New colour mix adds appeal
This is a column in which designer Suzanne Rowe selects homes that could benefit from a little inexpensive help in increasing their curb appeal. After examining photographs, she then proceeds to sketch out an artist’s rendering of what they could look lik
After having gradually improved the interior of this 1965 house in Châteauguay, the owner decided it was time to tackle the exterior. When she purchased the property, she could envisage the potential but had no idea where to start or what to do.
Since the bricks are a light, warm grey, the darker greys on the house must not reveal any hint of blue. I suggest horizontal siding in two shades darker than the bricks. But if the owner wishes to keep the vertical siding, she could coat it with an exterior acrylic paint in a matte finish. For visual interest, I’ve added commercial shutters in the siding colour. The garage door and its frame — whether the old one is kept or a new one is installed — should also mimic this hue.
The colour of the vertical gutter pipes should be the same as their backdrop. The white moulding atop the two second-floor windows would look less distracting if painted in the identical warm grey brick colour, in a flat finish. The foundation should reflect this hue also, which will convey the illusion of a larger dwelling.
The tint of the cement stairs also needs a little bit of warmth for a better marriage with the existing pavers of the pathway.
The owner was hoping to change the tone of the door to dark grey. At first, I sketched it in that colour but the house looked so dull. For the new door, I opted for a quiet design with a screaming merlot tone. In this colour, the full glass door and matching side window, with frosted glass, will break up the monochrome grey palette. Brushed silver hardware will elegantly punctuate the new portal with its wonderful reflective qualities.
The dated white railings could be retire. In their place, simple black spindles and sleek rectangular wooden handrails, stained in dark grey in an opaque finish, would provide a modern tilt to the entrance.
There’s a cedar hedgerow smack in front of the property that instils a negative sense of enclosure. It hides the house, the landscaping and feels unwelcoming. This middle section should be removed at once. The huge pine tree also conceals half of the facade. A few of the lower branches could be cut to encourage a bit more sunlight on the lot.
The botanical composition consists of a white and pink floral vignette. On the right extremity, after removing the tall cedars near the corner of the house, a climbing Hydrangea petiolaris will take its fine time to ascend the wall to show off its large pale bloom clusters. Dotted with white flowers, a trio of green cascading shrubs will overflow over the retaining wall. Their fall colour will glow with orangey foliage turning to purplish later. Laced with pink candles, the verdant leaves of the line of pink flowering Clethra Ruby Spice near the left foundation will transform as well to an orangey yellow after summer.
At equal intervals, Heuchera Berry Smoothie will border the path and current curvy bed on the left nestled in a cosy carpet of silvery ground cover. Inside the larger bed, near the driveway, they will be mass-planted for a strong colour impact.
No more vegetal wall in front and a bit of blush with the vegetation and a new door colour adds character to this ’60s updated home.
VEGETATION (FROM LEFT):
Hydrangea Pinky Winky (grafted on trunk, white cones turn to pink and red, centre in small bed near driveway)
Lamium White Nancy (perennial ground cover, white blooms, silvery foliage, around three different size boulders, near new backyard path, along current curvy bed and main walkway)
Heuchera Berry Smoothie (perennials, pinkish blooms, raspberry foliage turns to burgundy, alongside current curvy bed and path, mass-planting in larger bed)
Clethra Ruby Spice (shrubs, pink candles, green foliage turns orangey-yellow in fall, light trim after blooming period, near left foundation)
Hydrangea Annabelle (shrub, white blooms, cut back in early spring, left side of main stairs)
Begonia semperflorens (annuals, pink blooms, fertilize regularly, large planter)
Owner’s Potentilla (shrub, white blooms, near driveway steps)
Stephanandra Crispa (3 shrubs, white blooms, green foliage turns orangey then purplish in fall, evenly spaced edging the left retaining wall) Taxus media Brownii (globular evergreen, turns coppery in fall, evergreen fertilizer is required regularly, buy a more mature specimen, right side of main stairs)
Philadelphus Snowbelle (shrub, scented white blooms, Snowbelle is more compact than regular Philadelphus, middle and front of Taxus and Weigela)
Weigela Fine Wine (compact shrub, not to be confused with larger Weigela Wine & Roses, pink trumpet-like blooms, right side near the foundation of the larger bed)
Clematis Ville de Lyon (climber, magenta blooms, cut back in early spring, train over small pagoda over barrier)
Hydrangea petiolaris (wall climber, white blooms, right exterior corner of house)
Inert dividers between lawn and beds. Thick layer of black cedar mulch over all bare soil is recommended.