Dear LadyD,
Here's my 2 cents worth. I have traveled to the UK 10 times. They are world famous for their gardens and design, both formal and cottage style. Most of the time we are there is spent touring estates know for their formidable gardens. Your comment about hostas caught my eye because my Dad and I collect hostas and travel through New England to find various and different species than what is offered locally. I don't know your degree of knowledge of gardening or specifically hostas, but remember, hostas are grown for the variety of leaf...colors and sizes, not for the flowers. Hostas are tubors and the seed produced are sterile so letting them go to seed just takes energy away from the plant, as well as very few hostas flowers give off any fragrance. Anyway, I think you are correct in removing all the plant material that is ther as far as I can tell from your pics. Hostas thrive in shade, and filtered sunlight, but I do have some that get direct sun and do quite well, it's hit and miss and you won't know until you plant one and go through a season to see if it likes it or not. I would edge the bed to the existing shape that exists from the garage side to the steps, remove plants, break up the soil, or root till it and maybe add some peat, or manure to it to give it a boost. You can plant bulbs, tulips ,daffodils, crocus etc. in the fall for Spring color, find perennials you fancy to fill in throughout the spring summer and fall. Plant Hostas through out the beds, just be mindful of the size they will be when they are mature, some of mine have gotten quite huge and are in need of dividing. Another great feature of the hosta, you can divide them to use in other locations in your yard! I also use Boxwoods to edge beds and make features with, this is a very English garden influence, but they are slow growing, easy to trim, and you can shape them to just about any shape you dare to try. You should choose some larger shrubs / evergreen type plants for the corners go the house to soften the hard edges, remember to plant them 3-4 feet away from the house to allow for growth, access behind them, and so they don't promote your siding retaking moisture. Really when you come down to it it is whatever you like, the best thing to do is go online and look at gardening sites or search gardens and look at the way they use plant matter. You can even buy packages of plants that create and have an entire layout plan and the plants you need to achieve the look .
Good luck with your gardening, I hope I haven't bored you too much, remember, it' s not going to happen in a single season, my garden is 20 years in the making and I am always adding and filling in, be patient and plan, it will pay off. I don't have any of my photos on this iPad, but will try to repost some for you.

Just a suggestion: consider edging your gravel driveway with bricks or something to keep the gravel confined. When gravel gets into a lawnmower, it may be ejected with enough force to break a window. BTDT with double paned windows that are expensive to replace.

What climate zone or geographical area are you in? Snow, no snow? Rain in summer?

Add hosta.
Email me ,quickly(in 10 minits) you can get new design,such as adding porch,fluid line shape walkway,steps, forth sitting,shrubs,trees,deck,gazebo,patio,
change the windows,the door,the wall and the color.....

Plant zone is important.
You need a master plan. Go to local gardening stores and see if garden planning is free with purchases or low cost. One landscaper in my area will work your yard and make suggestions. Budget an amount to spend this year and you can add more later. In the long range, you will save money if you have a master plan.

A lovely home with a country feel.. I think that removing current shutters which are too small and adding larger wood ones would look better. Paint them either white or black. Also replace black railing with the same wooden railings you have on the porch. As for landscaping I would go for a more casual look -don't have shrubs hugging the foundation -plant some small to medium shrubs such as hydrangeas, dwarf lilac, or azaleas with evergreen specimens such as holly. Plant annuals and perennials to fill in curved beds on both sides. Create a walkway with stepping stones set in gravel. Define your driveway with a border such as brick or wood. Window boxes with annual color on the window and stair rail. Below is a doodle of my concept.

Caroline, Thank you so much for taking the time to show me this option. You literally put my thoughts on paper! I love everthing about this!

We have to agree with Sweet Caroline Design when it comes to replacing the current shutters with larger ones. Shutters should measure out to be half the size of the window and in your case they're just a bit too small.

The double windows on the front of your home should have shutters that over each window entirely. On the triple window in your porch, you have two options. You could replace them with shutters that fit the right window and left window fully, or you could replace them with bi-fold shutters. Bi-fold shutters appear to be smaller, but when opened they have the ability to cover the whole window.

We think a panel style, decorated with hardware will truly make a difference to your exterior but your porch as well!