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peanutpeanutbutter

How to improve curb appeal? (photos)

peanutpeanutbutter
13 years ago

Here's our little getaway in Idaho. It definitely needs some curb appeal. We love the color of the house, and are thinking maybe of adding another window in the front so there won't be such a BIG expanse of nuthin' --would it be easy to maybe change out the existing window for a larger one, and install another (same size) window on that blank wall...and adding shutters that match the ones on the "front" of the house (which faces the South and not the street) So here's the photo of the front, which faces East and the street...Is it too weird to consider a "fake" window here just for symmetry?

{{!gwi}}


Here is the front entrance of the house, which is oriented facing the South--our front door faces the neighbor's yard and part of the fence. You can see the shutters around our windows, and I'd like to maybe put them on the window in the photo above this one to make it not-so-plain looking from the street. I'd appreciate any ideas! Thanks! Oh! Any any ideas for landscaping would be great too! It seems all that can be grown successfully are bulbs and certain kinds of trees!

{{!gwi}}

Comments (15)

  • larke
    13 years ago

    Hi, I may be the last person on the planet to ever suggest getting rid of a tree, but the one (orange leaves) directly in front of your door is hiding it all and maybe (only in spring though!) cutting it back to that bushy green area, if not getting rid of it entirely, would be a help. And you could put something new (tree or climbing ivy vine) against that big empty expanse in the top picture. It's next to impossible to suggest anything else because you haven't really given a picture of the front of the house from further back so we can really see the area to advise on shrubs or anything.

  • peanutpeanutbutter
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Thanks, Larke, for your response. The trees you see are not on my property, so there's no getting rid of them. It's kind different that the front door is on the side, but that's how this house was oriented on the lot.

    I'll try to get another pix of the "front" of the house that faces the street so you can see what's on either side of it. There is an asphalt parking pad directly in front of the big expanse you see.

    PPB

  • peanutpeanutbutter
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Oops, meant to continue the sentence.... an asphalt parking pad directly in front of the big expanse you see, once the grass ends. The motor home's back wheel is on the asphalt, but you can see part of the motor home extending over the grassy area.
    PPB

  • sheilajoyce_gw
    13 years ago

    If the 2nd picture is of your front door, then curb appeal from that angle would be improved if you would move the BBQ to another area. I wonder if you could plant some low growning shrubs that don't require a lot of maintenance along the "foundation" of the house. I don't know how often you are there to keep up the property.

  • earthworm
    13 years ago

    A house without a basement?? Or a house without land?
    worthless.
    Just being brutally honest.
    Curb appeal?
    Pick up a book on homes(not houses) and do the same as the writer/artist.

  • Shades_of_idaho
    13 years ago

    Peanut I am in Idaho to and we have had our first and second third frosts so the trees are turning fast . I totally understand the brown leaves.

    Our true front of th house faces side way like yours is. What is the front really is the end. I am wondering how much set back you might have left to play with on that end of your house with missing window?

    I do know some times you might get your hand slapped for changing structure as in adding a window in a manufactured home. Be sure to check before you do it.

    I was kind of thinking if you had room for a little covered porch on the end.Might help the blank look. We have a blank spot on our true front side because I had them move the master bedroom windows to the gable end of the house.

    Idaho has many growing zones. We are in Midvale so zone 4 but sometimes zone five. I have several trees here and the Scotch Pines grow really fast and are kind of wild and pretty. Not sure if you have room.

    Can you get a picture further back from your house? Might be easier to give you ideas if more could be seen.

    Chris

  • larke
    13 years ago

    Earthworm - what is the benefit of your brutal honesty? People live where they live, very often because they have little choice. But what is wrong with trying to make places look as nice as possible, whether or not sometime down the road the changes make big differences in selling (if that ever happens at all)? Why just be nasty?!

  • peanutpeanutbutter
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Gee, no one asked for *brutal honesty*, wormy, and your post was mean-spirited ! Did you intend to be mean? Kindness and encouraging, constructive input is always appreciated, but you sure missed the mark. Perhaps I'm being sensitive and misunderstood you.

    There are loads of stick built houses that don't have basements, and as for my little corner of Idaho, I have plenty of land that goes with it.

    Chris, here's another pix of the front of it, before the paint job. I'm thinking shutters on the existing window, and maybe a white trellis with some kind of pretty vine or vining flower in front of that big expanse of house that needs "something." I think the white shutters and white trellis will be nice in front of the new grey color of the house.

    {{!gwi}}

  • Shades_of_idaho
    13 years ago

    Hi Peanut so glad you came back. I too was slightly taken aback on wormys remark. We only have a half acre here with no desire to have more land. We have had as much as 100 acres and this is the smallest place we have had but we are older now and really do not want land. OR a basement. LOL

    Anyway. There was another thread on the Small house board. talking about curb appeal and had a couple ideas for you to consider. I think your trellis idea is great too.

    It looks like you have a little bit of room there to spare. Or the second link at the SH board thread might work too.

    We have a porch on our house but the same front door on the side with a ,what I call court yard, but it is court yard in my imagination only. Your fence would be our hill side.

    Again glad you made it back. Sorry to pester you on the other board.

    Chris

    Here is a link that might be useful: Small house thread

  • Shades_of_idaho
    13 years ago

    Love the new gray color and white trim.

  • peanutpeanutbutter
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Hi, again, Chris...you didn't pester me on the other board--in fact, I thought it was quite smart of you to make sure I'd know about the posts!

    Thanks for the link and the info to be found on the Small House board, I would have missed it for sure if you hadn't mentioned it. Thanks for the compliment about the new color!

    I tried to go to your home page (http://mail.ctcweb.net/~shadesofidaho/Shades-Of-Idaho.HTML) but kept getting a message that it was not found, something about the URL. Did I miss something?

    Happy Friday!!!
    PPB

  • peanutpeanutbutter
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    OOPSIE! Here are the photos--somehow there was a burp with photos I posted!
    {{!gwi}}

    {{!gwi}}

    OLD color:
    {{!gwi}}

  • Shades_of_idaho
    13 years ago

    Peanut that link is old and I had to change servers when we moved here two years ago. I need to figure how to fix it sorry. Below is the link to our house now with the porch. Was new in 2008 and we moved in in July of 08. No yard just dirt. UGH and I was just told today lay off the heavy work my back is going seriously south on me. :^(

    If I had not had them switch windows to the gable end we would have had the same blank spot on the non porch end of our house. We did some modifying for the animal needs.

    I REALLY love the gray and white you have. Since we live on Canary Street I decided on Canary Yellow for this house. Hehehehe Named her Canary Cottage.

    Here is a link that might be useful: House from 2008 to now

  • peanutpeanutbutter
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Hi, Chris,

    Thanks for the updated link to your Canary Cottage! Very cute!!!! Hope by now your back is much better!

    Your place is darling, and I really like how you've decorated it. The use of the shade cloth porch curtains really looks great too! I'm having a friend pick up some shutters from Home Depot in Twin for the lone window facing the street, and come spring, put up a big white trellis. Even if nothing grows up the trellis, it will break up that big expanse!

  • Shades_of_idaho
    13 years ago

    Thank you peanutpeanutbutter. I have had fun working on this house. I think a trellis would be great. Even bare in the winter will give some thing interesting to look at. A friend hung a neat looking gate on the side of her house.

    I really need something in front of the porch to make better shade. The curtains work some but it needs more. The direction it faces gets too much sun. There is a tree coming up fairly close to the road. I might just let it grow and if the road set back police need me to cut it down or the snow plow knocks it down then so be it. It is volunteer.

    Chris