Curb Appeal: Then and Now

The mild winter this year has given me severe case of spring fever and has me thinking about what else I want to do with the front of my house. Over the few years I've had the house it has come along way but I have more plans that I would like to work on this year.

When I first bought my house in September 2007 the best thing it had going for it besides its solid foundation was its curb appeal. I'm not saying it was great (in fact it was actually a bit gloomy and foreboding) it's just that the back of the house was rotting because it hadn't been painted and the inside was a disaster of crumbling plaster infused with a strong smoky smell from two life long smokers who had lived there since the 1960s. I think that the reason I got the house for such a great deal is because it scared any other sane person away.

As soon as I got ownership of the house one of the first things that I had to do was get the rotten wood replaced and paint the house before winter came so that there wouldn't be any more deterioration to the siding and trim. With a blue house on one side of me and white house on the other I decided on painting the house a pale yellow with white trim and dark teal accents. For extra fun I painted the ceiling of my porch an aqua color. I kept the screen door and painted it but the 1960s door with the 3 staggered rectangle windows had to go in favor of an old reclaimed door with pretty glass windows. The funky front porch light was replaced with something more in keeping with the style of the house and I put up a vintage cast iron mailbox that I found on eBay. Not much was done with the landscaping at that time other than planting some bulbs, removing the half dead enormous bushes that flanked the front porch, hiding the stonework and getting rid of the stone planter in the middle of the front yard. I left for Japan at the end of February 2008 so I didn't even have a chance to see my bulbs come up that year.

After I got back from Japan at the end of April 2009 I set about doing some landscaping. I took some of the stones that had been removed from the front planter and used them to edge a bed that I made around the base of the tree in my front yard as well as a 4' x 30' vegetable and herb garden that I planted along the side of my house. I moved the hostas that were in the bed in front of the side wing to the new bed under my front tree and replaced them with impatiens.

In the fall of 2009 a local nursery was selling small Korean boxwood for 1/2 off because it was the end of the season so I scooped up a bunch and planted them all along the side wing and sides of the front porch.

During the summer of 2010 I didn't do a lot out front since I was focused on my back patio and building my patio furniture. I did however plant some annuals as well as some azaleas in the bed in front of the porch. I also hired someone to patch the concrete front steps, but once winter came the freezing and thawing made the skim coat crack off.

Unfortunately the azaleas didn't end up doing too well so in the summer of 2011 I replaced them with some larger boxwood. I like the boxwood because they are evergreens so they add some color and life during the winter. I also planted some annuals in the front including a climbing plant with pink blooms on a bamboo trellis that I made. Most of my plantings were a success except for the plants that I put in the bed on the south side of the porch that didn't take too well despite being a full sun variety. The other big thing that I did was tear out the ivy that was embedded into the stone bed in front of the porch and then rebuild the bed. That was exhausting, back breaking work.

Still to come I would like to replace the windows on the side wing with double hung windows to match the rest of the house and add some shutters if I can get approval with the historic district commission. The side windows are clearly not original and I found shutters in the crawl space as well as some shutter hardware on some of the windows so I think I have a good shot of getting my petition approved. I also need to replace the front steps and figure out what to do with the plantings on the side bed. Hopefully I'll have it looking nice this summer. 

What are you planning on working on this summer? Are you going to do any landscaping or other fun projects outdoors?

Spray Paint Tips & Tricks

On Saturday morning I found this cute little terra cotta vase for only a dollar at the Ann Arbor ReUse Center. It was a little too eighties for my taste (it was even marked 1982 on the bottom) in its original condition, but I love how it turned out after I gave it a quick make over with matte black spray paint. I think it will look great in my bathroom once I get everything finished and put back together.

I love using spray paint to transform things that are a little bit worn or outdated. It is so easy and has such a big impact. I thought for fun I'd share a few of my pointers for getting a great spray paint finish. Most of them are common sense, but I've learned the hard way from trying to hurry the process that they are vital. Happy painting!

Spray Paint Tips & Tricks
- Before you start make sure to lay down newspaper or plastic that extends far beyond the object you are spray painting. Just a little breeze can send the paint flying and leave a little halo on the ground around your newspaper or plastic
- Make sure your surface is clean and properly prepared (you can use a deglosser on glossy surfaces) so that you can get the best adhesion
- Use a primer before spray painting bare wood
- Don't try to cover everything in one coat or you risk drips
- Several light coats holding the can about 10" away from the object gives a nice, drip free finish
- After thoroughly dried, flip the object over and spray again to make sure to get any parts that couldn't be reached right side up
- Don't touch the object until it is completely dried so you don't smudge the finish