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Renovating Design Dilemma Exteriors

Looking for suggestions to improve curb appeal !

last year

Hi, my partner & I are hoping to move from a flat to our first house and we've fallen for the internal layout of this pictured victorian terrace in South London. The only issue is, at some point in history, somebody has butchered the front facade and stripped it of all it's character (it's the grey one in the pic below). Does anybody have any suggestions as to how we might improve this ? We were hoping that a new front door and a sharper white render might improve it slightly?

Any comments / suggestions greatfully received !

Featured Answer

Daisy England

last year

The front door would be a start. That design is called Carolina and it’s many years old, so would be a good place to start.

It is a shame they stripped the front facade of any character. It looks as though the one to the right on the photo has done the same.

I guess it’s all budget depending so a lick of paint on the render would detract from the ’mono’ effect.

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Comments (11)

PRO
Carla / kolours.space
last year
Hi, bring back what was removed may be very costly to achieve the look so my advise is embrace and add just elements that will look fine and sublime even minimalist. Def I would say the door and overhead needs a proper lokk and the windows maybe change to more fragmented look even modern
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Just a few things:- I don't think you need to make a radical change, however, the thing that stands out most is the fact that the wall all around is crumbling. The wall at the forefront shows the worst damage, so i would be tempted to render that to improve it. Also, nearer the top up by the front door, the frontage does not match with the other side and it has very dated stone inserts. I would also remove that part so that it matches the other side. Although this time of year is awful for the garden, I think it's better to present it as tidy as possible with no dead plants and a little greenery, so maybe you could put a couple of evergreen standard box up by the front door. I don't think huge changes are needed, but the wall won't help as it's dated and crumbling, so if you can make it look better, prospective buyers will not think that they may need a new wall soon after they move in. It also makes for a better looking entrance to the property and invites you in more.
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Isla Cherry
last year
It is a real shame that the original features have been removed. Sorry for stating the obvious. Would you consider painting the external render another colour? A dark grey would knock the obvious window frames back a bit. I would definitely change the front door or just the colour. A lot of plants, maybe even a creeper would soften the appearance. The corner to the left of the front door needs some greenery, maybe potted bamboo or a bay tree. It depends which way the outside faces. Cladding might also be an option if done right.
kazzh
last year
It certainly has been taken to a modern direction, that, as others have pointed out, could prove expensive to try and reverse. I think you might just need to embrace it. The front door is harking back to its earlier days, so it seems to need to go in a modern direction to be in keeping with what has happend around it - a flat front with plane glass (either a vertical glass panel or a horizontal glass panel) style. Adding a vertical garden with vibrant colors at the entry with a modern lantern or up/down light design would add some features. At some stage, going just a couple of shades darker in the render would tone down the window frame contrast.
HU-557113193
Original Author
last year
last modified: last year
Thanks everybody for your suggestions ! yes We hadnt thought of going darker on the render but have mocked up the below on the streetview and think it could actually look pretty smart. it might be quite difficult to find a door to go with such a dark facade so we were thinking modern wood minimalist, with maybe some dark window boxes to break it all up a bit
PRO
Bespoke Window Systems Ltd
last year
Hi you could add a new composite door in a Victorian style.
PRO
Oui Design London
last year
Oh my goodness! Please consider a lighter shade for the render, and perhaps a more classic contemporary front door so it's not pigeonholed in a particular era. Would be great to get some potted greenery and perhaps look at a bronze for the hardware
PRO
Pearlosa
last year
Definitely agree with a lighter render. You'll need a front door with some character, plants and a subtle pop of colour to bring the property to life.
Isla Cherry
last year
A lighter coloured render will only emphasize those dark window frames more. I agree about the door needing to be more modern and a feature. The suggestion of a darker paint colour over the render would make the window frames recede. Greenery is definitely needed.
PRO
Bespoke Window Systems Ltd
last year
Yes definitely agree with a lighter render.
HU-557113193
Original Author
last year
Thanks all - really good to get some varied feeback. we might end up having to try both to see which works best. i guess we could start with lighter paint and a new front door then paint it darker if necessary….

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