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.

With any post war house built in the 50's the connection from in to out is non existent. Depending on where living rooms are located i would take some of the fantastic windows out and replace them with French doors, or bi folding doors and connect the house to the site. The colour scheme from Karen is perfect to lift the kerb appeal and give it a modern twist. With land costing more than houses these days and the fact that you seem to have quite a big block, after looking at paint colours, opening up the living dining kitchen areas to the outside with a roofed area. Even combining a flat roofed carport which will widen the house to the street making it seem a bigger house, can carry the new look with say an enclosed section for garden equipment, to the opposite side to the house, and if you are lucky enough to have that near the living area it can be used as both car cover and outdoor living. I always think a good landscape architect is worth their weight in gold, to give you a landscape plan, to suit the soil type, your skills level and your preference in planting. Divide up the exterior space to provide outdoor rooms under a tree, paths that lead to some special spot for kids, maybe even a veggie patch with a chock run, and make sure that you use the entire yard, front and back by enclosing part of the front yard in fencing which suits the style of the house, while providing some planting to the street. If allowed a gate structure to blend in with the house, a dedicated pathway with planting each side to the front door, fantastic fencing and consider natural materials like a hand laid stone fence with timber or powder-coated aluminium inserts, to give this house an entry, not sure where the front door is now, so that is not a good look. Gardens always enhance a house, they are never a wasted effort, and if you are not gardeners, make sure the landscape architect knows that and he will be able to select low maintenance plants. All the paint in the world will not give the desired effort that the garden will do to that paint work.

I assume you have sailed into your renovations Susan ? The pictures actually look like 2 different houses -- different colours , different styles . I quite like the 'red' ( 2 storey ) side of the house -- even the conservatory and that pattern on the deck railing -- personally I'd paint it in a charcoal , but it's liveable . NOT a fan of the yellow opaque glass , and I'd paint around the outside of your 2 garage doors approx 80-100mm wide white borders to match the rest of the joinery . The other side though -- the roof ( as you said ) would be my first thing -- I'd go a browny/red , very similar to the panels on the other side of the house . The gutters and window sills I'd go a superbright blood red , and even though I agree about the cream veneer bricks and steps -- I'd leave the veneer , and either paint , or preferably tile , the steps in charcoal , and add a couple of 'chunky' stainless rails on the sides . And the base board -- I'd do it in charcoal too . It would not only look better , but make the house look longer and sleeker .

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