting drawn to the massive 'blank' space under the semi circle gable. As an Australian that has visited QLD alot I know the look you are trying to achieve but the front right of the house seems really unbalanced with the window so far to the right. What about one window centred on that wall or two windows the same size to give it symmetry? Also, might be good to look at light coloured colourbond roofing. Something like Dulux surfmist as the lighter colours reflect sun rather than absorb it and it is already hot enough up there. I would lose all the brick on the exterior and replace it with the coloured hardiplank composite - it doesn't need painting and is a composite rather than timber. Keep the colours lighter for eco reasons. I work for greenstar builders and lighter exterior colours in hot environments is becoming common building practice. Also look at painting your front door a red or lime green. There are pictures oh Houzz for inspiration.

Awesome! thanks Kylie. I love your ideas and you are spot on with the balancing .. we will definitely be changing those windows to smaller maybe double hung and inserting another one to balance that look out. I love your colour scheme ideas for eco reasons it makes sense especially here in sweltering Qld heat! Lime green door would be gorgeous .. it would blend in well with our green hinterland surrounds.

I was going to suggest double hung windows but thought that would be mixing up the styles too much - which, by the way, I do love to do. Perhaps look at external stacked stone rather than brick also. I have attached a web link to a building company in Canberra so you can see the exterior colour scheme and the stacked stone I am talking about on the exterior. Hope it works because I can't download the pictures http://www.todayshomes.com.au/slideshows/Edward/default.asp

We are trying to achieve a cottage look and the stacked stone wld suit very well I didnt consider that. Only problem being the whole house is brick & to clad the front and leave the rest of the home would look odd. You can see the right hand side of the house from the road as well. We are now thinking we shld work with what we have instead of trying to change a 70s home into something its just not. Perhaps something like this pergola could be cute, insert another window & make them smaller also on the left try and make a porch type area with a little cottage garden out the front. Just trying to come up with ideas for curb appeal that are not going to cost the earth as we are extending out the back and gutting the inside. Thnx 4 yr time.

I love the verandah idea but I think it might be the whole cottage feel of the weatherboard behind it that gives the verandah it's appeal. Perhaps leaving a base of brick and using stacked stone and composite weatherboard would work. It sounds alot but could be achieved with a good architect. That way the brick could blend with the sides of your house. Another cheaper alternative that was popular in the 90's in Canberra was all brick facade and painting part of the brick. That is a much cheaper alternative and you can use cheap brick. I will see if I can find a picture of a house I am thinking of.

Half painted brick exteriors - will fit in with the era of your fretwork also

great alternative! cost effective as well .. do you think a pergola/verandah wld work with this type of facade. I so love the weather board look but I don't think that's going to be do-able. bcoz our facade frontage is so little it is we r trying to dress it up with character. thnx for those pics they give me a good idea.

cyn222: hi there! we are still in the process of deciding on a pergola for our facade. Could you please advise which programme you used in your above post? Many thanx.

I would seriously think of painting the brickwork the same colour as the walls but 3 shades darker. That way you get conformity and consistence without to much contrast. The pergola design will work with the existing contemporary nature of the house. You just have to get good design and colour scheme advice from a good architect that's trained in these areas and local to you. Try Archicentre for recomendations.

Oneofthesedays, what did you end up doing..would love to see a pic