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alana_mitchell45

side-of-house front door, need curb appeal ideas

Alana Mitchell
2 years ago

We bought our house last summer and it’s a little odd, squished in between the neighbors on either side. The “front” door is on the right side in the photo, and the “back” door is under the carport but that’s the door that gets used the most. I hate the white on white and the shrubs. I also love its MCM-adjacent vibes and would love to play that up.

These photos are taken from the road in front of the house. Yes, the windows face the road.

Comments (10)

  • N Johnson
    2 years ago

    Are you interested in color (turquoise, gold, etc.) or neutrals (gray, charcoal, etc.)? Do you want to paint or stain the brick? One thing — you could change the house numbers out for a more contemporary font (although I’m sure they’re original). The back door has a big wide entrance aka the driveway. You need a welcoming and relatively short path to the front door made interesting by great landscaping. I think you need a professional landscape designer.

  • decoenthusiaste
    2 years ago

    Do you keep animals in the back yard? If not, then remove the CLF. Also go ahead and get rid of the shrubs in front. That looks like a pretty nice hosta on the side. Can you plan an entire hosta garden on that side of the house? Perhaps it could lead people to the front door. Do people park on your drive on on the street? Can we see how the walk from the front door leads people in? I don't care for the "toppers" over the bow windows, but that looks like a big project and I'm not sure what I would do to change them. Can either of those rooms become your living room and the bow changed to a nice MCM entry?

  • Sigrid
    2 years ago

    I'd put a path to the front door from the road. Flank it with 2 of your yews. MCM landscaping tend to run to grasses, but ferns would be nice, too. I would not expect anyone to squeeze between the house and the garden to get to your front door. I'd put a path outside of your yews and hostas and fill the space between the house and the path with garden.

  • woodrose
    2 years ago

    I like your white-on-white house, it gives you a neutral base to work with. Replacing the shrubs you have with some colorful shrubs would make a huge difference in the look of your house. Gold Mop Cypress is one that would look good. It's low-maintenance and doesn't get very tall so it wouldn't cover your windows, which I'm sure you don't want. If that Hosta is more than one plant, I would move the ones closest to the walk to a new location. I can't tell what else is in the area with the Hosta, but I would put a shade garden in that spot. I can't tell if there's already a walkway from the driveway over to the front of the house, or not, but surely there must be one. ?

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    BeverlyFLADeziner
    2 years ago

    I like your home as-is . I just think it requires some new landscaping in the front.





  • ptreckel
    2 years ago

    Your visitors need to be guided to your front door. Take out the overgrown shrubs and, as has been suggested here, re think the sidewalk to your front door. This can be done by widening both the bed in front of your house AND installing a wide sidewalk (modern paving stones) to the right side of your home. With planting beds on the street side of the pathway. You might consider low level lighting, too, to guide your guests to the right door. As has been suggested…placing your house numbers in a more obvious place, making them larger, and lighting them will help people see where they should enter. Have you ever considered creating a gate across the front of your carport? One that could be opened (or even have a small gate for family access) so that people see that area as “private?” Just a thought. Note: Installing a sidewalk to the street in front of your home, as some have suggested, only works IF your neighborhood has sidewalks. Many neighborhoods do not have them.

  • Ally De
    2 years ago

    Your house is already adorable. You just need to help people find the front door, and honestly with landscaping as advised above it is very easy to accomplish this.


    Notice I said easy, not necessarily cheap. However a well done sidewalk will make a world of difference . Add some nice landscaping and pathway lighting and you've got a home run.

  • Danita Young
    2 years ago

    I would take pictures, write down directions like north, northwest, etc., write down measurements, write down your goals. Go to a local plant store with a landscape architect. Don't go to a local big box store but a local plant nursery. Take your pictures, notes, etc. with you. Ask for help from the landscape architect. This is one of their busy seasons, so expect them to be very busy. It would be better if you could get an appointment for him or her to come to your house but that costs money and may not work for you. You need advice from someone in your climate. For example, where I live hosta die back over winter. You need a plan that has as little or much effort as you are willing to expend on it. I love hosta and I have a lot of types in my yard, but I knew what I was getting into. All I am saying is to make an educated decision. Best of luck to you! What fun!

  • olychick
    2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    If the only place for guests to park is in the driveway, I think, even with pathways to the other side of the house, that everyone is going to assume the door is in the carport. If this were my house, I might think about putting a cute and easy to operate gate across the front of the carport to block entry. You will have to open it before you back out, but then you will be gone and won't be expecting visitors, so the gate could be left open. Then make a clear entrance path around the house to the front door.
    Another option (though we can't really see the whole front of the house), is to add visitor parking on the right hand side of the yard, with a clear path to the front door.






    You could even add a decorative fence with a gate that leads to a path that only goes to the front door, but gives no access to the carport.