Increasing Your Curb Appeal Can Be Fun & Easy…We Promise!

Curb appeal is one of those things on the To-Do list that usually keeps getting pushed further and further down. Do not let that continue to happen!

Whether you are thinking about selling your home, or just want to spruce it up a bit, good landscaping and other enhancements can add to the overall value of your home. Below are some fixings for front doors, windows and garage doors that will make any home picture worthy!

Making Your Front Door POP!

The front door is the focal point of your home. If you are unhappy with what your front door looks like but are not sure what to do, read on and you will surely find a few ideas!

Add Eye-Catching Hardware

Adding hardware is a way to make your front door stand out more from the street. It does not have to be anything fancy, sometimes less is more. A fun additional touch could be to add a knocker. While it may not get too much use, it will definitely make a statement to anyone who walks near. For more options on eye-catching hardware for front doors be sure to check out our Guide to Front Door Hardware!

Add Lighting to Make a Statement

A well-lit entry way makes for an inviting home! Adding lights to either side of the front door or adding a hanging light above will brighten up the space as well as allow the front door to become the center of attention. There are different styles of light fixtures that are available at local hardware stores. Pick a fixture that matches your home’s décor or even one that matches your personality.

According to the National Association of Home Builders, outdoor lighting consistently tops the list as the most wanted outdoor features in its annual survey. 49% of people rate it “desirable” and 41% rate its “essential”. Adding lights does not just look good, but it can also make your home more safe. Between the added safety and overall added appeal, it is a home run!

Allow Your Windows to Standout on the Block

Are your windows blending into your house too much? Does the exterior look flat? Well the good news is that there are simple fixes!

One of the easiest solutions to a flat exterior is adding shutters and flower boxes. The combination is excellent, but can become costly. If that is the case, opting for only window flower boxes is a good and inexpensive second choice. The flower boxes can range anywhere from $10 to $200 per window box, depending on the type and style. Imagine if the flowers were already in there! Unfortunately, that is not the case.

Decorating the flower boxes is what will really give you a good bang for your buck. In the spring and summer months add flowers that are colorful, complementing the color of the exterior.  In the fall and winter month, add some holiday decorations. Gourds and pumpkins fit perfect into fall and holly, poinsettias and ornaments are good for winter.

Some may wonder if making their windows look good from the outside is worth the money. The simple answer: YES, try it out yourself and see the difference right away!

Garage Door Looking Drab? Well Then Make It Look Fab!

Most would agree, out of all the things on the exterior of a home, the garage door has the potential to be the most unappealing. While very functional and much needed, garage doors are not always easy on the eyes. Old and even new garage doors are in the same boat with this. There are some ways to make a garage door look less stale other than having a new garage built around it!

Add Planters to the Sides of Your Garage Door

If you have an attached garage or a stand alone garage, placing large urns or pots in the corners of the driveway make it instantly more appealing. You do not have to go buy the biggest urns or plants to cover up an empty space. Sometimes vertical height is better than width.

For something more neutral that will still pop, try looking for some native tall grass to plant. They add just enough height to cover up the more unappealing part but still does not get in the way of the function of the garage door. You can also go for something with more color.

Purchase an assortment of colorful flowers and have fun planting them in pots or urns any way you want. A trick to make the flower pot look more full is adding taller flowers in the back, like salvia, and shorter ones to hang over the side, like bacopa, creating a dramatic and appealing look.

DIY Changes to the Garage Door:

For some, the garage door is a lost cause. They do not want to replace it, but they also want it to look nicer. There is an easy DIY trick to making any garage look like it cost a fortune! Imagine a carriage style garage door with a top row of windows and handles in the middle and decorative pieces on the sides. Believe it or not, you can transform your garage to look like this with a few easy steps! All you need is some black interior/exterior paint, satin finish is preferred, painters tape and a garage hardware kit. You can find the hardware kit at local hardware stores for around $20.

Start by cleaning the garage door to make sure that the paint sticks well. If your garage already has a top row of windows this step is done for you! If not, in each section on the top row of the panels, create a cross section with painters tape. This will become the “window”.  Also, tape around the outside of the panel to make sure it creates crisp lines. Paint the panels black and then wait for the paint to dry before taking the tape off. Then follow the hardware installation instructions and just like that your garage door went from drab to fab!

A Good Cleaning Could be the Answer

Going through all four seasons can take a toll on houses. Between the snow, rain, wind and sun your home if effected greatly. Windows start to get a dirty film on them and become hard to see clearly through. Your siding goes from looking like the first snow of the season, beautiful and clean, to the end of the winter snow that is mucky and dirty. These combined can make any beautiful house look a little drab.

A little cleaning of the windows, inside and out, can make them look like new. And then there is the siding. Many people do not think about cleaning siding as often as they should. With these tips on cleaning siding, there should be no excuse for dirty siding. Unless it is winter still of course, then there is no way getting around that hurdle!

Is it Time to Replace Instead of Spruce Up?

There comes a time where no matter how hard you try, there is no way to spruce things up. This is fairly common with old windows, garage doors and front doors. It might be time to make a more significant change and purchase new ones. While this can be costly, it can make your home feel new again.

Some homes might only need one window replacement, while others could use a whole new house of windows. If new windows for your whole home is way out of the budget, try getting new windows just for the windows that are in the front of the home. This way, they will add to the curb appeal of your home and still remain in the budget. Other windows could seem outdated by the look of them but still function well. In this case, you can look into buying new grids for the windows to create a more modern look.

As previously mentioned, old garage doors are not the most appealing to the eyes. If cleaning and other tricks do not create the look you want, it could be time to replace. There are different styles of garage doors to choose from nowadays. Instead of a DIY carriage garage door, you could purchase any style garage door if it fits in the budget. Take a look and see if it would be a good investment for you. We all know how important a functioning garage is in the winter months when all the snow is coming down and in the summer when its quite toasty outside!

Curb appeal is important no matter how you look at it. Neglecting the outside of your home is like buying flowers and never watering them. You want your home to flourish and not become stale and the forgotten one on the block. Try something different and break out of the old and into the new with some of the easy fixes listed above. Make it a family affair and include everyone to help out. It is amazing to see how much can get done when more than two hands are involved. So, go out and explore the art of curb appeal. And of course, have fun!