Almost anything you plant there will hide or take away the look of your solid foundation even if it doesn't cover it completely. I would put a couple of shrubs in there maybe one at the corner and one between your windows.

Try Hydranga or doogwood. You could also use yews, most of them tolerate shade.

I have a large hosta that grows about 2 feet high that could be used between the shrubs and then scatter what you do have around and you will have a lovely flower bed.

I am in the process of planting shrubs along the north side of my house also (the front). We had yews, which I hate and a very sick rhody and a very sick azalea.
I have replaced with a new azalea (pleasent white - evergreen), Leucothue - brodleaf evergreen, Shamrock inkberry holly - not prickly, evergreen, and a hino crimson azalea - evergreen. I will also add a compact weigela (decidious) in a spot that will get about 4 hours of direct sun in the morning and it's a light shade out there rest of the day. the hollies and the azaleas will also tolerate light shade I'm told. They are all acid loving plants so I mixed in a lot of peat moss to amend the soil and will fertilize with holly tone in the spring. I haven't mulched yet but I wan to try to find pine bark mulch as that will also had acidity.

anyway, I know you're looking for shorter shrubs, but I would consider adding one or 2 slightly taller shrubs on the corners or between the windows, perhaps a conifer of some sort. The hollies I'm using will be about 3'-4' tall and as wide. The hino crimson azalea will about 2.5' tall/wide, the pleasant white will get a bit larger. Oh I also planted a fern between the young shrubs that I will move out as the shurbs fill in. I also plan to underplant with hosta and I have many of the same shade filler plants you mentioned in your original post that I will divide as they grow to fill in the gaps as well.
hope that helps!