Dear Homework,
I read your column regularly and would like your thoughts on changes for my home. First, I would like your ideas on a new storm door/front door. I also would like to replace the existing aluminum windows. A ‘supplier’ suggests off-white or tan windows would work best. What do you think? Also, I would like to do a new walkway, driveway and landscaping. What is your vision for all of this?
Sincerely,
—Spice Up My Split-Level
Dear Spice Up My Split-Level,
You can, indeed, take some steps to perk things up. Getting rid of the aluminum door and windows will help, but replacing them with tan versions will just be more of the same. I recommend more extensive measures.
I suggest changes that will make the house feel more modern. The first step is to create a more dramatic Bluestone entry walkway, paired with a brick and stone garden wall featuring address numbers and a bold lantern. A crisper landscape plan works with the geometric lines of the walkway to infuse a new level of modernism to the property.
A new garage door and replacement windows and doors (all in wood) have a modern feel and are painted (or clad) to match the Bluestone walk. The picture window in the living room has been lowered to form doors to a welcoming front terrace. The entry storm door should be wood with a single panel of glass to look like the terrace doors. I would use a simply detailed, solid wood door behind it as the main front door. A new exposed aggregate concrete driveway finishes the scene.
To me, the property now has a confident, pulled-together feel that makes us take a fresh and appreciative look at midcentury split-levels.
Thanks for asking,
—Homework
[Homework is penned by Paul Doerner, Founding Partner of the Lawrence Group. If you would like your home critiqued, contact us at homework@townandstyle.com ]
