Look of steps straight on. Will some of this white mortar come off that’s just kinda spread around the top?

Bricks and taupe colored mortar joints look great. Steps look really nice with foundation and house color Are you objecting to the white stuff? What is the white stuff?

I think once you get landscaping , furnishings etc. in, the focus will be less on the bricks. I would try to clean some of it up if possible.

Thank you everyone for commenting. I didn’t want raked joints, but I asked them not to smear the mortar everywhere. When I looked at them I seen splatters and smears of mortar everywhere. I thought I did a good job of communicating that I only wanted the joints alone to be messy, not the entire job. It does make me feel good to know that others think it look good though. If the drips and smears of mortar isn’t cleaned up on the actual surface of the brick, how do I remove that? Will they come off in time since they are thin smears?

I would have used the same color mortar as your stone, but it will likely be fine once your landscaping is finished and the splatters will wear off.

I wish I would have used the same mortar now also, but idk what to do about it at this point. I’m not sure why I thought this would blend better....

As long as a lot of the messiness wears off I think I will be fine with it. Most of the smears are really thin.

I would try muriatic acid and a stiff wire bristle brush (paint remover type) if you want to remove some of the smear from the face. I think they look great, like the mix of brick and stone. When landscape is added you won’t even notice the steps.

The white mortar will also weather over time so right now you're seeing it brand new and it looks a bit jarring. I'm assuming you're also going to have a concrete walkway (or some sort of walkway) which along with landscaping will bring everything together. Right now you're focusing on the steps because there is nothing else for your eyes to look at.

I think it's fine : )

Yes, we are adding a concrete walkway, so I think that will help! I really appreciate all of the comments. I am such a newbie at design. Our contractor gives absolutely zero recommendations and tries to do everything cheapest, so he’s real fun. In hindsight, I wish I wouldn’t have used two different mortar colors though. Here is a picture a day after they were laid, I think they look a little better with dried mortar.

The first problem was thinking that adding brick steps in front of stone would ever be a correct solution. The risers should have been stone and the treads could have simply been flagstone

Or the total steps, seeing that there are only two could have been simply stone

You only have one chance to make a first impression and your entrance really was not well thought out. The steps look like some temporary solution to get onto the porch.

I would demo and start over.

The steps are not wide enough, you have no apparent solution for handrails or how your landscaping will start and stop. Has anyone indicated that the drop off your porch might require railings?

We are adding porch rails, but we weren’t going to have rails on the stairs since it seems like it would make them feel more narrow. My contractor fought us on the steps. He wanted to place 5 foot steps, we forced him to put 6 foot steps. I had seen several Pinterest posts where people had done beautiful brick with stone also. I’m not quite sure where I went wrong. I would demo in a heartbeat, but we are already over an enormous amount on budget.

You got exactly what you asked for and I have no idea why you asked for it with the other stone work done so nicely. The steps are too narrow for that size of porch and should have been in the same stone as the rest too.

I have seen where other houses have mixed like this and it looked fine, I’m not sure why mine turned out to be such a large dumpster fire.

need to add rails on stairs for safety. You may be young and don’t need them but older people will appreciate them

That picture you posted doesn't look fine. Brick and stone never play nice together. It's like mixing plaid and flowers on a dress.

BeverlyFLADeziner I guess that’s your opinion because I like the picture I posted. To each their own.

Actually plaid and florals work when decorating with pillows and upholstery

Heather, I think some of the comments are harsh. FWIW I think your steps look a lot like your inspiration picture.

You can always try removing the extra splattered mortar yourself. It looks like there are several methods for removing it.

https://www.hunker.com/12294843/how-to-remove-cement-from-paving-stones

Simply elegant home has a great point about railings! Maybe have curved sweeping railings on either side and make the brick stairway a bit more grand? You could tie the railings in with your vertical columns, would Loki beautiful IMHO!

Get a small semi-soft wire brush and work on the excess sloppy mortar on the bricks and front porch. You may need to use a little water or turpentine on the mortar, but try your brush dry first, with water second, and turpentine as a last resort. Don’t touch the mortar joints themselves. Check with a paint store to see if they have a product specifically for cleaning up excess mortar.
Yes, chocolatebunny, I was a bit harsh. Workers need supervision unless you have used them for years and know how they work. When you said “messy”, his interpretation of the word is what he did.