Adding Kerb Appeal
Guv Thind
6 years ago
Hi All,
I've recently exchanged on the attached Victorian property and wanted to gauge opinion on how best to add kerb appeal. I'm intending to keep the property for the long haul so don't mind spending on it but am unsure on what to actually do to its exterior?!
Subject to planning there'll be a double storey side extension replacing the old conservatory (just behind the wall on the left) that will bring some balance. The windows all need replacing too and I'm keen to preserve the style and heritage as it's the character that attracted me to it in the first place.
I love the current brick so that will be restored/cleaned and repointed. What would you do with the windows/doors design and colour? Roof tiles? Rendered parts? External lighting? Driveway? Etc
Any and all opinions are welcome!! Apologies if I seem a bit clueless, this is my first ever post! :)
I've recently exchanged on the attached Victorian property and wanted to gauge opinion on how best to add kerb appeal. I'm intending to keep the property for the long haul so don't mind spending on it but am unsure on what to actually do to its exterior?!
Subject to planning there'll be a double storey side extension replacing the old conservatory (just behind the wall on the left) that will bring some balance. The windows all need replacing too and I'm keen to preserve the style and heritage as it's the character that attracted me to it in the first place.
I love the current brick so that will be restored/cleaned and repointed. What would you do with the windows/doors design and colour? Roof tiles? Rendered parts? External lighting? Driveway? Etc
Any and all opinions are welcome!! Apologies if I seem a bit clueless, this is my first ever post! :)
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Comments (7)
Jonathan
6 years ago
PRONeil Jones Design
6 years agoRelated Discussions
Just moved - ideas please!
Comments (11)Limited funds and you are thinking about painting the front door? What are you going to achieve by painting any white surface without painting all of the others? There is so much about the picture of that house that I like. The brick really fits the setting. I'm not even convinced the arched window suggested by minnie101 would add anything. The wicket fencing and gate make the statement of what a nice, safe place to live. It is one of the very few examples of a 1970s house that I genuinely like, with no inclination to bulldoze it and start again. OK, the little slat of a window to let more natural light in and add a little something to the exterior appearance maybe. Change the gravel drive for another gravel drive? Why? You haven't shown us enough of the entrance to comment on big wooden gates (or not). r1haz, it appears to me that you want to make your mark on this lovely house. Please think long and hard before doing so in haste. You will have a very long time to dwell on your regret if you get it wrong and look at the before and after pictures from time to time....See MoreAny Advice Beautifying This Unattractive House?
Comments (11)Hi. Can you not paint the windows? Something in a soft green for a country look or grey for modern. I'm not sure how big the porch will be but I would be tempted to put another window in upstairs to create some symmetry and let light in.I'm not sure shutters would fit on the ground floor? I would also extend the lawn/ garden so it's in line with the corner of the house just leaving a path to the back gate. Agree with other comments re using climbers, creating a border and adding height etc. something planted along the path would look good depending on what style you're after...See MoreHow to add some kerb appeal?
Comments (4)I would add to the above that the bay window above the former garage looks "blind" and would look better with glazing bars to match the other bays on the house. The garage conversion window is oddly proportioned and might look better split into two, or three, separate windows with piers between them. If you don't need all the paving (I know parking is always at a premium so you might) you could remove a few sections of it to get some planting in. If not some nice raised planters with evergreen shrubs in would soften the expanse....See MoreRenovating a 1960's 3 bed semi - help with layout and kerb appeal!
Comments (65)Hi all, Thank you so much for all the helpful comments and suggestions, and sorry that it's taken me so long to respond - house renovation and work have been keeping us on our toes! This has become a long post, so a quick reminder - we were looking to renovate and rewire our 60s house to update it and also make it more wheelchair friendly downstairs for when my mother-in-law comes to visit. We employed an architect and came up with what turned out to be an 'aspirational' design (much more than the budget!) so we ended up deciding to split things into two stages: Stage One to add a downstairs wetroom for accessibility, remove chimney throughout and add a porch Stage Two to do the extension across the rear, removing the conservatory to open out a large kitchen/diner and add a utility room The layout below shows both Stages One and Two as complete. Bits shown in red are existing walls which have been/will be removed (apart from the wall in red in the seating area below which is between the existing kitchen and dining room - that's a mistake). So.....the building work is now done - hurray! Stage One is complete, we are much poorer, and we now need to decorate the whole house :-) Some before and after photos below - please bear with the terrible photography skills. The rooms aren't big enough to allow for expansive photos!: We've re-plastered throughout, apart from in the kitchen and upstairs bathroom, as we'll deal with those later. Current challenge is deciding how on earth to pick paint colours and flooring throughout.... Anyway - hopefully that gives you a sense of where we've got to. Best wishes...See More
Nicola Jack
6 years agoGuv Thind
6 years agoHi All,
Thanks for your inputs, all valid and valuable points!
The house is on a main road so I need to maintain a decent amount of hardstanding to park our cars on but a lot of the above can definitely be acted on! I've attached another picture showing the front of the garden that can't be seen from the last pic.
The outside of the house will be done after any extension and renovation work. At current I've got the following down to be addressed:
• All brickwork to be cleaned/restored and repointed
•Existing rough render to be checked/repaired where needed and painted
•Windows to be replaced but original glass kept in a triple glazing heritage style window. I'm thinking Residence 9 or similar
•All existing greenery to be suitably pruned/tidied up and left in good order
•Roof tiles to be check and replaced where needed as I can see a few are slightly out of place
•Driveway to be repaired and levelled and then covered in a more attractive finish. I'm open to ideas at this point but someone suggested a resin bound solution, which I need to look into as I know very little about it.
I was contemplating changing the windows, front and garage doors as well as drain pipes and anything else that's currently white to black and painting the current rendered part of the outside a suitable colour to match the red brick and black "accessories". Does anyone have any thoughts or better ideas/examples to bring to my attention?
Thanks,
Guv
PROHumber Architecture
6 years agoChanging the gutters and down pipes back to black is a good move the original cast iron would have been painted black. The windows could also look very good finished in black on the outside.
PROGates and Fences UK
6 years agoYour house looks great. If you're thinking of an entrance gate, something like our Goldsworth estate gate would suit nicely. Can be automated (would recommend an underground system rather than above).
Humber Architecture