1. Refresh your front door paint - Go bold. Choose a color that sparks interest. Green looks beautiful on a white or brick home. Red is a popular and bold color and works with nearly any color house. This image courtesy of This Old House.
2. Add planters to your porch or balcony. The more creative your planters,the more interesting a personal your space will be. Even a grouping of clay pots from your local garden center are fine; be sure to vary the sizes and types of plants you use.
3. Change your house numbers...whether it be the style, the size, or the color this is Super easy. If you don't want to buy new - and I generally recommend a bit larger than you have now - PAINT them a new color so they're fresh and easy to see from the street. Have a bit more time? Mount them on a board for style and impact.
4. Install a portable water feature on your porch or in the garden. You can find inexpensive ones at big box stores, or make your own. The look and the sound of a bubbling feature is amazing. For a fast DIY, simply purchase a planter, drill a hole in the side with a masonry bit, thread a submersible pump and cord through and seal with a gasket and silicone, add clear tubing for water to rise to the top of the pot (a bit of gravel can hold all in place), fill with water and enjoy. In bought large ceramic pots at Costco one year and have rotated them as fountains and planters for years!
5. Add light. With solar light fixtures sold nearly everywhere and come ready to stake or hang, pretty lanterns and flameless candles, there are unlimited and safe opportunities for creativity. Building a wooden framed lantern that you can hang anywhere is easy and fun when you use picture frames glued or tacked together. I also love twining string lights through bushes, around arbors, hung in swags from trees and wound through vines! The ambiance is great for a party or just to enjoy. I put mine on timers so they are on every night, and LED bulbs are cool burning and low energy consumers.
