Change Will Do You Good
We asked architect Marsha Topham of CG&S Design/Build, in Austin, Texas, what she’d change about this house owned by Gretchen Fitzenrider of Sherwood, Ohio. Her first move: Ditch the uninviting enclosed porch. “It’s not original to the home, and it isn’t in great shape anyhow,” she explains. “An open porch and wider stairway would make this house much more welcoming and complement its simple lines.” To add detail to the facade, Topham also suggests installing board-and-batten siding on the second story and using beefier trimwork around the windows and foundation, all tied together with a paint job that highlights these new features. New windows and a brick walkway would complete the transformation. “We’d love to work toward this look, right down to the paint colors,” says Gretchen.
From the Inside Out
When you own a fixer-upper, you can’t tackle every project at once, as Gretchen Fitzenrider, knows all too well. “We’ve been so busy renovating the interior of our 1904 farmhouse that we’ve neglected the dull exterior,” she told This Old House.
To give her a few ideas, This Old House asked architect Marsha Topham of CG&S Design/Build, in Austin, Texas, what she’d change about Gretchen’s house. Her first move: Ditch the uninviting enclosed porch. “It’s not original to the home, and it isn’t in great shape anyhow,” she explains. “An open porch and wider stairway would make this house much more” welcoming.
Extended Welcome
Opening up the enclosed porch restores the house’s original architecture and makes it feel more welcoming.
That’s exactly what happened with a late-1800s farmhouse in Wilmette, Illinois. The new owners tore open the enclosed front porch and happily found the original posts and windows all in good condition. Working with architect Suzie Van Cleave, they commissioned new railings incorporating flatsawn balusters inspired by local historic houses, along with a design detail at the gable-end’s peak that repeats the motif. The porch’s fascia board, having rotted over time, was replaced with beefier, wider stock to balance the heft of the porch.
A similar transformation took place at a 1929 cottage in Lewes, Delaware. Over the years, the home had been “updated” with asbestos siding and jalousie windows that enclosed the porch. The new owner knew the home could be a charmer again by simply undoing the unfortunate work others had done. The porch was rebuilt using new composite decking for the floor and wood clad in cellular PVC for the posts, and a 24-inch-high railing was added for a vintage look—even though code didn’t require one since the porch was less than 30 inches above the ground.
Grand Entry
A handsome brick walkway and wider set of stairs add grace to the approach.
Switching Up Siding
Board-and-batten siding on the second story, painted a lighter shade of green, breaks up the facade.
Pro Tip: Boston architect Jeremiah Eck suggests breaking up a house with different types of siding, such as clapboards, shingles, and board-and-batten, or with sections of stone, brick, or masonry. “You can dramatically change the look of a house without spending a lot of money,” he says.
Mixing siding profiles does more than add visual variety—it creates texture and shadow lines that give a facade depth and interest. As This Old House Magazine has noted, rough-textured shingles on a gable or dormer can produce a nice contrast with clapboard siding below, while increasing the width and depth of window and door trim draws out those elements, especially when combined with a contrasting paint color.
Shutter Style
Colonial-style louvered shutters help unify different-size windows and make them appear larger.
Foundation Plantings
The bare foundation was disguised with a skirt board, stone veneer, and low plantings.
Window Work
Wider trimwork around the windows makes them stand out more.
Unifying Details
Chunky square brackets add a touch of detail at the roofline and harmonize with the porch’s columns.
Farmhouse Feel
Now that the entry is visible, a Craftsman-inspired front door and Mission-style sconce complete this farmhouse’s transformation from bland to charming.
Finishing Touches: Bracket
Embellish a straightforward house with eclectic but traditional accents drawn from different eras.
The Craftsman lines harmonize with the porch’s hefty columns.
Wholesale Millwork; $71
Finishing Touches: Sconce
This Mission-inspired fixture accepts CFLs, so it’ll cost less to light the entry.
Triarch; $143
Finishing Touches: Paint
Tones of grayish green play up the textures of the siding.
Benjamin Moore; $25 per gallon
Finishing Touches: Shutters
With multiple size and color options, these help unify the windows.
Builder’s Edge; from $25 per pair
