Can u post a photo

Yes, thanks Kate!

The brick colour is so where between the 2 closeups. Everyone is suggesting we render, but I like the bricks, although I know the whole place looks very dull.

don't render unless the bricks are badly damaged but the bricks and the driveway should be pressure washed and the Basalt colour looks great with the bricks but consider painting the pavers (and the driveway?) and the tiled porch floor basalt or maybe a new driveway and extended entry path at the same height as the front porch would be cheaper than rendering the house and give the whole front a fresh new feel but keep the roller door colour, lose the shutters, keep the paler version of the roller door colour for the cladding, fresh white for the eaves, barge and columns and planting a lawn and shrubs would also brighten up the front

I agree with every oklouise except that I would keep the shutters and paint them basalt. If you really wanted to brighten it up you could paint all the cream areas in a pale yellow .

Thanks so much for your input! I’ve been stuck on it it for days. I’m not a fan of shutters that don’t actually work as shutters but I thought if I painted them the same as the windows it would make the windows appear wider.
I looked at both Dulux Dune and Dulux Flooded gum, but they seem too pink for the yellow/gold brick. Would White Duck be ok?
It all looks appalling at the moment, but brick and driving cleaning and planting out the garden will be next. Unfortunately changing the pavers is out of the budget, but I hope once the garden is planted out it I’ll go some way to tying it together, maybe along with big pot plants, as well.
With the garage door, my partner wants it the same colour as the Basalt gutters, but I think it will stand out too much. What does anyone think?

Should also say the awnings are coming off, but we may replace them, after we’ve painted, as the front faces west. There’s a large tree that shades the left side of the house so awnings aren’t need there.

The cladding has been now been painted Dulux White Duck, which looks much better than the yellow tones it replaced. The garage door hasn’t been done, and the choice is either the White Duck or the Basalt of the gutters. I’m not sure about the windows, and I’m able to change at this point. It’s an untinted white at the moment, but I wondered whether they’d be better as Basalt or perhaps an extra colour. We intend, at some stage to box in the hideous columns, but I also wondered if we might be better painting them darker, perhaps Basalt. I’d really appreciate input from anyone with more of a clue than me (which is everyone!).

Bit of a grey morning, so it all looks a bit fuller than it is. The garage door is still the original colour.

A wonderful improvement, once the garage door is painted, and garden is landscaped it will be the best house in the street.
Just shows what a difference paint can make. No need to do anything with the bricks.

My first thought is to do garage door the same as cladding, the white duck.

Thanks for that, Dreamer. The bricks and driveway will be cleaned soon, and once the painting goes in we’ll do the planting. There are so many disparate elements, which we can’t afford to fix, so well keep the painting simple, but lush. Do you think the columns might be better darker?

I always like the look of bricks, and there are many ways to make them look great. Look how fabulous the 60s era red brick homes (I grew up in one) look with trims, gutters, gardens and garage doors updated.

I would have suggested a really dark charcoal colour as it looks good with most bricks especially those with darker spots but now you've done white up top I don't think that will work.

Hi C P, do you mean for the garage door? I can do the shutters dark as well, as everything just has one late at the moment.

What about painting the bricks and the weatherboard. Have you seen threebirdsrenovations house no 11? We are looking at doing that to our house.

Hi Samantha, yes, house 11 looks fabulous, a really lovely result. But I actually like the look of the bricks, so I want to “modern” our place up a bit without painting them. Sometimes I think painted brick looks a bit flat, but it certainly looks great in the 3 birds house. Good luck with yours. I find choosing colours a nightmare - I never know what I like until someone tells me!

Something like these modern take of traditional or ultra modern simple

Thanks, Kate! I love them. Your first suggestion is great. “Moderns” up the house but doesn’t laugh at it.

@C P

Can you say the big order Mick