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14 curb appeal ideas

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Monday we were talking about exterior house paint ideas and that got me to thinking about all of the other details we’re hoping to accomplish on the now not-so-charming exterior of the house. Otherwise known as Mission: Get rid of the peach paint and puney patio posts.
14 curb appeal ideas that won't break the bank

I’ve admittedly made myself a regular on our hope-to-be-new-street while we’ve patiently waited for this house buying process to pan itself out. Now, having stopped short of being a creepy stalker lady with a camera, I have exhibited significant self-restraint by refraining from actually taking pictures while I’m trolling the street. 🙂

But let’s take a look at one picture I took during the inspection and get a feel for what we’re working with.
curb appeal ideas

Can you say room for improvement?!?!? 🙂

One thing we’re not going to change is the size. We have definitely traded in square footage in exchange for the location we want. We feel extremely fortunate to be in a position to be one of the select few who own (well, as of hopefully tomorrow anyway) a slice of paradise on this little 2 mile by 4 mile island. Maybe one day we’ll be in a farmhouse in the country, but for now, we’re soaking up the sun and relishing the idea of taking our 1274 square feet in Key West and having the potential to make it our very own.

Are here are a few of the curb appeal ideas that are making our hearts go pitter patter these days.
curb appeal ideas1 – Update the house numbers.  Right now they are cursive and spelled out and they kind of scream “I’m from the 1950’s”. I think this is a little touch that I might go on the modern side, just to bring in some juxtaposition.

2 – Pick a fun color for the front door.  #needIsaymore  I’ve debated getting an entirely new door, this one has some wood detailing as well as stained glass (painted over on the outside but not on the inside) that I can’t figure out if I love or hate. But I’m leaning toward not hating, which isn’t love … but it isn’t hate either … which means it’s workable. 🙂

Update:  I am an idiot and what I first referred to as stained glass turned out to be plastic, see how we updated the door with beveled glass door panels here.

Update:  We painted the front door Martha Stewart Blue Suede, see all of the details here. There are all kinds of fun Key West front door inspiration pics in the post, too.

3 – Do something about the bright brass.  And I’m only talking about that deadbolt. I might be considering working with the tarnished brass. There is actually a built in mailbox door that is just to the left of the picture that is also a tarnished brass. Having 3 elements with the same finish might create a fun, eclectic look … add in some modern house numbers for that touch on juxtaposition … it’s an idea.

Update:  We installed a keyless entry system and are totally in love.

4 – Remove the faux brick. It serves no purpose. It’s unattractive and removing it will help us with a few of the other items coming up on the list.

Update:  We covered right over it to create a flat surface for our new siding here. AND we called in professionals to change-up our roof line to give the front of the house a larger feel, see our new vaulted entry here.

Update:  We finished installing new hardiboard siding, she looks totally different, check her out here.

5 – Paint.  Oh peach how I will not miss you. These are our exterior house paint ideas.

Update:  We took our first spin with a paint sprayer and started the exterior painting process here.

(and just so you don’t have to keep scrolling up to analyze the picture and develop your own plans for the space … which I highly encourage btw)
curb appeal ideas

6 – Update the light.  I hate to get rid of something that is perfectly functional, but the current light is another element that is indicative of it’s era … something a little more modern will help bring the space to life.

Update:  I changed out the front porch light with one that we bought on clearance many years ago and offer up a variety of alternatives I would buy if we were were shopping for one today.

7 – Update the windows.  I have really high hopes for this change. Once we remove the faux brick we open up the possibility of installing full sized windows. These stubby little ones do nothing but make the space feel even more stout than it is. This porch was built with no spare head room (see how it’s pretty flush with the top of the front door) so having the vertical vision broken up even more with stubby windows and the faux brick only serves to make it feel … well … stubby. We are tossing around the idea of raising the roof (only for the porch) … but that is a much more major project that we’ll tackle if the plan to unify the house color and update the windows doesn’t enhance the look of the space enough.

Update:  We installed all new impact glass windows and changed the size of the front windows dramatically here.

8 – With new windows comes the need for new shutters.  Not only the longer size to work with the new windows, but a fun and lively color … or a reclaimed wood look. I keep going back and forth between the two ideas. It will depend in part on what color we end up with on the door. And a fun Florida fact is that if you have windows with impact glass (shatter resistant) your shutters don’t have to be functional … that opens up our options a bit to maybe design our own shutters. Although having pretty and functional shutters would be the best of both worlds so we’d love to try to accomplish that, too, if possible.

9 – Goodbye office furniture and hello rocking chairs. I’m pretty excited about beautifying this space a bit, I have to admit. And I’m sure we’ll go through a myriad of set ups and arrangements and overall random porch updates until we find what suits us for the long haul. But one thing I now for sure is that we have 2 old rocking chairs heading our way and they are going to be happy to be out of storage and given a porch to call their very own.

Update:  Not only did we use our rocking chairs but I may have used as many street side finds to decorate the front porch as possible. And a huge thank you to Better Homes and Gardens for featuring the new look of the front porch!

(you’re welcome) 😉
curb appeal ideas

We’re keeping our fingers crossed that the little guy to the left of the office chairs is heading out with the current residents, too. 🙂

10 – Puney posts to pretty and powerful. These porch posts do nothing for us. We really have no idea about this one (somehow create stately round columns right over those puney guys?!?!) but we think if we give the puney porch posts a little more punch they could really perfect the picturesque porch feel we’re going for.

And yes, this post is brought to you by the letter P. 🙂

Update:  Holla!! We installed chunky 6 x 6 posts here.

11 – Sky blue.  One really cool trend down here is that people paint the ceilings of their porches a light, sky blue. We’re definitely going to get in on that fun.

Update:  We completed the beadboard on the ceiling, and actually installed it in between the porch ceiling joists to gain as much height as possible. It’s one of our favorite features!

12 – Clean and freshen up the trim.  This is actually probably step one, but I’m hoping a good swift scrubbing will give this space a little kick start. And those rolling blind thingys will probably magically disappear, too.

Update:  I used a simple tip for getting rid of the mold, it’s not a permanent thing, but for anyone looking to quickly freshen up the look of the exterior of your house, this is the perfect remedy here.

13 – Plant some plants. We’re hoping to use a variety of planter boxes and update whatever shrub they’ve got growing there to add a little color and life, and maybe a little privacy, to the space.

Update:  I decided using all greenery, instead of a variety of colored flowers, gave the front porch the feel we were looking for. The plants add the perfect softening touch to the entire look.

14 – The wall.  I’m not sure if we’ll be painting, removing or somehow updating with pickets the current look of our front wall, but once we have the curb appeal foundation with the other updates above we’ll be revisiting the front wall and making some decisions about how best to incorporate it into the over all look.

So basically we’re not leaving one surface untouched. And I haven’t even mentioned the covering for the concrete carport. That post will be brought to you by the letter C. 🙂

Update:  Check out the house tour video to see what the inside of the house looked like before we started renovation. So far we’ve created a yardscape and removed the drop ceiling in the living and dining room. See what we uncovered here.

Update:  The porch is practically unrecognizable now, read all about our complete DIY front porch makeover.

14 curb appeal ideas that won't break the bank



But what sticks out the most to you? What would you change first? Are you all about a new paint color or would you go to town with some fresh plantings?

creating curb appeal

Comments

  1. You are going to have so much fun in your new home putting your personal touches to it. There is a tradition in the South that painting the ceiling blue is thought to ward off evil spirits. It is called Haint Blue. There are other beliefs associated with the blue ceiling on a porch and the tradition seems to be catching on beyond the South. I am so excited for you.

    • Wow, that is so fun to know about the sky blue porch ceilings … I love a little beauty that will ward off evil. 🙂

      • It keeps the mud dobbers from creating those dirt nests where walls meet ceiling. It works great and keeps ceilings much cleaner. Mudobbers (spelling unsure) look like hornets and wasps. But actually don’t sting an just create those mud nests everywhere they can, only in the south !

    • Actually, the blue ceiling used on porches is to keep the birds from trying to nest and a blue ceiling makes them think its the sky. I don’t know about the evil spirit thing (?) but do know the blue does work. There are many colors of blue that would do the trick. I love pink now, its my new Christmas color this year and I find it works great with the blue green and blends perfect with soft pastels and darker teals to set it off. I too have moved around a lot with my husband’s job. Although in Alaska we get a different kind of house. More cabin and lodge and sometimes stick frame, but all the same I love to make each house feel comfortable in its own skin so to speak. I do not believe in trying to make a house fit in a character that is out of place. Not to say that things do sometimes need to be repurposed for a new fun look. Happy trails. Pamela

      • I’m glad the blue is pretty and serves a purpose. I wonder if it will keep the hornets away? And so fun to be in Alaska, one state I have never been to but would love to check out. I think you’re right about not shifting the character of a house, I think I would have so much trouble if I had to pick a “dream house”, it’s so fun to try out different styles everywhere we go. Happy trails to you as well!

  2. Looks like your plans are well thought out. I am sure you will make it so fresh and inviting. Good luck on the closing.
    Will be anxious to see the final make-over.
    Blessings,
    Audrey Z. @ Timeless Treasures

  3. Ok you have a lot of fun on your hands! I think the windows are the most important (and getting rid of the office furniture, which I didn’t even really notice till you pointed it out. really funny). Very long windows would be a dream here.They could be added without even ripping off the brick. I think you will for sure want to paint the whole outside. I would go with a Florida color – something that fits in with the fun atmosphere. Working shutters would probably be a blessing in the long run. And helpful if you ever make this a rental or a vacation space that needs to be able to be closed up quickly. I’ve been wanting to paint my porch ceiling sky blue for years. I think that is more popular than you realize. I think that with all the other things you have to do that getting these three things done would be quite satisfying! An really help out your inside atmosphere. Good luck!

  4. I love all your ideas. The columns jumped out at me first. I think the removal of the office furniture and that little guys will make a huge difference and not cost a thing! If you could remove the paint from the stained glass portion of the door I think that would be nice (provided it’s decent stained glass and not something ugly). With the windows…do you not have to have hurricane shutters or boards to quickly put up if needed.

    • The Haint Blue on the porch ceiling would lift it visually. The rocking chairs and some plants will change the whole look immediately and then you can do the major work when time and funds allow. Love the blue/grey colors you are looking at.

  7. Living inAZ, those blinds may be there for a reason. If you face the sun. Options are available. Considering it myself, without the blinds. Bet you see the a lot where porches and windows face the sun! we will all love seeing your updates!

  9. I think I would start with a trip to the dump to get rid of the office furniture and blinds. But paint would be next on my list. I can’t wait to see what you do.
    Traci

    • hahaha, had the walk through yesterday and am happy to report they took the office furniture with them!!

  10. I love all of your insights!! No matter what, we’re looking forward to the whole process so no matter what we can’t go wrong I guess. 🙂 Love the idea to reuse the house numbers!!! And yes … would love to hear about beefing up those porch posts!

  11. Karah, I am so jealous of you. you are going to have so much fun with this house. It’s the keys, bright happy colors are the thing. Love your idea of painting the porch ceiling. It it was me, I would definetly put an old squeaky screen door. I hope if and when the day comes that we no longer rent, to have a turquoise door. Cannot wait to see the changes you will make.
    Erin

  12. I love every single one of those ideas and totally agree! Can’t wait to see the after shots!

  13. I agree about the window size and faux brick. They need changing. I like the door though. What ashame they painted over stained glass.

  15. I’m a serious lurker but had to come out of hiding to comment on the porch posts – we’ve beefed up the “Spindles” on two different houses. First, I have to ask why the front door opens out – I’ve never seen that before. And the Haint Blue paint – IIRC, it’s a Southern tradition like someone else mentioned, but I also think in addition to the ghost-busting properties it’s supposed to discourage wasp nests. Like the wasps think there is sky there and will not build a nest.

    Back to porch posts. They sell expensive kits to “clad” porch posts – google porch column wrap and you will probably find a bunch. If you want round columns, that might be your best bet. We wanted a more craftsman style on our 60s ranch, so we clad our posts with beefier 1×6 or 1×8, 2×6 or 2x8s because it was inexpensive (the first time it was free because we were using leftover lumber from a pergola build). Just measure the square part top and bottom on the post and you can figure out the right size lumber to nail up. You nail two of the pieces directly to the existing column, and the other two we nailed to the new pieces of lumber, thus making a bigger column (your existing column is inside with a void on two sides). We did trim top and bottom (beefier on bottom, daintier on top) but it was a fairly painless afternoon project to do two posts and to paint. And the outside looked SO MUCH BETTER. Good luck!

    • YAY for coming out of hiding!!! AND admitting to lurking … bonus points for having no shame in your game. 🙂 You know, I never even thought about the front door opening out, now I’m going to have to notice that at every house I visit!! And I’m all for anything keeping wasps away! And I seriously love the idea of a more craftsman look for the posts and cladding them with ‘beefier’ boards might just be the way to go … thank you for the information, I’ve already added to my list of ‘want tos’. 🙂

      And hey, thanks for lurking. 🙂

    • The front door opens out in hurricane country. It makes it much harder to blow in!

  17. You have great ideas for you new house. I has taken us many years to make all of the big changes to create curb appeal. But, sometimes just making the small ones first packs a good punch.

    Good luck!

  18. Love all the ideas swirling around in your head! I am a first time visitor and updated my front porch last summer, and will finish this summer (I hope)/ IF you have the funds I would do the windows early on, so that you are not redoing various things like repainting the walls, etc. The height from the windows will be well worth the investment inside and out!

    Biggest impact: and easiest: PAINT THE FRONT DOOR!! Something bright and happy for the Keys. In one weekend you could easily paint the ceiling, front door, and clad the posts and paint. I painted our worn concrete front porch a darkish grey to be unobtrusive, painted the ceiling pale blue (wasps), front door is going to be dark/bright turquoise within a couple weeks!). Our siding is light grey. We installed goldish yellow shutters on the windows which are above each other, choosing an arched top to the second story shutters, so many tiny details really do make a house stand out from the crowd of ho-hum.

    Then I repainted an existing porch swing pale yellow, found a pale blue seat cushion at Pier I, and a couple accent pillows to tie all together. Treat it like a room!! One of the pillows had a touch of red in it, and I found a child’s wooden chair painted bright red, which I use to hold a galvanized watering can, handy for my plantings which are in an old wheelbarrow with chippy blue paint, and a galvanized washtub on legs! Love to mix the old and new and be different than the neighbors!!

    have fun!!

    • I love all of your ideas, too!! The idea of looking at it like a room is awesome. I have already started to accessorize the porch a little bit because we can’t settle into our living room because we are going to be tearing it up here in about a week. I am only hesitating to do the front door because I think I want it an aqua or turquoise and it would totally clash with the current color of the house. We’re submitting the permit now for updating those tiny windows … I agree, I think that alone will dramatically change the look. Congrats on your upgrade. All of your elements sound awesome … I love the idea of a touch of red or some punch of another color!

      Thank you so much for visiting and leaving such a great comment!!

  19. I can tell that you are very excited about getting your hands on this house! Congratulations! I like all of your ideas. Here are a few other thoughts.
    1. The front door – what about removing the current panes and replacing with clear glass – it will let light into the house.
    2. We recently removed 50 year old weathered cedar shakes from the front of our house. We installed 1/2 inch outdoor grade sheets of wood and then put up batten strips to give the whole front a new look. We haven’t yet decided whether or not to put the shutters back up or not – right now I’m leaning toward not.
    3. The light fixture might be really cute with a bold paint color – spray paint is your friend.
    4. I think a cozy porch needs a swing – any room for one?
    5. Porch posts – check out your local lumber yard – round posts may come hollow and split in two. If not, it looks like it would be very easy to cover the posts by attaching wood in a square design.
    Have fun and enjoy the new place.

  20. I just found your blog thanks to Pinterest. 🙂 Our house could definitely use a little fresh curb appeal for spring and I came looking for ideas. I think it’s great that you’re going to freshen up this house a little. I lived on Key West for several years and recognized the realty sign right away, but don’t know that particular house (at least not without seeing the whole thing). If you like upcycling things, and it looks like you do, you should head up to Big Pine for the flea market and the Habitat for Humanity Re-store. I always found good things there that were gorgeous with a little love. There’s a decent Salvation Army there too. Have fun fixing up the place!

    • Hi Kim!!! So glad you found the blog. I think it’s so fun to connect with people who have lived in the same places we do. Funny enough one of our first weekends here I made the rounds in Key West of home improvement and second hand stores and was referred to Big Pine for the things you mentioned. We’ve made the drive up a few times and will definitely be regulars up there as we continue to make updates to the house. Thank you so much for commenting!

  21. Key West! What a dream come true! Hubby and I have been trying our best to find a good reason to move to Florida. 🙂

    I’ve heard that painting the porch ceiling blue discourages hornets from making nests there. But who knows? I like it anyway whether it discourages bugs or spirits or just looks pretty. I may do the same thing to my back porch, if I can figure out an easy way to get to the vaulted ceilings.

    Don’t discount those roll-down shades. You may want to leave them there until you’ve lived in the house a while. You may find that you are thankful for them, especially if you go with the tall windows (and I definitely think you should!).

    I LOVE that front door! I would leave it, put in clear glass, and paint it red or some other bold color to let it’s awesome architecture stand out. If you decide to get rid of it, let me know! That would be a good reason to at least visit Florida. 🙂

    • Hahahaha!! We will definitely be looking for ways to update the old roll down shades to keep the functionality … and we’ve been thinking of frosted glass for the door … but I like the clear glass idea, too!!

  22. What fun you’ll have updating your porch. You asked what to do first..I’d probably start removing the faux brick and change the posts, but if the selection of plants is good at the garden center, I’d probably buy some and set them aside to plant later. Sometimes in the summer the plant selection isn’t as good as in Spring. We learned that the hard way.Visiting from Sunday Showcase.
    Babs

    • I love that tip about picking out plants now … I hadn’t thought of that but will definitely keep perusing the garden section now just in case. 🙂

  23. Did anybody notice that the door opens outward instead of inward? Duh! You can find some really nice things at the Habitat for resale store most places. Maybe you can donate what you don’t like to the Habitat resale store. Somebody will be able to use it. I’m looking for an outdoor baker’s rack and a round kitchen table that I can repaint or even a drop leaf table. As soon as we finish some of these back to back Dr. appts and physical therapy sessions, I plan to go “junkin” as some people refer to it. There’s always Craig’s list or Free Cycle. Good Luck with your project, please take photos of projects in progress..before and after for us to see. Sounds like something I’d love to do. Look in magazines for ideas. Sometimes your public library has back copies to certain decorating magazines. Is this house in Key West area? Drive around and look for ideas from other homes in the neighborhood and you might get some ideas. I found that walking the neighborhood, not only allows you to look more leisurely than driving around. Might meet some of your neighbors or meet new ones on other streets. I’m excited for you; wished it were us moving to a new-to-me place like that.

    • That’s so funny, someone else did point out about the door opening out … it never even occurred to us. And yes, we are in Key West … we love taking evening walks with the dogs and perusing what our neighbors are doing! And visiting open houses too to peak around at the insides!

  24. What led you to move to Key West? Retirement? Did I read that you are moving from Maryland; what area? I live in Montgomery county.
    Somebody mentioned reusing the house numbers..where are they hiding? I must have missed them.

  25. What exciting plans! I hope you just love this new-to-you adventure! Let the transformation begin!

  27. Just another note on the blue ceilings – it’s also a tradition up on Mackinac Island in upper Michigan, quite possibly started by the Grand Hotel (built 150 years ago) – the story there is that it keeps birds from nesting up there.

    • Anything that helps prevent anything from nesting/gathering on our porch is a go for me!!

  28. Haha… We have a peach house too!!! We are getting our house painted on July 15th and I am SOOO excited about it! 🙂 Good bye peach!!!

    • AHHHHHH, I am so excited for you! I try to not look at the outside of the house, cannot wait until the day we can make all our desired changes!!

    • Hi Heather! Thank you for stopping by. You can check in on all of the projects we’ve tackled so far on our full Key West conch house renovation at https://thespacebetweenblog.net/key-west-projects-tips-and-trips/. Since we’re in a historic area and need permitting for anything we do to the front of the house those weren’t the first project we tackled. I’ll be sure to link to the afters in that curb appeal ideas post once they’re completed. I can not wait to get the front of this house in shape!!

  30. Is there an after photo? Did I miss it? I love the shutters. As someone how produces and fits shutters in the UK it is always interesting to see how they are used in other countries. I love the colour of those. Did you stain/paint them or did they come in that colour?

  31. What a great article! I am a full time Realtor in the State on Connecticut, and I fully agree with these tips. It something are the little things that you do to change the appears of you home. You don’t have always need to go into great debt to make a place look lovely.

  32. i too live in place like these and have to move every 2 to 3 years with my husband … i am glad that you put these post it made me happy by reading it… after reading your post i made some changes in my house .. it makes me happy that some little change in house can make you so much happy … Thanks for sharing your little little ideas that can bring happiness in some one’s life 🙂

  33. The sky blue ceilings of a porch keeps bugs away. It is primarily functional.

    • Thank you so much, we’re working our way through the long to-do list but we do love her. 🙂

  35. THAT is a “plenty of room for improvement” front porch? Honestly, the only thing I would have even thought to do with it is repaint and replace the furniture with more porch-appropriate furniture. (Your “after” is super-gorgeous, as well, but I confess I don’t find the “before” considerably “worse” – mostly just different.)

    I should send you a picture of what MY front not-even-a-porch looks like and see what you’d do to it, because it doesn’t have a tenth of the charm of your before picture!

    • I’d love to see a picture of your porch, brain storming ideas could be fun. Our porch before definitely had it’s own things going for it but it just wasn’t our style. We’re excited to be rid of the old faux brick and color and larger window sizes actually make the porch feel taller even though the ceiling is really low. But let’s check yours out, Titus2Homemaker!

  36. I love the white with the blue grow table chair on the front porch. Is it the camera or a special color/paint? I love KW, I was stationed in Miami for 7 years and it was my escape. Miss it.

    • Thank you Nancy! I spray painted the chair with Rustoleum spray paint in the color Aqua. We tend to skip up to Miami every now and again as our “escape”. haha

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