Alright, guys, I’ve been toying with you for long enough. We started our Curb Appeal {on the cheap} series in May and I made this insane promise to show you the outside of my house. Insane, I tell ya. I must have typed that promise out before having coffee or something.
Really, I was going to show you these things earlier, but then Father’s Day happened and so did my birthday {which, by the way, have you entered the giveaway?}, so that pushed everything later. However, today is the day. Promise.
Let’s remind ourselves what things looked like at the beginning, shall we?
And a closeup of the porch reveals even more exciting times…
After painting the chairs & moving the grill, things started to improve.
And when I found & stuffed 2 pillow covers, the curb appeal went way up for me.
At long last, my friends, things looked like this:
Here’s a little breakdown of what happened:
So, let’s go into detail with some of those things, shall we?
- pulled up many gajillion ivy vines: no kidding. this took foreeeeeveeeerrrrr. We complicated things by being all “we-aren’t-spending-money” and didn’t even use gloves. Smart. #notreally
- mulched most of the front beds: yes, we did. we got in on a Memorial Day sale at Lowe’s and decided to pretty things up with some black mulch. Remember these pics of my lovely black nails on Memorial Day? Free manicures are always the best.
- changed wreath: created out of materials I already had on hand. that means free. me likey.
- painted chairs: Already explained here.
- added pillows: and that was explained here.
- moved grill: pretty sure that’s self-explanatory.
People. These next 2 items are the coolest things ever.
- created a rock border: All the rocks you see lining the beds? We found them while weeding. Yeah. They weren’t all in a pretty line either. They were piled on top of each other, under piles of dirt & pine straw, and behind bushes. Weird, right? We started just pulling them out and putting them on the sidewalk, then Jonathan was like, “hey, we should use these to line the beds!” He’s brilliant, I tell ya.
- miraculous hosta plants: so, after I weeded the right bed, I came out a few days later to see these lovely green plants beginning to grow. Seriously. And they were placed perfectly. I think it’s just something God did to show me He cares about little things.
And just because, here’s one last look at the before & after right next to each other:
Ideally, I would love to get rid of those black scroll-y post things. But since we rent, that’s not really up to us. So sometimes I imagine they are not there. {teehee} Well, really, I think it’s good for me to have things like that in my life. It reminds me that my treasure is not on this earth. And that includes my home!
So, have any of you been sprucing up the outside of your home? I would looooooove to hear about it!! If there’s one thing better than fixing my own home, it’s hearing about other people working on theirs! Share, share!
linking up with Thrifty Decor Chick
Comments
23 responses to “Curb Appeal :: Before & After”
Good work, impressive!
Looks great! We have been working in the yard too, spreading mulch and planting. There’s something so satisfying about working in the dirt with your hubby 🙂 http://www.everafterblueprint.com/2013/06/28/got-mulch/
So pretty! I love the hostas 🙂 Can you divide hostas, I wonder? You could have a whole miracle garden 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
I love it! Those chairs are amazing–what a difference!
And to Diana–you absolutely can divide hostas. Try it in the fall or early spring. They grow like mad and will actually benefit from dividing from time to time!
This is sooooo lovely! You did great. I know that took a lot of hard work, but it is payin’ off girl! Love it!
Looks amazing!
Looks great! That is so neat about the hostas appearing! Wow!
Looks great Christa!
Looks really nice! Good work! Maybe you could paint those black scroll things white, if your landlord says its okay. ???
The chairs are my favorite part! 🙂
Thanks, Emily!! For me it’s a toss-up between the chairs & pillows… 😀
Thanks, Victoria! For now, we’ll probably just leave them the way they are. I wouldn’t want to paint them anything that would make them more noticeable. If time & $ permits, I would love to try boxing them out!
thanks so much, Cindy!!
I know!! Crazy cool. Thanks for the comment love 🙂
you are sweet 🙂 thanks!!
thanks, Susanna! It’s SOOOO nice to see the finished product!!
Oooohhhh…good to know about the season to divide hostas. I guess I’ll have to wait a few months, but then will definitely plan on dividing them!!
thanks, Diana!! and yes – I’m planning to divide the hostas! I’ll have a whole miracle garden, for sure!!
SO true, Andrea! It’s fun to work on a project together besides finances, kids, etc. 😉
aw, well thanks for being impressed. you’re nice 😀
Looks great, Christa!! your pillows and chairs really brightened it up.
Have you thought of spray painting or painting those posts? maybe white or even just black again so they would be all nice and new and shiny looking?
I love hostas! they are such hardy plants and pretty much require nothing. Did you know you can split them? so you could fill your bed with pretty plants just off the ones you have? If you need more info – ask. I bought 5 plants for $1.00 each about 5 years ago and I probably have 25 now and have given away 10 or more 🙂 I usually split and add more elsewhere each year.
thanks, Christina!! yes – someone else mentioned painting the posts and splitting the hostas! I’m definitely planning to split up the hostas, but at this point, I’m not going to paint the posts. If I put any time and $ into them, I’d rather it be into boxing them out. Soooo…for now they stay as they are. 😉 Thanks for the great suggestions!!
I didn’t know a thing about hostas. I pretty much know nothing about plants except garden veggies. =D That is so cool though, I think I’m going to have to look into those! And all of those changes made a big impact on the front of your home. Good job!