apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

How about eggplant? Or deep orange?

I actually wouldn't mind seeing black and then add some color with landscaping. You can do some fun bright colors with flowers to add a lot of personality. You may want something funkier, but the house is small and traditional in style. I think it would look best with something a little more simple.

Black door and black shutters.
Spend money on fixing up those stairs. I'd remove them and that wrought iron railing and replace with a wider, wooden set of stairs (minimally), including some interesting architectural details like pillars or railings. Do some research to see what is possible. A flagstone entryway would be really cool, too.
Your landscaping could use a little bit of help, too. Window boxes would be lovely; your house has a cottage vibe more than any other aesthetic. The bush/tree in front could be relocated; it hides the facade and is distracting.
If you go the cottage route, you could try fashioning your house numbers in pique assiette (mosaic art). Super easy project and inexpensive and fabulously unique.
Depending on the location of your house you could grow beautiful delphiniums, mexican sunflowers, roses, lillies, and expand your flower beds beyond the house to the lawn.
Good luck! You have a great base/foundation for truly fabulous curb appeal!

How about fairly light, soft spring green? That would be different without being wild.

yeah i second a deep eggplant with white flowers in window boxes.

Royal blue or dark blue. Then if you wanted to bring in some pink or red colors, you could do it with landscaping. You could get rid of the concrete walkway and steps to make it feel less traditional - replace it with stone pavers to go with the big round stones around the shrubs. Then get creative with plantings.

what about a cheery kind of blue, like cobalt or azure? or maybe teal?

i know you don't want red per se, but what about a deep coral?

you could pick a color for the shutters and go a bit lighter or darker for the door, to add some interest but still coordinate.

If you want something bright, I think a mid aqua tone would be nice with the siding and roof. Or if you want it all to match go with a darker tone of gray.

I think a wood door and painted shutters.

The colors for the shutters I would like best is white, but since you are looking for something a little more on the fun side, I think a navy blue would look very nice. I think your house is adorable, I'm not really sure that it lends itself to a bold color statement on the shutters. I would look to landscaping to set your house off with disinction rather than funky colors.

I don't have a resource but I like house numbers on a plaque, like an white metal oval with navy numbers.

I think a peacock blue/teal would look really nice, and then plant flowers that bloomed red (and/or plants that turned red in the fall) for a bonus pop of color.

I would agree with queenbee . . . black would be nice. Also, if you can give the house a good power wash, it would brighten up the siding and make the white trim pop too. Then you have a nice neutral palette to play with!

Restoration Hardware makes some lovely (if not typical) house numbers. Maybe check West Elm (?) not sure if they do anything like that. Or Anthropologie might have something really fun!

Your house is adorable!

I think an aquatic blue would be nice. You know, the sand and the sea. Color combos found in nature are always a sure bet!

I agree, it should be black, taupe/sand siding and gray roofing are already creating a neutral pallete. Black would just create a very impactful door and shutter combination. If you are not comfortable with black, a dark green would be a very good choice. You want to stay away from colors that have no relationship to the existing taupe and gray. Cool tones can always be balanced with warm colors on the landscaping.

eggplant was my original idea, but i'm not entirely sold on it.

queenbee,
thanks for your suggestion. i do love flowers.
however, i live in minneapolis, where it's winter half of the year.. so the flowers would be dead for most of the year. and the bush we have in front is a burning bush, so it does give lots of color in late summer/fall.

A dark greyish blue might look nice.

i like the idea of a dark, rich magenta. or maybe a deep, saturated indigo, like BM's "down pour blue"...that might tie in the gray roof. cute house, btw :)

I was going to say peacock blue too!

awww. . . . when i first saw the pic i thought, "Cute!" BUT since you don't like that color, I was thinking an orange would be pretty cool! Nice contrast with the green of spring and summer, and still happy and funky for the dulls of winter. Basically, you can just pick whatever your favorite color is and find a shade that goes well with your siding. It's so neutral you can really play with it any which way, which is awesome. :-)

I think you should paint the shutters two colors, the slats a lighter shade and the trim a darker shade. I like aqua colors or minty greens for your home. I live near a neighborhood with houses like yours and they really go all out with the arts and crafts thing. The neighborhood is adorable. Paint the door to coordinate with the shutters. Larger house numbers and a maybe a new light would look nice too. The light should be the same metal as the house numbers. I would hang the house numbers at a vertical angle.

I'm all for a sagey green

I'm in agreement with Shmoo15. Sage green would be perfect.

mustard!

ditto on the dark blue

If it is aluminum siding, it certainly can be painted. A slate-black color or a very dark green would be nice for the door and shutters.

I just went and used Sherwin Williams Color Visualizer http://www.sherwin-williams.com/visualizer/index.html and I think you should go with Raging Sea or Country Squire if you're going with a blue/green color. And Majestic Purple or Dewberry if you're going with an eggplant/purple color!

Jasmine, the top picture is perfect for printing out on your copier - then just get some paint chips and cut or fold them to fit the door to see what looks good to YOU. You could even print out a few and color them in if you want to go that far. Personally, I would do chocolate door and shutters with a brighter trim around the window and door molding, like orange or pale lime, but you're the one who has to really like the color. Good luck!

Dark gray or a steel blue. Someone here said aqua. Funny story, I had an aqua door on my place when I moved in. I kinda liked it, but the husband loathed it. We got a new door that was steel blue. whereupon the neighbors descended upon me telling me how much they loved the change and had hated the aqua door. One woman confessed she even called her husband at work to announce we were getting rid of that "horrible" door. Really!? So, the lesson here is, never underestimate the effect a "non-traditional" color has on your neighbors. I guess it depends on the tenor of your neighborhood though. And how much you care about such things.

I think you should look for a deep, dark green that is nearly black but not quite . . . something with a lot of depth and gloss. This would work with your roof and existing siding color, but also enhance what you have going in terms of shrubbery.

I would actually remove the shutters; it makes the house look heavy and not crisp. Then maybe paint the front door a deep purple, and put some stain on the stairs, maybe a light/med grey or a beige that is a shade darker than the house. Then the focus will be on the front door and not make the house sit so heavy.

I think the by removing the shutters the white on the windows will pop out as well as the white on the screen door, and the purple will also help the white stand out better as well.

Super-Dark Green that's almost black...

...however, this house would look tons better with the storm windows and screen door removed.

I do have to admit, even though you have a grey roof, I'm really liking the idea that mmepatty put out there . . . chocolate with a lime or orange trim. Not out there, but with just enough color pop to make you smile! Love it! (especially the lime idea!)

:)

Black shutters with a green door - like a spearmint green? Lime green would be fun too, but I think it would work better with darker siding...

Since you live in Minneapolis, a color that you'll find cheerful in winter would probably be a good choice. For that reason, I'd go with one of the greens: spring or sage seem like the most attractive suggestions to me.

Cerulean blue or dove grey... or a bright purple.


tangiedecor.blogspot.com

Also, not sure what you would find more aesthetic, but Rejuvenation Hardware has a few options.

Cerulean blue or dove grey... or bright purple. I second removing the storm door, and adding a traditional screen door. Love those!

www.tangiedecor.blogspot.com

If you take off the shutters be prepared to put them back again. Take a look at the house without and see what you think. Unless the frames of your windows are substantial, taking off the shutters can make your windows look unattractively naked.

I think you should remove the shutters, since they are obviously non-fuctional (they're too narrow to cover the windows, even if they were on hinges).

As for color, I suggest cobalt blue.

Wow, lots of opinions. I got the picture onto Photoshop and tried out lots of colors, with NOT "ordinary" and "traditional" in mind. Colors I had thought would work looked awful, and the color I wound up liking was a total surprise. Take a look here.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/65416805@N00/3678965104/

Deep purple, maybe even eggplant trim. Purple flowers are plentiful and easy to landscape with. This is they way I'd go.

ORANGE!

And then plant some fire vine along the front.

If that's too bold, I think black would work nicely. (Just be sure to give the railings a fresher-upper, too.)

: )

And here's another:

Ditch the shutters, paint the trim around the windows, trim around the door, the frame of the screen door and the door your favorite shade of pumpkin. It's warm, it's fun, funky and not purple. ; ).

Then whoop it up with the landscaping. Brick veneer would be nice on the steps also.

Good luck, cute house!

Peacock! Or another nice greeny-blue.

Before we sold our old house, we had the concrete porch faced with flagstone. It was done by a handyman-general contractor, and I think (with materials) we are talking about $300, maybe less. (He did a bunch of other projects at the same time, so I'm hazy on the details now.) It looked a hundred times better and didn't require a whole new porch. Our walkway was asphalt, part of the driveway, so we left it alone, but at your house, a flagstone walk would be even nicer...

I think a dark grey would be nice. It would tie in with the grey roof, and really bring out the yellow in the color of the house. Some plants that have yellow and orange flowers would work too.

I'm looking at the picture again and thinking - forget about the door and shutters, do something about the steps and handrails. They appear to be getting toward the late stage of decomposition.

I am voting for orange!

I say a light spring green or aqua for the shutters and door and a light grey for the siding. Mix with some colorful landscaping in oranges and reds and it will look super cute!

This is a sweet little house.

I would paint it buttercup yellow with white or bright blue trim.

Take a few paint chips and ask your neighbors what they think? Gauge their reaction. It's not just you who has to look at it. I know they're not paying for the paint and they don't own the house, but this could go either way: They could think, "WOW! Spring green! I've always wanted to do that--maybe we'll consider a fresher color for OUR doors and shutters!" and you'll be a trendsetter. Or you could wind up the freaky-color-loving neighbor...

Deep orange was also my first thought.

BRIGHT robin's egg blue.

thanks for all the great suggestions!

im reading a lot of BLUE. peacock blue is one i thought about , but wasn't sure of. actually, there are a lot of houses in my neighborhood with cobalt blue and teal doors. which means i dont want a cobalt blue or teal door.

im also hearing a lot of eggplant, so i'm leading towards that again...

hmm, so peacock or eggplant, perhaps? i'm one of those people that takes forever to decide something, but then i usually am very happy with my decision.

fixing the steps is the next... step. we do need to do some work on the front walk. painting is easier and cheaper right now.

also, i am a flower killer. never mind that they only bloom a few months out of the year. i've already killed 2 hanging baskets of flowers this spring/summer. im pathetic.

I vote a peacock or bright blue.

And white flowers!

OK, if you like both eggplant and peacock, how about a peacock door with eggplant shutters?! Maybe you can find some small garden sculpture with both colors in mosaic or something, just for fun.

Olive-lime shade of green. And maybe do something to fix the steps, they look very crooked.

My first thought was something like this blue:
http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/details.php?gid=223&sgid=&pid=2687

But after photoshopping it, I quite like the green colour in the middle of this pic:

I saw a yellow house with medium blue doors and shutters the other day - the combination was stunning amidst the greens of summer!

http://www.houseart.net/HouseNumbersbyHouseArt.html

I think these house numbers would look great with the style of your home.