Faux-ee lady

So, once upon a time... a very smart and very capable person... ran into the FRONT of her garage doors! How?!
It's kind of a long story, but it involves having my foot on the brake for a really long time, thinking the car was in park. Bending down to pick something up, and... well... you can get the idea.
So Mr. Smith and I didn't know how expensive our garage doors were... until they needed to be replaced! The insurance covered all but the deductible, and a painting allowance was included.
At the 'Parade of Homes', we saw a company who faux painted garage doors. It looked awesome! Given the weather conditions here in Happy Valley, wood doors don't last long. The faux painting was an alternative to the wood look... without the price or maintenance.
We decided to go with it!
It is so stinking hard to choose colors and designs for something that is SO big and will be such a huge part of the front of my house. I just had a hard time wrapping my mind around how it would look finished.
I made all the decisions... picked everything out... and just held my breath! I figured it would turn out one of two ways... really hokey, our really good!
When they came to paint, they didn't follow a schedule. We were told it was a three step process. Well, after the third step, we thought they were finished. I was so sad... they didn't look as good as I had hoped.
Mr. Smith and I debated calling and complaining, but I didn't think there was anything they could do.
Luckily... Mr. Smith called to talk to someone, and they mentioned that it wasn't done. WHEW! So they came out and finished it, and the finished product was GREAT! Even better than I had imagined!

I worried a bit about the neighbors reactions. When we first moved in, a child came over to play and said "My Mom calls your house the barn house!" I have to say that I was a bit surprised! I love the carriage doors, and I never thought about it looking like a barn.
Our house is already the only one in our subdivision, and now it is even more different.
I have to look at it as 'my house'. Regardless of the houses around it, I want my house to be a reflection of my style and as long as I like it... who cares! right?!
So we've had mostly positive feedback, I'm sure the negitive stuff is only said behind my back... not to my face. But we had an interesting conversation with a neighbor the other day.
He is not a neighbor we have gotten to know too well, and he lives up the street. I knew that he was the one against putting in a playground adjacent to his yard, because of the way it would look. Well, the funny thing is... his house and yard doesn't have what you would call 'curb appeal'. It's not trashy or ugly... it's just not attractive either. They won't put in a fence, and the landscape isn't... well, I have my own opinions. Anyways...
We are sitting in the park and he turns to Mr. Smith and I, he says "Your garage doors look different." I hesitate "They are nice" he continues. But the look on his face is not convincing. I respond with "Thanks! We like them." Then he continues to tell us that when our house was being built, he had a huge problem with our garage doors. He said "They looked horrible! We were going to file complaints with the HOA. But then they painted them a solid color, and they looked better."
Mr. Smith and I look at each other with the same face. "Oh really? Hum." Is all I could muster out of my mouth. I had no idea that the neighbors had such issues with our house. And I was getting a bit angry at the thought of our garage doors being such a conflict for people. ARGH!

Which brings me to a thought...
Originality is something we should be better at embracing.
I live in a community controlled by an HOA. We have to have the same type and color of fences, we have to have a certain number of bushes and trees in our yards, and we cannot park on the street overnight. We have to approve ANY landscape/grass/sprinkler plans prior to doing anything. Even the size of trees we have is controlled.
The logic is that our neighborhood be nice, neat, well-groomed... and ultimately uphold it's value. There is a comfort knowing that your neighbor cannot park his car on his lawn, move his fridge and nasty couch to the porch, and chain a dog to a tree.
However, it's interesting to notice... that even with all the restrictions... there are people who refuse to follow the rules, don't care for their yard, or leave cars on the road.
To me, there is a different between neglect and just plain differences!
We had a home on our street put in zero-scaping. People pitched a fit! I personally didn't like the way it looked... but hey! I don't live there! They maintained it well, it wasn't messy or dirty, and yet it bothered people so badly!
I think that we would all do better just remembering that we are all different. Originality is not a bad thing. Infact, more originality would be great where I live... then we wouldn't have the 'cookie-cutter' streets.
As a kid, I remember 'that house' on our street. It was blue, and kind of a victorian style. They added on to it a couple times, and it was just... different. At Christmas, they would string lights between the trees and the house in random formations. Some lights would blink, some were white, and some were multi-colored. It was the talk of the neighborhood. And I remember all the horrible things I heard adults say about their yard and home.
20 years later... They still live there. They have raised their family, and only the husband and wife live at home. Now, as an adult, I drive down the street and think "Hey! That house looks cool!" And if anything, all the other houses on the street look old and dated. I know they love their house, and have probably enjoyed every renovation.
Now... I'm not doubting that it would be a hard sale. But that's the point, that house is 'them'. We have a blue house on our street. Inside and out, the entire house is blue. I'm thinking that selling it will be difficult, but that's not my problem. It's how they want it, and more power to them!
So, to each their own! People don't have to love what I do to my house or how it looks. We may be 'the house' on the street, whatever. I think that as long as I love it... that's good enough for me!