Help Me Boost Curb Appeal!

AprilH81

We are just a week from the one year anniversary of closing on our new home and the inside is almost where we want it and I want to do a few projects outside this summer and fall to boost the curb appeal and soften up the stark lines of the house.

On the right side of the house there is a (poorly done and very annoying) brick patio that we are going to pull up and restore the flower bed that was originally there.  I want to plant a tree (some sort of dwarf/small ornamental tree) that will be safe that close to the foundation, add a few bushes and then a lot of day lilies for low maintenance gardening.

Long term we want (need) a new garage door, but that will probably be a few years down the road so I want to paint the garage and the wood above the door.  The two colors don't work together and I'm not crazy about either shade.  I would love to replace the wood with vinyl siding for super low maintenance and there isn't a lot of area so it probably wouldn't be too expensive but again, it might be a few years before that happens.  Other future projects are to put in a new sidewalk (larger with a sweeping, graduated curve from the stoop to the driveway) and replace the light fixtures.

What color(s) would you use in this space?  The neighborhood is about 25 years old and fairly traditional.  I love craftsman style exteriors.

Here is the house before we moved in.

Here is our front door color after it was painted last summer.  It is a soft navy blue.

photokitty

Shutters - I think navy shutters would really pull it all together. Look at Japanese maples for the decorative tree...look like buckeye leaves, but smaller. Maybe paint the garage door?

Heffalump

Definitely shutters--it's a lovely house, but it does look awfully stark at the moment.  We have a Craftsman-style house, and ditto the Craftsman love. 

As for painting the garage door and the wood siding above it, with the red brick and navy accents, what about a green like this?


(I hope that resizes correctly, apologies if not.)

ETA:  Are window boxes an option?  I think that would also help soften the front of the house a bit and add in more of the Craftsman nature-y vibe.  Definitely like the plan to restore your landscape beds. What about big planters on either side of the garage?  Something along these lines?


And also in addition to the Japanese maple, maybe a nice specimen tree for the front lawn.  Something that won't necessarily block the view of the house, but provide some visual interest (and as it grows, some shade).  Maybe a larger maple species?
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/1082.html

emmaaa

I also suggest shutters to match the front door. That will really help make the house look less stark and more inviting.

LondonLisa

In addition to shutters (definitely!), could you paint the brown trim on your windows white? I think that would brighten it up a lot:

Also, maybe think about adding a white/craftsman style front wood porch over your front door like this:

photokitty

I have a great siding guy when you decide to do that. You buy the siding at the wholesale place, he picks it up and installs it. It was really affordable. I also have the frieze board and soffits replaced at the same time.

AprilH81

@photokitty I really want shutters but I'm worried the windows are too close together for it to look right.

I'm also considering a "cedar shake" style siding for the siding replacement to add a vertical element to the house since the brick is horizontal.  

@heffalumpI have big planters beside the front door so I don't want to do them by the garage too, but I'm open to planting a sculpted pine bush that is tall and thin so it wouldn't be in the way.  I like the idea of a soft green on the wood!

@londonlisa I like the idea of trimming out the windows in white but the exterior is vinyl so I'm not sure that painting it is a good idea.  Window replacement is one of our future projects and the new ones will probably be white on the outside.

teddygirl9

Something about the part above the garage door bothers me. It looks dingy. Maybe if that were white like the trim, closer in colour to the brick or something completely different.  

I would also put some plants along the driveway, or a little garden in that small square of grass by the garage/sidewalk. It looks like the downspout goes there, so you can get water without having to actually water it.

I love the planters at your front door. And I think the house is lovely!

If you want more advice, you can also post on houzz. There are lots of designers/experts there that I found very helpful when building

AprilH81

@teddygirl9  You can't see this in the pictures but there is a small planting area towards the main sidewalk on the right side of the house that has several large burning bushes and there is a large tree beside the driveway on the left.  Once we replace the sidewalk to the front  door I do want to make that green area in to a flower bed to help soften it up, but it doesn't make sense to do it now when the shape will change completely when we re-do the sidewalk.

I agree the siding looks dingy.  I think part of the problem is that it is a similar color as the garage door but they don't match so they both look dirty.

labro

Shutters! And I second a dwarf Japanese Maple variety. There are tons of low (very slow growing) types out there that you could plant close to the house without interfering with your foundation. I'd go talk to a nursery about it if you choose to go this route.

teddygirl9

I wish we could have japanese maples heres =( Winter gets too cold for them.

southernbelle0915

Agree with shudders. But girl you need some landscaping. 

I would do a row of boxwood shrubs on the house side of your walkway. On the road side of the walkway, I'd do some lower plants, like hostas with some room in the front for annuals to add color. Where the walk turns to the front door, I'd do a small japanese maple on the outside corner. Below each of your garage scones, I would add a hydrangea. 

Where that big tuft of grass is on the far right, I'd add an Eastern redbud or a weeping cherry tree. Whatever tree you choose, I'd add some hydrangeas under it - to balance what you did under the garage sconces. In front of those hydrangeas, plant the same hostas you planted by the walk way. (Like two rings around the base of the tree.) 

To the left of the garage, I'd do a sugar maple if you're in an area where fall colors get pretty. If not, a red norway maple would look nice and add color.

bizzy592

teddygirl9 said:

I wish we could have japanese maples heres =( Winter gets too cold for them.

They're hardier than you'd expect. We had them growing up (plant hardiness zone 5) and they did just fine.

hellosweetie1015

SHUTTERS! Blue ones will look lovely.

I know you said you're swapping windows to ones with white trim, but just painting the trim on the existing frames would do a lot, I think - dark window frames scream "industrial" to me.

I assume you're going to soften the sidewalk a bit, so it's not that sharp 90' angle? If so, YES DO THAT. If not, consider it. Then rip up all that sod in between your garage and sidewalk, use some to patch the spots that got messed up redoing that (if you can?), and TILL THAT SHIT UP. Hostas will look FANTABULOUS in there, along with maybe a small tree and some flowers. 

Tall skinny trees on either side of your garage would do wonders to break it up and soften, I think. I also really like the idea of putting a tree in that odd, kind-of-awful patio (wtf? Patio out front? That just encourages asshole neighbors like my dad to stop by and annoy the shit out of you) once you've turned it back to its original purpose. MOAR FLOWERS!

I think adding a white trim facade to the existing porch would break up the brick a little and work quite nicely.

I want to be in the middle of a reno zone right now. I want a teeniny little house to flip. Too much HGTV.

AprilH81

Aren't hostas shade plants?  The front of the house gets full sun (and it bakes in the corner where the door is).  

Yes, @southernbell0915 it really needs landscaping.  I found an old picture of the house (arial and not that clear) that shows what it looked like before the patio was put in.  It looks so much better.  According to the neighbors the previous owner had it put in so he could watch his boys ride their bikes on the sidewalk.  My thought was "couldn't he just sit in the driveway?".  It is a horrible place for a patio.

Here is the picture.  

I want a sidewalk similar to this shape, but not so close to the house.

I like how the sidewalk flares out where it meets the driveway to make it more welcoming.

labro

@AprilH81 If your front BAKES like you say, then I don't think I'd recommend hostas. But I also haven't experimented with them in full sun either. All of mine are either in shade or partial shade. If you had a low Japanese maple though you could do hostas underneath it. I'd stay away from hydrangeas too, even though they are so gorgeous. Mine absolutely HATE the sun, especially in summer when it gets super hot. They wilt and look sad, but they're still doing ok since they only get that full on sunshine for a brief period.

I have knockout roses by my front porch. They'd hold up in all that bright sunshine nicely and they bloom from May through October for me as long as I keep the deadheads trimmed off. You could also do a row of boxwoods like someone suggested. My mom has these beautiful shrubs in her front yard that have a yellow/green leaf color in a row in front of her roses, then behind her roses she has some large manicured azalea bushes.

I really feel like your front yard needs a tree, kind of like in some PP's pictures above. You could even do a standard Japanese maple out there surrounded by a mulch island and some rocks or something.

photokitty

My hostas have been holding up in full sun along the house on the north side. Dh split them in the fall or I'd give you some. Day lilies are an option.

AprilH81

@photokitty My inlaws have a bunch hostas growing wild in their back yard behind their tree line.  They said we can have whatever we want.    We want to put some around our back deck (part sun/shade) but that is another project. 

hellosweetie1015

My dad has hostas that get full sun for about half the day, and except for the one the big dog dug up, they're quite happy.

I LOVE the way that sidewalk looks! So homey. Ours meanders around the front of the house, and the old house had a meandering sidewalk too. I remember being a kid thinking how adventurous a windy front walk was haha.

I was maybe a weird kid.

Etf your sidewalk plan does not look honey. Fat finger syndrome.

southernbelle0915

Yes, hostas are shade plants. Many do well in full sun but generally only if you're further north it's not as intense. 

If your house is south facing and sunny all day, I would go with boxwoods on both sides of the walkway, still leaving room for annuals between the shrubs and the road - almost exactly like that pic you posted. Boxwoods are nice because they're pretty fool proof and they're super easy to shape.

teddygirl9

bizzy592 said:

teddygirl9 said:

I wish we could have japanese maples heres =( Winter gets too cold for them.

They're hardier than you'd expect. We had them growing up (plant hardiness zone 5) and they did just fine.

Zone 5? I'd kill for that. Were like 3b or some shit like that haha. I live near a nice local plant nursery that offers 1 year warranty on ALL their plants. Except JMaples. Winter sucks.

eta - I just checked and I'm 4a. i wonder if I cover it in the winter if it will last... Theyre so pretty!