Unsightly garden hoses and spray nozzles can easily be
coiled and stored inside of a big ceramic pot or planter.
2. Reface your foundation.
If you have a plain and boring concrete or stucco
foundation, add faux or half bricks, tiles, or faux stone to turn a negative
into one of its nicest features.
3. Highlight
your address numbers.
Instead of small black letters near your front door, why not
get creative with larger letters built into in a false rock, concrete column or
stone feature with built-in lighting.
4. Add a pathway.
Build a pathway to your side yard or driveway with mulch, stone,
great plantings, and stepping-stones.
Nothing makes the face of your home look better than nice
shutters outside each window. Look at
plenty of color patterns but try a glossy paint with deep, dark colors like
black, crimson, or hunter green.
6. Get a new front
door.
Replace your humdrum front door with a classic stained wood
or modern full window door.
7. Add window
boxes.
Remember those shutters we put up? Follow that up with box planters outside each
window (or just the second floor) with colorful flowers. Stained wood or bright paint looks great on
these.
8. Plant vines
over unsightly areas.
If there’s an area of the house that isn’t particularly nice
to look at – like if it has utility poles, boxes, or lines – you can simply put
up a vertical trellis in front of it and plant some vines.
9. Build a trellis above the garage door.
Let’s face it – garage doors are ugly. But an easy weekend project of building a nice trellis over it, complete with interwoven vines and some accent lighting, and your garage will be the envy of the neighborhood.
10. Paint your
front door.
Don’t worry if your budget doesn’t allow for a brand new
front door – you can repaint your existing one!
To make sure the new layers of paint don’t keep it from closing
properly, you might want to sand it down some before applying primer and
paint. Match this too your shutters with
glossy paint.
Our first instinct is to plant everything in the front yard,
but it’s way easier (and looks really cool!) to mix and match fun, funky, and
colorful containers to hold flowers and plants.
12. Update your
mailbox.
Just like your address numbers got a makeover, spruce up
your mailbox. Instead of having it hang
by your front door, build a classic wooden pillar and have it sit out on the
street, or wrap the base in brick or stone.
Build in a sturdy mailbox but make sure it locks.
13. Set up a sitting area.
It’s amazing how inviting a front porch or front yard looks
with some simple outdoor furniture so you can sit outside and enjoy it.
14. Update your
front porch light.
Replacing outdated lighting with new, modern lighting is a
great way to improve curb appeal without breaking the bank.
Trade in your dented and dated garage door with a gorgeous
wooden carriage door or faux wood door.
You can even get these to open horizontally to complete the look of a
million dollar mansion!
16. Fix up your garage door .
If you don’t have money to replace it, you can have a row of
horizontal windows cut into your existing door and add screw-on hardware that
makes it look like a classy carriage door.
17. Add new
hardware to your front door.
Add a new knob, big brass knocker, and brass kick plate to
any front door to make it look brand new.
Build an archway on the way to the front door and cover it
with vines, colorful flowers, and cool lighting.
19. Paint the exterior.
You may not want to paint the whole house, but there’s
nothing wrong with painting only the front, including a three-color pattern
with the trim and the front door and shutters different colors.
20. Paint over concrete steps or porch floor.
Paint old and weathered concrete steps or a porch with dark
and glossy paint. Black looks great, but
remember to prepare the concrete well first and use specialty mason/floor paint
because of the high foot traffic.
21. Power wash.
Rent a power washer for the day and spray clean your house,
your roof, inside gutters, stucco, walkways, and your driveway. Just remember to wash from the top down so
you don’t create a bigger mess.
22. Replace your welcome matt.
Don’t forget that something as simple as a new, colorful, and personalized welcome matt can make a great first impression. You can even build your own out of painted wooden slats!
23. Wash windows.
Take out the Windex and the old newspapers (better and less
expensive than paper towels) and give your windows a good washing – they’ll
really sparkle!
24. Plant a tree.
To break up a monotonous lawn, plant a tree and surround it
with a mulch bed and other lower plants or flowers.
If you don’t have money for a brand new porch, you can
replace the posts and spindles and repaint to make it look new.
26. Add edging
stones to your driveway.
I love this look – instead of a boring asphalt driveway
butting right up against the lawn, set in edging stones, pavers, or bricks
along the way.
Outdoor fabrics are weather resistant and sheer enough to
let light in, so use them as outdoor drapes hanging from your overhang or porch
ceiling with tiebacks. The neighbors
will rave about it!
28. Outdoor
chandelier.
While you’re at it, replace your boring overhead light
fixture with an outdoor chandelier to make your front porch look like the foyer
of a million dollar mansion!
29. Add lights to
walkway.
New landscaping lighting along pathways gives your home that
welcoming glow at night.
30. Hang string
lights.
Wrap trees, posts, and front porches with strands of white
outdoor lights. The key is being subtle
so it doesn’t look like Christmas!
31. Put up hanging plants.
You can make any porch pop by hanging pretty flowers or lush
ferns from pots suspended from the ceiling, complete with their own mister
watering system.
Replace the front lawn with natural landscaping and
symmetrical flower gardens to give it an organic, modern look. You can even have fun and recreate the beach
with small crushed gravel that looks like sand, “beachy” grasses, and seas
shells and starfish scattered around!
33. Put a bench in the garden area.
Simply adding a sitting area can add curb appeal. Don’t be afraid to go with something bright
and fun.
34. Add elements of water.
A fountain, water feature, or koi pond makes a great
signature piece in the front of your home.
There is no better way to add curb appeal – and even add
value to your home – with a hanging swing on your front porch. A nice one isn’t too expensive and you can
easily attach it to a strong beam with chains or thick ropes. It will add instant charm to the front of
your house!
