Design Advice - what would you do?

Leah Rodrigues

3 years ago

Hi all,
Just for fun wanted to know what you would do to the front of the house.

I’m thinking new windows a must but how to obtain symmetry and balance between garage /front door and Lounge?

If this were your house what would you do?

Comments (6)

Richard L
3 years ago
Lighter garage door, and something to make the front door/porch say - 'THIS WAY' 'WELCOME' rather than the dark corner it is now.

If that porch/conservatory was white or light somehow it would help alot.

Possibly even loose/heavily prune some of the foliage/tree at the front to brighten up the driveway etc. I bet if you cut that green bush to the ground one year it would slowly come back anyway and you could then size it to taste?

If you're doing windows -then georgian bars in the glass don't to anything for me - but its your house - if you like them go for it :)
rachelmidlands
3 years ago
No way! I saw this house when browsing rightmove the other day. You must be fairly local to me 🙂. Are you thinking of buying?
There are more talented people than me with ideas for house appearances but if poss I’d enlarge the window above garage to be same size as the other one for symmetry. Lose the faux? Tudor beams and go for a flat render or hung tiles perhaps? Make more emphasis on the porch, perhaps bringing it out further depending on driveway space. It’s an interesting house, the living room needs some work 😉.
Related Discussions
Do you have a IKEA Pax? What would you recommend hinged or sliding doo
Q
Comments (11)
@Laura took the words right from underneath my fingers. I was going to ask the depth and width of the area where the shelves currently are. I've just had a PAX installed and I LOVE IT. My configuration is Two sets of 2 x 100cm wide (236cm H) units with the Harvik doors. I had them shortened as my ceiling didn't allow for the full height hence why I picked the easily hackable Harvik. The easy option is 4 x 75cm units with sliding doors of course. In one of my units, the inside was wallpapered and has a standard shelf which my monitor rests on and a pull out shelf directly below it that I use as a desk. I even have power in there so the cables are neat. the Pax really are an outstanding solution. A word of advice though to avoid extra expense and wasted time, especially if you are having someone install them; check them as soon as they arrive as the units can be damaged Good luck and pictures please :)
...See More
What would you do?
Q
Comments (17)
do as Dundrum says. although your pic doesn't show the rest of the street I suspect there is a strong symmetry with the other houses. this needs to be kept. a statement is what this house eally doesn't need. As has been said, refresh the exterior paintwork keeping it the same as the neighbours and/or in line with that of the other houses on the street, and generally smarten up what is there. the hedge on the left should be clipped. the tree on the right is a yew and should not be touched. it is a slow grower and will cause no problems. if it is bothering you the whole tree and not just your side can be trimmed by a third. one thing that would be good is to remove all the weeds from the gravel, possibly relay the gravel if needed, and introduce some sort of threshold between you and the road - it may already exist underneath the weeds.
...See More
What would you do? Garden needs love and help!
Q
Comments (5)
Hi honeyry. I don’t think it would look weird having the lawn on the left as it would be more central to the patio. Hope you don’t mind but I took the liberty of doing a quick sketch as well. It still uses the full length of the garden so should keep your footie fan happy 😊. What I do think is that you need more definition to your borders so using a lawn edger to keep grass encroaching on plants/shrubs/trees (see pics). This will keep plants healthy in the long run as they won’t be competing for nutrients. Also added a patio and shed in the top right NW corner. This might be a nice little sitting area in for a morning cuppa, the shed and the addition of some trellis would give you some privacy from the neighbours. Something like this wouldn’t need doing straight away as I’ve kept the basic layout with the path relatively unchanged. Did add a little extra in the way of a little semi circle of hard landscaping in front of the seps. This is just a transition between borders, lawn and patio and could be anything...paving, tiles, cobbles and so on. There are a plenty of plants that are suitable for your garden. The RHS website is a valuable resource when researching. Two that spring to mind which are virtually indestructible (great for stray footballs) are red valerian and buddleia. Both need hacking back to near ground level in late autumn and will grow like the clappers come spring. Be aware that red valerian (also grows well north facing) can be considered invasive in some parts as it self seeds prolifically and usually where you don’t want it like in the walls or in between paving slabs but it’s easy enough to pull out. For improving the lawn I’m sure there are plenty of tips and tutorials online. I myself have a dog that makes a right mess of the grass. I’ve recently purchased this stuff https://www.envii.co.uk/shop/neuturine/ but I’ve yet to test it so can’t vouch for it and its a little expensive for what it is. Supposed to to change the Ph of the soil so that urine doesn’t burn it (or something scientific like that 🙂). Just hope it works! Here‘s my sketch and pics. Red valerian Buddleia example of curvy border
...See More
What advice would you give for contemporary garden design
Q
Comments (1)
I watched this a few days ago and thought the advice was really spot on. If you note what she says around 7 minutes in about planting close to the house, I think that is the best way to create drama and prevent the whole garden being seen too quickly. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtsqXEMeocM
...See More
Jonathan
3 years ago
I would change all of the window proportions and render the house to lose the faux beams. I would much rather see deeper but narrower windows.

I think I would also change the roof over the garage and porch so it looks more like the main house roof. I would also pressure wash the drive, put up railings in the boundary with the neighbours and then better signpost the front door with plants and lights
Daisy England
3 years ago
I’m going to agree with most of the other comments; loose the timber and have the window on the left hand side the same size as that on the right.
annabellaamy
3 years ago
New roof over garage/porch. If you can afford a new garage door & front door they need to be a lighter matching colour. Change left hand window to match right one. If you can't afford to render then paint beams a lighter colour . Fence between you and the neighbours. Cut back shrubs/trees to let in light.
Richard L
3 years ago
The upstairs window asymmetry is not necessarily bad...

IMO - spend on the front door porch/conservatory/garage door first.

Not every house has to be a playschool house.

Design Advice - what would you do?

Comments (6)

Richard L

rachelmidlands

Related Discussions

Jonathan

Daisy England

annabellaamy

Richard L

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US