If you’ve been in your home a while and it’s starting to look a little too “lived in,” consider your curb appeal, one of the easiest ways to give your house and property a fresh new look without breaking the bank. You don’t have to have the skills of a general contractor, either. Even if you’re already in the home of your dreams, styles come and go, and tastes change. With a little tweak here and there, you can make some very simple changes that will have a major impact. And according to the National Association of Realtors® you can expect to get back pretty much 100% of any cosmetic upgrades you make to the exterior of your home if you ever decide to sell it.
It’s true that you’ll have to invest some “sweat equity” to polish up your property, but if you spread projects out over a few weekends, you’ll be done in not time. With that in mind, here are some makeover tips that can dramatically enhance your home’s look without putting you in the poor house:
Wash away winter
Power washing your home is a great way to erase that layer of winter grime. If you don’t have a power washer (or a good friend who will lend you theirs), you can always rent one at your local home improvement center for around $55 for four hours. Just be sure to call ahead and reserve one, especially this time of year. Or, you could always get down to basics by using a long-handled scrub brush, a bucket full of soapy water and your hose to handle the job. Just make sure that you wash in sections and rinse thoroughly before the soap dries.
For that extra sparkle, washing windows will also go a long way toward enhancing the appearance of your home. You can buy a bottle of cleaner that attaches directly to your garden hose for around $9. Since it’s specially formulated to dry without leaving streaks, simply spray it on and you’re done.
A more welcoming welcome
Your front door is the transition from the outside in. Applying a fresh coat of paint every few years will ensure that your entryway remains as inviting as the home you’ve created inside. High-gloss, oil-based paints (from around $25 per gallon) are preferred because they stand up best to the elements and retain their shiny appearance longer. However, working with oil-based paint requires more skill when it comes to maintaining smooth, even brush strokes. If you’re not comfortable with the extra work that oil-based paints require, a number of excellent exterior latex paints (starting at $20 per gallon) provide a remarkable performance as well. Most latex paints are also easier to clean from the brushes (because you use water instead of paint thinner or turpentine).
No matter which paint type you choose, here are a couple of pointers when considering the color. If your front entryway is dark and shaded, use a light, bright color. If your entrance is well bathed in sunlight throughout most of the day, a deep, rich color is more dramatic. Here are a few “colors of the moment” that designers are raving about: raisin (lavender with a hint of gray), cinnamon (a rusty shade of red), soft yellow, deep blue, sage green, pumpkin, spruce green, plum or turquoise.
Whichever color you choose, don’t be afraid to be daring! A bold, unexpected paint color for your front door will make a real statement.
Groom your outdoor room
Pruning and shaping the trees and shrubs in your yard is a no-cost project that provides immediate results. For a more formal look, prune shrubs into geometric shapes such as spheres, squares or rectangles. For a more casual look, follow the natural shape of the shrub, cutting back “stray” branches to maintain an orderly appearance. And if there are shrubs in front of your windows, keep them trimmed to below the outside sill level so your interior rooms will always receive plenty of light.
Proof of life
If you have flowerbeds, removing dead leaves, debris and weeds will immediately liven up the overall appearance of your home. Adding fresh mulch will complete the look. A three-cubicfoot bag costs $4 to $5 on average and covers approximately 18 square feet with two inches of mulch—your home improvement or garden center experts can help determine how many bags you’ll need for your job. Replacing any weatherworn borders or adding a new brick, stone or wooden frame to your garden areas will also make a huge difference. As an example, eight-foot-long landscaping timbers can be easily cut to any size and generally cost less than $4 a piece.
Color splash
For that “wow factor,” throw in bursts of bright annuals. For maximum effect, planting groupings of flowers in several different focal points will create a much more dramatic look than simply spreading the same number of plants out over a wider space. You may want to concentrate on areas around the mailbox or the entrance to your driveway, around a tree or other element in your front yard that is already eye-catching, as a border to a sidewalk, and in pots or window boxes on your front steps and/or porch.
Hot colors such as yellow, red, orange and bring pink or fuchsia (think “fire”) will provide greater impact from the street than cooler colors like blue, purple or indigo. When you shop for annuals, buying them by the tray or “flat” is generally more economical than buying by the pot. But keep in mind that the plants in flats are usually much smaller, so you need to buy early in the season. Then they’ll have ample time to establish and “fill in.” Flats can range from six compartments to 18 and prices vary depending on the plant.
To add dramatic colors to shady areas, impatiens, begonias, coleus and caladium are good choices. For sunnier spots, vinca, petunias, lantana, zonal geraniums, marigolds and chartreuse sweet potato vine are all excellent choices. When planting different varieties together, be aware of how tall each will get at maturity and make sure to plant tallergrowing flowers behind the shorter ones.
Final touches
Accessorizing your home with an updated front porch light fixture, new house numbers, a colorful or whimsical mailbox, or even a decorative doormat will dramatically change the way your home looks and “feels” without spending a bundle of time or money.
The finished product
As you’ve just read, there are many different things you can do to bring new life to the appearance of your home and yard without spending a fortune. So be creative, borrow ideas from your neighbors or check out some home improvement or design websites or magazines. By mapping out a handful of manageable projects over the course of a few weekends, you can easily and affordably bring back the beauty of your home and enjoy the satisfaction that comes from doing it all yourself. Then, just kick back and fall in love with your home all over again.
