As hatetoshop suggests, paint the front doors in both entryways. Here are examples of some blue doors that look good with tan siding. Agree that it's worth enclosing your garbage cans somehow in your other entrance. Replace your entry light fixture with something modern along the lines of the light shown below. Find a nice large indoor/outdoor rug mats that coordinate with the painted doors--tan and blue for both entryways. Try Overstock.com Get some big pots in the door color and coordinating colors and line the entryway fence with some tall plants suitable for your climate to break up the wall of white. Can't tell if you've got any soil in front of the wall where you could put in some plants instead. Inside your fence, clean up the yard then plan some landscaping. So that you have something nice to look at from your kitchen, hang some plants in colorful containers from the fence. If you really want to get fancy, paint some simple wooden window boxes in the blue door color, hang them across the kitchen window, and fill them with herbs and/or flowers if you get enough sun. Or do the same with large planters below your kitchen windows. Put a small colorful bistro table and chairs back there.

I think the most impact would come from a well placed, well sized Acer. You can get them grown fairly tall already, Tamata have them and I'm sure there are other places. I'd get one that grows to no more than 3 metres (although check this against your property as scale is hard to gauge from photo), and has changing colours of leaves/bark. I'd place it towards the left of the property, looking at it. That will give some balance to the windows, provide some privacy but not obscure light. It wouldn't be a cheap option but cheaper than painting the house, and would need almost no aftercare. Then some easy care phormiums in the border underneath the windows. Both phormiums and acers come in a range of colours- limes, bronze, purples, oranges, dark reds etc, so choose what you like. The acers are soft and provide movement and variety, the phormiums sharp and provide solid consistent structure. This echoes the plants that can be seen already behind and at the side of the house and should make the hour 'sit within' its environment instead of bing perched on top of it. Also, the edge of the driveway- I would dig a border to just beyond the seam of the gate, lay down a weed mat, and put some stones in there. The garden centre has a range of them, in several colours from white through green red greys and blacks. If you chose reddish (or reddish and lime/orange) tones for your acer/phormiums, I would prob buy a large specimen plant in a pot for the top of the driveway, at the eight hand side of the garage, to link the colours. And maybe paint the front door and have some pot plants there that tone in too, especially in the area near the path that can be seen from the street. For a cleaner line I'd consider painting the lower part of the decking (the vertical frontage) to tone in with your house.

The colonial style in your bottom picture looks nice , but I don't think it would suit your house style . I gather you are older , but the existing colours are from different eras IMO . The burgundy/red colour I like , and although the downstairs windows look quite old , I would paint them the same colour , and the seat too . Upstairs I'd definitely change the window -- the louvres are so dated ! Go a bit bigger if you can , but that may get into structural problems . Have top-hinged opening windows eaither side , and a larger piece of fixed glass in the middle . Either no surround , or a surround to match the downstairs windows and door frame , painted to match . All the roof and side ribbed steel panels I would repaint in a gunmetal grey , and get away from that dark green . The roof on the room to the left I would also do , to 'tie it' in . I'd leave that small roof above the door , and add a roofed gazebbo out the front , with stained or varnished solid wood uprights , and a roof painted in that burgundy red . I would build it to fit onto the lower deck level -- way easier and cheaper to do it that way , as opposed to raising and enlarging the deck . Add a couple of natural timber planters , even a half barrel or two , a shint stainless barbeque , and some charcoal coated aluminium outdoor chairs and a matching glass top table . Personally , I can't imagine a roof / portico attached to the existing house that would suit the style and not make the downstairs ( inside ) too dark . A stand alone roofed timber gazebo would offer the best of both , at a reasonable price . One last idea -- the latticework on the 'fence' -- repaint it an English Off-White , while keeping the rails and posts that burgundy red -- it would add interest and lift it IMO . If you are younger , then go crazy -- bright orange window surrounds , blue/grey render and charcoal roof -- a big round upstairs window , and 6 outdoor chairs , each in a different bright colour !

I am planning on taking the fence down so you can see the front of the house (which is brick) and will plaster the entire exterior walls (except the front brick wall). Hoping to add a bit of street appeal to the place... But wondering how to add some interest to the driveway/entrance side? I am thinking it will be a pretty boring side view (as there are no eaves on the sides).. By the way, i will be taking down all the creeper and the weird steel structure at the front and having the front yard as a small tidy garden/courtyard with... Keen to hear any suggestions please!