White Limewashed Brick Exterior Makeover

A soothing palette of fresh paint & limewash, elegant design features, and vibrant landscaping has brought new life to our once dated Cape Cod style brick home.

As we wrap up our exterior makeover, I’m left marveling at the transformation. If you would have shown me this picture a year ago, I wouldn’t have believed it’s the same house. Today I’m excited to share the amazing transformation and break down all the details from start to finish. You’re going to love watching this project unfold..

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Before we kick off the tour, I want to take you back to what the house looked like when we bought it last February. While the house was clearly dated, it’s traditional exterior was charming and I knew it had potential. Our first priority was updating the interior. If you missed those projects, you can catch up by seeing the full home tour here. And, finally, this Spring we conquered the exterior.

Before

After

So much better, right? I’ll be sharing all the paint colors here in a bit, so keep scrolling…

Before

After

Before

After

Before

After

Now that you’ve seen the before and after pictures, let’s dive into all the juicy details!

To paint, or not to paint, that was a reoccurring thought nagging us for a full year. I love classic brick homes, unfortunately, our brick was a solid red brick that clashed with our light brown roof. Our roof is in decent shape, so replacing it didn’t make much sense, and I actually like the softer tone when it’s paired with white. So after months of looking for inspiration and gathering quotes, we decided to go for it, and I’m sure glad we did!

(Example of brick before paint)

1.Paint

We started with painting all the siding and trim in Alabaster by Sherwin Williams. If you’ve been following me for a while, that may sound familiar since it’s painted in nearly every room of our home. That being said, I knew I’d like it, so why try anything else? We started with the siding first because I wanted to see what it looked like with the brick, just in case we could get away without painting the brick. It wasn’t awful, but that roof color just threw me off and I knew it could look amazing if we went one step further….

The front door, shutters, and garage door are painted in Evergreen Fog by Sherwin Williams. I went to Sherwin Williams and the second I saw the color swatch, I knew it was perfect. It’s a beautiful muted sage green that I think is timeless.

2. Limewash

We decided to limewash the brick with Romabio Classico limewash in the Ovario White, which is a soft white. We went with limewash instead of paint because it’s supposed to be better for the brick by allowing it to breath, while aging overtime to create a patina look. The limewash was sprayed as a white wash over the brick so that we could still see that there’s brick and have a full coverage. As you’ll see in the image below, it was tricky to get the coverage consistent, so we ended up applying two coats.

First Coat

The picture above is after one coat of Romabio limewash. While we liked being able to see the brick, we felt it needed another coat. The picture below is after two coats which made a huge difference. We didn’t do the wash-off method that exposes brick in certain areas because I like the solid look.

Second Coat

Now that the two coats were finished, we decided the sides of the front porch needed to be painted to help it blend. We kept the patio surface and steps natural brick and I’m happy we did for multiple reasons. First, I like how the natural brick coordinates with the warmth of the roof, and second, the upkeep of painted steps can be a nightmare.

3. Windows

This was another update we had gone back and fourth on for months. The windows were pretty dated and most of them could barely open. We looked into having the windows and storm windows painted, but, when reviewing the costs, it made more sense to get new ones. It was a big decision, as it wasn’t cheap, but we are definitely confident that we made the right decision. The new windows not only give the exterior a total face lift, but they are so easy to use and will save us money in the long run. You can see a close up view of the original windows below.

The windows we went with are the Simonton Reflections 5500. They were affordable in terms of windows and they make the home look and feel brand new.

4.Lighting

Lighting is a design element that can really give the home personality. We updated to these Aged Brass lanterns and I loved how the warm brass pulled from the roof color. It may seem like a little update, but the right lighting makes all the difference.

5.Walkway

Our existing walkway was a tripping hazard, thanks to the tree roots, so we had it removed and replaced with brick. I really do love the classic look of brick and I wanted to tie the walkway in with the brick on the front porch. Also, I’ll never pass up the chance to bring a herringbone pattern into the mix!

5. Landscape

While I know a thing or two about interiors, I will not claim to know anything about landscaping. I know what I like, but that’s about it. Luckily, with recommendations from a professional, we were able create a pretty flower bed to finish off the project. We had originally planted a line of white hydrangeas, but I hadn’t thought about the fact that they loose their leaves all winter, leaving the flower bed looking very sad. Now we have a variety of shrubs that will remain year round and look nice throughout the seasons.

This makeover was a labor of love and although the pictures may make it look easy, it wasn’t! After months of stressful decisions, hard work, and the help of some skilled tradesmen, we were able to turn this house into the home of my dreams. A very big thank you to my husband for trusting my vision and making it come to life. I’m so glad we went for it because, in the end, it was totally worth it!

By documenting our exterior makeover journey, I hope I’ve inspired you to do the same and take on whatever project is on your to-do list. It’s so rewarding to be able to see how updates can give an older home new life. Feel free to reach out in comments if you have any questions. If you don’t already follow me on social media, please check out my pages below and don’t forget to subscribe to my email list so you don’t miss any upcoming posts!

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