Yes we possibly could have, however then the Entertaining, Living areas of the home would have been on the First Floor which would have meant incorporating a larger Patio on this level. You also must remember over 80% of owners of Two Storey homes prefer bedrooms on the First Floor, so you we need to take this into consideration for our clients potential resale of their home.

Absolutely agree about hedge... Leave it but have it trimmed and add trees to courtyard. I would decide on colour scheme first by painting large pieces of cardboard in a colour suite to complement the brick. Draw out lighter colours in brick & tone down with white to match look.... I would not personally use white paint as your brick is so dark.... Think cohesion not contrast... Ideas above re gate, letterbox, etc are excellent and another way to add interest... Also think about changing driveway colour to match house/garden as it is a big slab of grey... Your roof is dominant too...... Maybe get that done rather than rendering house walls.... I would look on houzz for ideas.... Look up Prairie style or Frank Lloyd Wright or Fallingwater his most famous house for colour/style ideas.... Or Taliesin West for anchoring house into land innovatively. Paint that chimney flue to hide it!!!!!!

One thing no-one has mentioned is the reverse wave things on the barge boards -- I guess you could say they add character , but yeah , nah , not really ! Just dates the look IMO , so I'd remove them . See Pic 3 of yours , the yellowy butter beige is in the shade , and looks way better IMO . So use that trick of the eyes -- go a light off-white . While Surfmist doesn't tie in with the brick tone , I suspect that with the darker roof ( and my next suggestion ) it would work -- lets face it , its not going to look worse than present ! Keep the dark windows , BUT alo do that 150mm or whatever 'band' between the upper and lower windows , in a charcoal . It will make your place look way more modern . I'd even consider painting the garage door the charcoal too -- I realise it risks looking too dark , especially on a dull winter day , but I'd risk it , as it sticks to the same theme . Leave the front door as is though -- it looks like it doesn't quite suit in the close-up pic , but actually works in the longer shots , which is what 98% of people see . The other option , but more $$$$ , would be to completely change the front door and garage door , going to the same cedar or cedar look for both , or even a Japanese black -- in fact , a Japanese black with those blue influences , and Surfmist ( which also has a blue tinge ) on the timber , would be my number 2 choice ( behind cedar ) .

There are tutorials on Pintrest and also locally on Katrina Chamber’s webpage for painting windows. It can be done successfully but it does turn your windows into a painted surface, so goes from no maintenance to maintenance needed. I would paint everything that can be painted the colour you’ve already successfully implemented inc gutters but leaving the roof and bricks (bit give them a clean). I’m not sure what you’re planning but the tiles on the verandah and stairs takeaway from the house’s appearance.