It’s felt like ages since we showed the front of the duplex (thank you, winter), but today that changes — and wow, what a difference. Things have really turned a corner.
There’s no landscaping yet, the grass is patchy, and Sean the Contractor’s large sign is still up…
…but when you compare the current look to where we started, the improvement is dramatic.
We removed all the non-original details — the plastic wagon wheels, the abacus trim added in the 1970s, undersized plastic shutters, a broken vinyl porch railing, the satellite dishes and even the duct tape along the roofline. At the same time, we preserved or reintroduced as much original character as possible: the metal porch roof, wider operable shutters, square porch columns, corbels along the roofline, broad brick steps, and those charming diamond windows that I can’t help but adore.
We’ve already shared many of the big exterior decisions — the siding, the roofing, and the shutter color — so today I’m focusing on the front porch updates specifically.
First: the doormats. The ones that were there were laughably tiny, like postage stamps. We ordered larger mats that actually fit the doors. Beyond that distraction, there’s a lot to be excited about: matching mailboxes, crisp address numbers, new lanterns to illuminate the entries, composite decking that won’t rot, potted plants, and teak benches. All of those elements really pull the porch together.
We don’t have perfect close-up “before” photos of the front doors, but you can see the mismatched storm doors in some earlier shots — those were removed immediately.
The old porch was so deteriorated that the support beams and structure had to come off the house and be rebuilt from scratch. We took care to preserve the original transom windows above the doors while reconstructing the porch framing.
In the last year and a half we’ve made a big leap forward. The transformation feels significant.
After removing the storm doors, we embraced the original front doors. The town’s historic review board requires approval for changes to door styles, so we were relieved we liked the originals from the start. At one point we considered a mint color to match the shutters, but since that shutter color appears frequently across the facade, we decided to introduce a different tone on the doors to create contrast.
Our original plan was to restore the doors to a natural wood tone — we love original wood doors and have stripped and waxed interior doors elsewhere. Contractors stripped and sanded the duplex doors back as far as safely possible, working around lead paint and thinner historic door construction. Even after professional stripping, however, stubborn paint remained in cracks and recessed areas and some structural imperfections like a large crack and glue bubbles were still visible up close.
We considered a dark gel stain, which offers heavier, paint-like coverage and could have hidden many flaws, but once the new porch lights, mailboxes, house numbers, and door hardware were installed, a rich charcoal paint started to feel like the right choice. It ties in with the metal porch roof and grounds the cheerful green shutters with a deeper contrast.
We chose Sherwin-Williams Urbane Bronze, a layered dark color we’ve used before on garage doors. It walks the line between true black and a warm, deep brown-bronze — a perfect complement to the tin roof and dark porch accents.
In the end, painting the doors was the right move. The paint hides cracks, glue bubbles, and remaining paint remnants, while coordinating beautifully with the shutters, oversized porch lights, wall-mounted mailboxes, and new house numbers. We did reintroduce warm wood tones elsewhere — in planters and teak benches — to keep that cozy element in the composition.
Installing the address numbers was simple: we used off-the-shelf numbers that can be mounted flush or floating. They came with templates on the packaging, which we trimmed and taped in place to verify spacing, level, and centering. Local code requires numbers to be at least 4″ tall and visible from the street, and that requirement nearly cost us a final inspection, so we got them up just in time.
To reintroduce warm tones after painting the doors, we used basket-style planters (a ceramic-like material) and placed large teak benches at each end of the porch. We’re planning larger doormats — possibly a single runner that spans both doors and stretches to the planters — which will bring even more warmth to the entry.
We also added faux outdoor trees for zero-maintenance greenery. We use these at other properties and really like how they keep the porch feeling lush without ongoing care. I haven’t fully fluffed them yet for photos, so they’ll look much better once I do and once the mats and landscaping are in place.
If you’re subscribed to our newsletter, you already saw a peek inside with the doors open. We painted the stair risers on each side to match the interior door colors: White Truffle on the left and Oyster Bay on the right. I’m glad we didn’t paint the front doors mint — opening the darker exterior doors to reveal different cheerful colors inside each one is a fun little surprise.
That wraps up the porch update. Now we’re waiting on spring so we can landscape, add mulch and a path, seed the lawn, and finish all the exterior details. We’re also finalizing the interior and backyard so the property can be photographed, listed, and prepped for rental season.
We hope to have rentals starting this summer and to list on Airbnb in the spring. There’s still work to do, but the porch is a huge step toward making the duplex welcoming and photo-ready.
P.S. If you want to see the full scope of our work over the last 1.5 years, there’s a whole category dedicated to our duplex progress.
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