jazzing up the front of house

3 years ago

Hi all.

There have been some brilliant tips from people here and I’m hoping for some more.

How can we make the front of our house look nicer? I’m not a DIY person at all, and we don’t want to spend fortunes as I doubt we will be here more than 18-24months more.

Would welcome suggestions from good paint colours, changes we could make to freshen it up, photos of other peoples renovation successes.

Any help is gratefully recurved

Featured Answer

R Bolton

3 years ago

I think the 4 quarters are all different so to unite them I’d paint the whole house white or pale grey. Then I would paint the door, garage doors and windows in upvc specialist paint- sage green, grey or white. The cost would just be time and paint. Plant up some large (small ones look bitty) containers at the front on either side of the door, jet wash the drive and remove all the slabs and just use the gravel for the path. Top it up if needs be. Good luck! ( I live in the ugliest house in my village so I sympathise. I’m not even allowed to paint mine as the planners said no as I have to match the other ugly houses in my road. Sigh.)

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Comments (22)

PRO
The Kitchen Lady UK
3 years ago
I think take inspiration from your neighbours. Next door looks quite smart and all they've done is new windows and freshened up the paint on the upstairs section. Also cheap and cheerful weekend jobs such as straightening up the paving stones and perhaps some pots of flowers would cheer it up.

good luck

Emily x
keiblem
3 years ago
Perhaps dig up the concrete and landscape up to the lawn edging with a light coloured 20mm gravel. If it is on a good hardcore (likely already there) and is well compacted then you could do away with the paving slabs.It would involve hiring a chisel and skips but your own labour would be free! In addition to or if this is too much then paint the garage door to compliment the dark windows and front door. Dark brown would be the safest option. Then as Emily says plants! They always lift a space.
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carocat24
3 years ago
I would paint the front door & garage doors to match, in a bright welcoming colour ( not brown or grey please) create a flower bed in place of the stepping stones/path choosing plants with flowers that compliment the new door colour, and have a big container of same planting by the front door.
keiblem
3 years ago
I may have guessed incorrectly in that I assumed the door and window are UPVC. Can you paint UPVC?
Damsel Dame
3 years ago
Personally I would straighten the paving slabs, does it curve as it meets the road or is the gravel hidding the concrete driveway? Jet wash the concrete driveway to get the stains out and put 2 identical large planters either side of the front door for symmetry.

If you had the budget I would upgrade the garage door.
Sonia
3 years ago
For me, it’s the door, windows and path that let it down. Paint the windows and door if you dont have the budget to replace. Even white would be an improvement. The uneven path in a stepping stone layout is difficult for some to manoeuvre. If you paint the windows and front door then paint the garage In the same shade. That brown look was popular in the 1980s so could do with an update. Once a new path is laid (paving slabs laid properly would be fine) then you could add some planting along the path such as lavender.
PRO
Will Loch Construction
3 years ago
I would render over the existing render on the first floor with a dark gray. Change the front door, windows and garage for a Ral 7016 or white. This would just renew the house giving a more modern feel.
Sandi Robinson
3 years ago
Paint, paint paint. Look at some of the transformations on the Facebook French chic fan forum. Using the French chic alfresco range you could easily paint your UPVC door in a lovely shade with the garage door to match. Swanky pants or old sage would be nice shades. You could even pain your window frames and the section above the door. I agree with others that the path way needs upgrading. Maybe some more slabs laid permanently or change it to a lovely flower bed and just have slabs from the drive at the top to the front door!
PRO
Spark Garden & Landscape Design
3 years ago
How about some fibre-cement weatherboarding - a low-maintenance, sustainable material that come pre-coloured. It's around £65 a square metre.. You could just cover the rendered section, do the whole top section. As the windows aren't a pair, I'd paint the window frames to match the boarding so you don't highlight their differences.

A new door and garage door would update things no end too. And yep, as others have said - straighten the path, frame it with evergreen, drought-resistant planting (nothing too fussy; stick to one type and line the path either side or pick a maximum of three different plants and then zig-zag/alternate them up the path either side) and in the lawn maybe consider planting a little 'copse' of three silver birches - such as Betula utilis Jacquemontii - as this will take attention away from the front of the house.
Deborah Lee
3 years ago
If you are only going to be there for 18 months and want a budget friendly solution just jet wash the path, paint the garage door a dark colour, get rid of the square paving stones/blue gravel, then cover the whole path and concrete area with a light coloured gravel.
Chris Blowers
Original Author
3 years ago
So I gave the drive a jet wash and we’ve put a plant in the centre of the lawn and a couple of plant pots. I’m aiming to take the slabs out and either top up with slate, or maybe put some light gravel/stones instead. Then we are going to paint the top left white and garage door white. We are actually listing the property so just want to give it a face lift.
Would anyone recommend doing anything else on the cheap?(I’m not a DIY person)

Also if we did decide to replace the slate (seems you can only get 1 tonne bags but won’t need that much, hence considering replacing) then can we simply clear all the slate out and just chuck the gravel down or is it more complex than that?

Thank you everyone so far, it’s been really interesting to get ideas. I looked at rendering but looks like a few thousand pound we don’t have!
Chartwell 19
3 years ago
Phase one:
Paint the garage door (please get rid of aluminium kickboards) & round the existing render, white. Also your gutter & fascia board. Paint damp proofing black.

Phase two
take out slate & paving slabs, replace with 20mm shingle.

Phase Three
Install an inexpensive low fence & gates across the front of the property.

Looks better already with the cleaning up and flowers!!
keiblem
3 years ago
Hello Chris
It is looking much better already. Because you plan to move out shortly then you are right to take the practical low cost approach.
If you can stretch to getting rid of the paving slabs and slate and replace with 20mm light gravel/pebbles then I would be inclined to go for it because it will match the colour of the concrete and be more cohesive. The path isn’t going to take the weight of a car so you don’t have to have a heavy duty hardcore base.
I suggest you dig down in a corner to see what is under the slate. If it is on topsoil then you would need to remove that down to a firm subsoil. It shouldn’t be more than 6 inch or so. Then top with hard core up to a couple of inches. You could reuse the slate you have just removed. A geotextile membrane would be good as a weed suppressant and to keep the slate from migrating to the surface but it isn’t critical especially as you plan to leave. Finish with a couple of inches of gravel/pebbles. No deeper than that otherwise it will feel as if you are walking on quick sand! To avoid buying too much or too little work out how much you need in volume by multiplying length by width by depth. Especially important if you are paying a delivery charge. You don’t want to have them back! If it is small quantities then you can buy small bags that you can collect a few at a time in the car but buying it that way is the pricier option.
You could reuse a half dozen or more of the paving slabs by bedding them on concrete butted together under the front door. You can buy ready mix bags that just need the addition of water. Again any soil would need to be removed down to a firm base. It would look better if you removed a corner of the concrete so that the slabs extend either side of the door. It is important that the finished depth is 6 inch below the damp proof course certainly no higher than the existing. I imagine the damp proof course is the top of the white painted edge on your wall. Leave a small gap between the slabs and the wall to allow any rain splash to run down into the ground.
All the best
Julie O'Sullivan
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
Buy some frenchic al fresco paint and paint the front door and garage. Look on their facebook page for hundreds of transformations of front doors etc. Some planters would add some colour
Damsel Dame
3 years ago
Wow such an improvement already! Can I chime in about the path. Personally I would prefer it all slabbed/level for access. I hate using a wheelchair or pushchair on gravel as it stops the wheels and instantly puts me off.

Is there away you could lift the slabs and put them closer together and add some to make a complete path then use the existing gravel down the sides of the path. So it looks like how it is but the slabs continuous.
Mark R
3 years ago
Clad that awful relief render with some cedar wood. Change the front door. Paint the damp proof course black and re-set the paving slabs.
Chris Blowers
Original Author
3 years ago
So I painted but it barely looks any different. The pathway does look improved though
Sandi Robinson
3 years ago
Looking better. Just a few more plats in pots and paint garage then will Look tip top!
keiblem
3 years ago
Astonishing how just removing the paving slabs makes it look tidier and less busy.
Chartwell 19
3 years ago
Wow, removing those slabs made all the difference, think the garage door needs another coat. Check out your original pic, it does look a lot better.
carocat24
3 years ago
I’d go bolder with the pots by the door - bigger & brighter, not more smaller ones. More eye catching to distract from the driveway.

jazzing up the front of house

R Bolton

Comments (22)

The Kitchen Lady UK

keiblem

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jazzing up the front of house

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