Browse Forums Renovation + Home Improvement Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 21Mar 18, 2012 4:45 pm agreed. I've checked out a few places on stayz. I'm usually more concerned with the inside and backyard/ courtyard than out the front except to check that there is off street parking. I like the suggestion of rendering the wall of the upstairs balcony. and any other brickwork on that top, front face. If you are willing to stretch to that amount of $. Otherwise I would spend it on repainting the the areas you've shown in the photos. I still think the pic 2 paint colour looks better than the 1st or 3rd one. Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 22Mar 18, 2012 5:44 pm You guys rock!! Hadn't thought of that (just rendering 'round the window looking to balcony), kinda like that idea. Especially if I then put some kind of tasteful 'wall art' adjacent to that same window to fill up the blank bit of rendered wall (travelbug's idea). Still need to figure out what material to replace the balcony railing with thats cheap... agree with you kexkez that it does look better having railing same colour as rest of trim ... maybe wood so I can paint it the same colour? (figure it would cost more to have custom metal railing built & colour-matched....) Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 23Mar 18, 2012 11:05 pm Hi Cathie, We just replaced our roof with the woodland grey colour as part of our reno (colorbond roof). Looks pretty good. I can post a pic if you want. We also have red brick, and will be rendering. That's still a month or two away. As for railing, I think that timber is the cheapest. btw, love your website! Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 24Mar 19, 2012 9:12 am Our next door neighbour has the same colour brick house as you. He recently repainted his garage door, guttering, fascia etc. in a dark, blue-based grey (I think its Dulux Rainmaker). It looks fantastic with the red brick. His house is of a similar era to yours too. Plants with glossy, dark green foliage always look very smart & sophisticated around red brick houses (sasanqua camelias & gardenias, for instance). I'm not sure where the house is located (can't seem to find it on the thread). If you are in one of the warmer states, kentia palms with their graceful, dark fronds would also look lovely. "Whoever says sunshine brings happiness has never danced in the rain!" Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 25Mar 19, 2012 8:03 pm Hi guys, We are building a new house and was wondering if I should go for decking in my alfresco or should I just pour concrete. Which one would be cost effective? thanks. Building with PD 01.06.11 Contract Sigd 01.10.11 Site Start 04.11.11 Frame Complete 20.01.12 Fix Stage Complete 31.03.12 Handover Complete *16.04.2012 Moved in* Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 26Mar 19, 2012 8:31 pm Hi kezacheekychicken - i just tried out Dulux 'rainmaker' on the house (virtually of course) - it looks good AND is close enough to the tile colour on the balcony that I think we could leave the tiles as they are. Which would be great - I'd assumed we'd have to paint them to match the trim colour. Thanks for the tip... Can't wait to get plants in & am thinking along the same lines as you suggested (dark green, large foliage). Unfortunately theres a (no longer used) septic tank buried on the left side of the house, only a foot or two of soil over it. Have to deal with that before I can do any planting...is NOT going to be a pleasant job!!! Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 27Mar 20, 2012 7:10 am Glad to be able to assist. I personally don't mind dark red brick (I wouldn't be painting or rendering over it, if I didn't have to). I moved up from Malvern (Vic) where there are a lot of older red clinker brick houses. They have a timeless look & great street appeal. FYI - that's where I am also getting some of my landscaping thoughts from - they knew how to dress them up. Hey, if your old septic receives a fair bit of sunshine, you could possibly plant sun-loving annuals or perennials on top. Some salvias grow to about 1 metre, & will grow in shallow soil (provided they're not subjected to strong winds). Example of some I think might look good with your house: bog sage - has an intense blue flower; or pineapple sage - bright red flowers with gorgeous pineapple-scented leaves (you can put in drinks). You could then put something smaller in front like cosmos or armeria. If shady, you could plant impatiens. Wish you luck if you decide to remove the seppo as intended, though (which is probably the wisest idea, in the long run). "Whoever says sunshine brings happiness has never danced in the rain!" Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 28Mar 21, 2012 7:15 am thanks for the plant recommendations, kezacheekychicken. I definitely want to plant trees and shrubs alongside the house though. I have a garden design business so have already spent WAY too much time thinking about what I want to plant ... and its all trees & shrubs (no annuals or perennials), so I'll need to deal with that septic....probably won't remove it but maybe punch holes in the bottom for drainage and fill it with soil. Thats whats been recommended to me, anyway. Before & After Photo! 1980s Red brick house exterior update 29Jun 27, 2012 5:54 pm Here we are at the end of June, finally finished updating the house exterior. Plan to render down the track once we've done a more 'major' reno, but for the short term, the new colour combination has me actually liking the red brick! The blue/grey colour used is Colorbond 'Ironstone', white is Dulux 'whisper white'. Didn't do that much: took out the arches over the garage doors, got 3 small door openings changed to two large ones. Doors are Dominator sectionals. New railing on balcony, and all the trim repaired and painted. Three new lights were finishing touch. What do you think?! Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 30Jun 27, 2012 8:13 pm wow looks much nice. Love the change of 3 smaller arched doors to 2 larger ones. The ironstone looks really good too. Great job. The house looks far younger than it did before. Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 31Jun 27, 2012 8:43 pm Looks really good You have made it look like a much younger house A bank is a place that will lend you money only if you can prove that you don't need it... Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 32Jun 27, 2012 8:50 pm thanks kexkez & buttercup... now if I could just make MYSELF look younger!!! Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exterior? 33Jun 27, 2012 8:52 pm Wow, it's amazing how much difference just a few key changes can make. Looks great! Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 35Jun 28, 2012 4:33 pm Well done ... and the blinds are perfect for that large window - it's all come together nicely Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ For info on our build: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=43093 Built the McLaren by Dechellis - slab down 22 Feb - handover 30 Aug 2011 - and gardens finished 9 Dec 2012!! Re: Goodbye 1980s ....how would YOU improve this house exter 36Jul 03, 2012 6:33 pm I just spotted this thread, read through the initial posts and was about to suggest Colorbond Ironstone with a crisp white... It's one of my favourite colours - we have garage door, front door, letterbox, spouting/fascias and some large plant pots all in Ironstone. Looks great, a really simple but effective update! your new kitchen and living area looks great and we need accurate dimensions to be specific but with the thickness of the brick column you may be able to line the inside… 1 1264 Bought in Nov 21 at the height of the market (classic). Good area, atrocious floor plan. BUT has land out to the left-hand side that we can extend out on (see second… 0 8784 Thanks mate. Yeah good points! Leaning towards Option 3 to get a bit extra space in the cabinets but not going too crazy high (and expensive). Would require a mini… 13 39757 |