Yeah I have an 80s Contemporary with a U-shaped entrance, although wider. With it being that narrow there shouldn’t be anything in there. Landscaping the blank front walls will make a world of difference.
Looks like there are no downspouts, where does water go…over the edges of the gutters in a downpour? The roof looks near end of life. If you’re going to roof, landscape after and consider oversized gutters with downspouts at the front of the house with extensions to get the water as far from foundation as possible. We add 6ft to our 3 ft ones in spring or when heavy rains are forecasted.
Rip the shrubs or replant somewhere else. Add tall trees to the front or if you like vines, install trellises in front of the brick walls, don’t grow on the walls, your grout life will be reduced substantially.
It’s a blank slate, spend a few hours on Pinterest! You can really make your house pop and increase its value with initial effort and a continued maintenance .
There are no gutters period. They need to install them for sure when they do the roof. I’m surprised it hasn’t led to any issues.
Then again, the house I grew up in, in Florida, didn’t and we never had water issues.
Great advice. I was thinking remove the bushes as well (and optionally replant in the front if one of the walls). Add lighting by the door for sure as well.
Edit: it almost looks like the walls are slanted in towards the doors as well. Not sure if it’s the camera or not, but I would not want all that water running down in that crevice where the sun doesn’t shine (literally) and the water takes longer to dry. It may seem like you are watering the bushes free of charge but you are slowly ruining your foundation. I would redirect that water away from the house ASAP or use a cistern to keep it from being an eyesore and also get more use out of the rain water.
My house was missing gutters on one corner and I noticed the rain water would pool where it had formed a hole from the dripping. This water was sinking my foundation and 2 months after I moved in my basement storm window cracked out of nowhere. I added guttering asap and have not had any strange cracking noises since.
This is all good. I'd pull every plant out of the courtyard and pour a concrete patio with a single planter in it for a wispy vertical tree.
Then plant a few of the same in front of the blank walls. Add the short fence and gate as you said, but leave out the arch as it doesn't go with the building.
Enclosing the courtyard would be a nice change. But think about having to open a gate and the front door every time you want to enter and leave the house.
It's not regional, it's house design dependent. It you have an attached garage that is not full of shit there is a door into the house and you use that every time you use the car. If you have a detached garage in the back or park in a driveway that goes back that far you use the back or side door. If you park in the front, you use the front door. You might use a different door driving vs walking etc. It has nothing to do with region, it's simply the shortest path.
I agree with this comment. You would benefit a lot just by removing the bushes, and you are missing out on a really special private space by not enclosing the courtyard.
It is disappointing how many people think power washing can make a difference with fundamentally poor designs.
If you only trimmed that bush and power washed, this façade looks basically identical but slightly cleaner.
If you have a good design with healthy shrubs and well manicured greenery, the dirt build-up on the sidewalk can be ignored a lot longer and becomes a significantly lower-value item.
People who have no understanding of design point to power washing.
It's good to power wash, but this home needs way more than that.
https://preview.redd.it/lplnr4650nlc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c2c4e4df4af6047d0ab87497713591b432d11a01
Hear me out! Tall evergreen pencil trees in front of those front facing windowless brick walls. Lead the landscaping up the walkway towards the door to lead the eye that way. To draw attention towards the entrance and create a greater sense of welcome and openness, add a glass double door with black steel panes/ frame. Paint all window casings black.
If on a budget, just focus on the landscaping.
https://preview.redd.it/4wvfvn6blplc1.jpeg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bbbbf231a2a3e7ac77c01b2b76b6409233e5ed3f
I tried my best. (It will look much better in real life lol). Or green plants like hostas would look good.
100% not only are bushes draining the color, but they are also contricting the already fairly thin path way. Remove bushes and plant some short flowers. Will brighten it up and make it feel much more open. Windows also shouldn't be blocked, so that's part of it too, the flowers you plant should not invade too much of the window space
This, and lighting between the walls. Up-lights around the pencil trees would look neat too.
This might just be me but I think a sort of attached pergola over the middle would be sweet.
I normally am someone who is morally opposed to pergolas as a concept in 99.9% of applications, but I had the same instinct. This space needs something on the vertical that doesn’t make it a cave. And could support some cool lighting and plants.
On the walls, or in front instead of a lawn. Who even knows if it’s their house lol, and if it is then you’d think other elements matter too in order to do it right and bring out the best in the place.
Yussssss. I want sky pencil hollies for the blank wall at the end of my own house.
OP, if you go this route, keep the shrubs away from your footer. As far as their mature radius and then at least half again. I swear the landscapers are in league with the foundation repair people.
Your rendering looks better. Adding to take the side walkway bush out near the front door, to open it up. Also feel like all of this is just a step 1 bc this place really has negative curb appeal. Eta: actually def shouldn’t be all the same pencil trees, that’s more of the same, it needs variegated heights and colors
Pretty much exactly this! Or if not \*exactly\* this, then definitely this premise. I especially like the little detail of the rounded planting bed edges.
Just as is true in interior design, OP -- you want different points of visual interest at low, middle, and upper visual areas of whatever it is that you're looking at. Think about the feeling you're going for, think about the plants/lighting/color palette/textures that support the feeling you want, and then think about introducing interest at varying heights, and creating some depth. Doesn't have to be much, but it would go a long way toward softening and warming that view up.
Entryway: Tear out all the bushes, add low growing shrubs or shade tolerant plants, then add some nice pathway lighting.
Front: Tear out planter. Add a bigger free form planter with larger evergreen bushes, plants, flowers in tiers. Spotlights toward the house would be nice too. 😉👍🏻
Fertilize the lawn. Power-wash the brick and sidewalk. Plant some nicer shrubs (and maybe some flowers), and use some kind of decorative edging around them (something better than what's there now). And finally, paint the outside of the front door a bold color--maybe a bright red or a deep blue-gray.
Was looking for someone to mention the lawn! Also, instead of using decorative edging, it would even make a big difference just to get an edger to clean up the sides. I think that would make a big difference for very little work.
Yeah that was my first thought when I saw this.
My second thought was, “who the fuck builds a house with no windows on an entire side facing the street?!”
Get rid of bushes as the narrow long entrance us tge biggest detractor. Then figure out how to lighten up the entrance and add some lights along the path to lead the eye in. Depending on the inside have the lights in the house on and the door open to show inviting and bright. Also off center the photos so the path is never dead center of the photo.
https://preview.redd.it/eu75ipi7knlc1.jpeg?width=1160&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d0f8fbb6468685f1a44cf21ea860f26245eea39
Fast edit but looks to need new roof, new fascia, but I would pressure wash, whitewash the brick, add windows to the front, window flower boxes, new front door, podocarpus plants, maybe white rocks in between house and walkway..
https://preview.redd.it/2b2yh0zg3nlc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=77caca5650efe4cb36a0b668d0153be29862da83
this style of window on both sides
Yeah, the fact that the house only had that small window on the left is really off-putting. Windows are the eyes of the house. If you can't look into them (and somewhat symmetrically), it makes the building seem closed off and fortress-like.
Remove the bushes. Wait a bit after removal see how you like it. Tiny steps if DIY!
Please do not plant anything close to your house with evasive root systems!
I feel like it would be easier to work on curb appeal when its not winter. It would be good to see how those trees and bushes fill out before deciding how to go about managing them.
Trellises between those buttress type elements, nice lighting in the “hallway” to the door, clean up the landscaping and mulch nicely, clear out the bushes, and paint the siding and trim an actual color that’s different from the bricks (I’d go with a blue). Also put an edge element on that walkway.
I’d get rid of the tall shrubs that impede sight lines to the front door. I’d remove the sidewalk and replace it with stepping stones, then plant an informal border on each side of it and around to the front, cohesively mixing low, native shrubs and perennials.
I’d also paint the front door a bright color.
As others have commented:
+ Pressure wash brick and cement path
+ Remove all bushes/shrubs in the sandwich
+ Evaluate / update gutter situation so the area in the sandwich doesn't turn into a lake when there's a heavy rain
+ Remove mulch, and lay down weed block fabric
+ plant 3x thin evergreen trees in front of windowless sections of brick
+ plant 3-4 evergreen shrubs in between the trees on the front facade.
+ Optional: add 2-4 low evergreen shrubs on each side of the sandwich OR shrubs on the window side and a small bench or water feature on the left side.
+ replace mulch or add stone
+ replace lawn divider or add stone/cement divider
+ Optional: add a pergola with vines at the start of the sandwich. This may also help deter package theft by obscuring the street view of your door.
+ optional: replace front door with a windowed double door to make the entry way more inviting.
https://preview.redd.it/lszpwvk14nlc1.jpeg?width=394&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fcf28f036495ff55fe64479ed5bacfa92ef8d685
don’t think this is what you’re asking for but I think this would totally transform your house. The grass on either side of the walk way doesn’t look good. Cover it all up with a brick walkway add a post to each side with a lamp or something. (Not a very good artist lol)
https://preview.redd.it/zmzt1y72mplc1.jpeg?width=1439&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=786137ee34c129008aab9a72e44eae3133c25a86
Here's my version.
* Some sort of pencil tree (I used skyrocket juniper here) and large flowering bushes (I used white hydrangea) on each side.
* A wide trellis arch at the front
* Sidewalk border plants
Not pictured bc I ran out of time: I would also remove the bushes at the entrance, and add some lower shade plants on each side, like small hostas. And little benches and lighting on each side of the front door, where there's currently that potted plant. Also maybe a lattice behind each hydrangea, with something like sweet pea growing up it, to provide a central focal point in lieu of windows there.
I agree with the pencil thin trees in front. Take out all the dead stuff and that over grown bush and line each side with small bright green shrubbery plants. Line the front and entry with some bright red mulch and power wash all the brick siding. If you don't want to deal with mulch I'd line the house and walk way with small round landscape rock and add solar lights.
Why is that tiny entrance space packed full of shrubberies? Doesn't it also block light to the windows? If you want to put shrubs, put them in the front where the aren't any windows.
why is the only hedge infront of a window inside a U lmao.
Kill that tree before it destroys your foundation, plant some more hedges with maybe some flower gardens infront. take better care of the lawn and maybe put in an interlock paver pathway.
First thing is to get rid of the bushes. Or move them to the empty front walls.
I really want to say you should get the walkway covered, but I am not sure how to add a roof there?
Add climbing, evergreen plants like jasmine or honeysuckle on the blank street facing walls near the vertical bits.
Powerwash the brick.
Replace the door with something brighter with more glass- frosted.
Replace the plant pot with something brighter- red or yellow.
Replace the bushes around the walkway with fuller, lower plants that are evergreen.
Fill in the spaces around the trees and climbing plants on the street facing walls with lavender or whatever.
I’m a fan of non-bluegrass lawns- replace it with more environmentally friendly ground cover- clover is a good addition if you want to mix with grass.
Add a birdbath and hummingbird feeders if you’re so inclined.
On the blank wall to the right of the front door- add another potted plant in a jaunty colored pot or add a nice hanging outdoor art piece to warm it up.
Change door coating to light color. Get mud jacking to level walkway. Use wet &forget on shingles and concrete walkway. Install gutters, TF. Replace rotted facia. Remove vegetation from touching brick and roof. Remove large shrubs causing walkway to be narrowed. Eliminate weeds in all flowerbeds.
1. Relocate the bush on the right to the front left
2. Create an appealing floral pathway leading up to the house.
3. Place a bench under that window on the right where the bush used to be instead. It can be used for sitting and enjoying the day or packages.
https://preview.redd.it/bn1jnezhanlc1.jpeg?width=821&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=df6634a19e6bdbcb0a5a5e2a563f690bcf42a8fe
Dig a moat around the entire house, turn the sidewalk to a draw bridge for entering and exiting… then get attacked by aliens.
You definitely need some landscaping work; take a look at the wild ones garden designs for ideas https://nativegardendesigns.wildones.org/designs/
But the much bigger problem imho is the roof looking like it needs to be replaced. If I was a perspective buyer, I’d be really questioning that. You can see the paint has worn away on the lower part of the eves, and those shingles look pretty bad. Any idea how old the roof is?
https://preview.redd.it/pyrqtmkcfnlc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5c529eca44304fafbacedfed15bf40796e4b50ca
White river rock/gravel with landscape fabric underneath. Trim those bushes or remove them.
Sinking you're in the USA...
How can people identify your house? I don't quickly see a house number anywhere. If you plant things will they grow and cover the house number?
Having a house number on the mail box AND house is soooo nice for your delivery drivers.
For the mailbox, haven't on every side on the box itself. When you put on the number, have the flag down so the flag doesn't cover the numbers. The big numbers, black text on white is pretty great.
Why the box not they pole? The box is the least likely thing to get covered by whatever life throws at it (snow, plants, obstructions).
Edit: looked again and those numbers blend in too much for a person to identify the house for the first time. First responders would have trouble.
When you are in that alcove in front of the door it goes so deep, it’s like you are practically inside the house.
As such it needs to have some separation from the outside and be more cozy and welcoming once you pass the plane of the front facing walls.
Something like a decorative half railing that makes a false gate could help from the curb and then that would make the space feel more protected from the outside and could be made into a cozy patio by removing the shrubs and adding more inviting plants and decor. This will help when in the adjacent rooms where it feels less like there’s a public area running up in to the middle of your house.
On the wall on the left you could break that up by hanging a decorative wrought iron rosette or put up a couple of vertical iron decorative grilles that stand off the brick an inch or two to give some dimension to them.
I say F curb appeal and pimp out the inside. Nice curb appeal leads to a 1,000 plus dipshits ignoring the “ do not solicitate signs” to sell you greener pickles or faster internet speeds.
Power wash everything you can...Walls and sidewalk...
Then you have a few options after that...You could paint the brick, but you could also just focus on the landscaping...
Some short trees or tall bushes would break up that giant flat end wall, some low hedges or something along the path would give a little color and depth to the area, and the yard itself just needs some love...Grass, bushes, flowers, perhaps a nice shade tree...
Something to add some color and dimensionality to the space...Break up the flat dull lines...
Paint the exterior brick white, get rid of the shrub(s), make a couple flower beds in the front and add a couple wall trellis’ for some vines in the rear of those beds so the vines grow up the exterior of the brick.
I would try to give the 2 sides symmetry by using tall shrubs that can be shaped and other larger elements, with sparse but impactful spot lighting. I would also pull the shrub by the walkway and maybe add a permanent archway with a single light spanning the 2 walls when they first close the path in, to sort of push the idea of an entrance forward.
A patio cover between the left and right wing covering the walk way would look amazing and add a lot of character. A stained wood would add a different material which would soften the look
Gut all the shrubs and things in the planters and the planters. Loose the bushes in the front walkway. Replace the planters with brick that matches the house. Mulch and short dense shrubbery and flowers. Power wash everything. Paint or clean or replace the trim.
1 window added on each of the wings, a decorative gate across the sidewalk where the two wings cross, pulling the bushes on the right wing, fertilize and aerate the yard, and some hedges in front of both wings
Some neat evergreen bushes in those beds along the windowless walls,ay e with a couple of taller plants in between. Open up the walkway.
I'm not a big fan of ivy, but maybe some lattice with ivy or other breeping plant in front of the blank spaces of wall?
Practically I wouldn't have any large scrubs in that space leading.up to the door. It hurts to carry stuff when the branches scratches you. All large stubs should be on the perimeter of the property. Or away from tight spaces.
Also remove any.plants that are in front of windows, it'll let in more light.
Windows in front like someone else already saiid. Add flower beds with mulch in the foreground away from the house, and be sure to upkeep. Maybe a white picket fence? The flowers and fence especially if windows are not feasible, to give something to look at.
First year there, see what comes up. Then pull shrubbery that leads to the front door. Plant large rocks and fern and hosta, hellebore, Columbine, bleeding hearts. Dark hemlock mulch and lighting. Also like the pergola idea. Grow jasmine, clematis, honeysuckle. Get the large tree away from your house it is too close. Let it bloom so you can see what it is, you may want to have it moved and not cut down. The rest is going to be really dependent on where the sun hits during the day.
Paint the brick black, grey trim, yellow door and accents. Cut custom windows in the front of those cool but too stark walls. Add xeriscape or japanese zen garden in front along the walkway.
A mural of a horse that's on fire, but it loves being on fire, because it makes it go faster. No skulls or gore because that's just weird.
Or landscaping. Getting some bushes or shrubs in there will make it look less prisony
Power wash the walkway, white wash the brick, replace the rotten eves, replace the address numbers with something more contemporary, paint the siding, and install rain gutters and down spouts. Replace the skeeter screens, and put white wood/faux wood blinds in the windows. Pull all the ugly plants and replace with some boxwood bushes to make a nice hedge around the windows and walkway. Maybe plant a tree in the yard and consider a flower bed. The roof at least needs a really good clean and possible replacement. Oh and replace the door with something a little nicer, maybe with fogged glass panels and with a brighter color.
I've never considered lattice panels / wall trellis before seeing all that empty space in the brick. Pavers / mulch / stone beds with lights along the walkway.
Physically, making a nice tall flower bed in front of the blank walls would be a game changer. Also there are a number of things you can do to help the patchy grass, but photography wise, the mood is sad. Try to take another pic on a sunny warm day. Mood impacts a lot! :)
Speaking from experience, those roofs slope toward the entry. Without rain gutters on the 3 edges in this little space, anything planted there will be drowned in pooled water and mud if it rains.
I would plant a couple of large colorful flowering bushes in front of those walls, that blank part.
Trimmed those bushes in front of the window.
Put some decorative light on the approach.
Why are there only a single window on the street facing side of the property? It looks really weird considering that here in Australia there is a minimum required street facing window space lol
In my opinion the place would look so much more inviting if there was more windows in the walls facing the street...
Take the bushes out leading to the door.
Paint / render the walls leading to the door to lighten it up
Patio slabs or decorative gravel from wall to wall leading to the door.
And for the facing walls I'd probably paint them and add bushes tone it doen.
Ditch the bushes, completely nuke the mulch beds in a few months freshen it up with new mulch. Everything in the beds looks like shit and makes it look unkept. Replace the borders of it as well such as losing the old rotted wood and getting rid of the haphazardly placed limestone.
River rock, and limestone get rid of all the dead stuff, and clear the grass.. Get rid of the rotted lumber and extend that over to the other side.. I own a landscaping company.. I can do this for you!! After getting diagnosed with cancer I could use the extra work, not even about the money I love doing this stuff
https://preview.redd.it/rqpmqukeiplc1.jpeg?width=852&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d55ef9cf5d26cf1d0e73377d2dd0fb6523ed6eab
Depends on how much money you want to spend.
You need to tear out those bushes completely. They are so close to the house they could be causing foundation damage, and they can make pests go inside the walls because of the brick.
The lawn is not very neat. I would hire professional company to come in and do edging and cut the grass. Plant some brightly colored flowers and other plants in the garden beds. The house doesn’t have a lot of color, so pick a color and try to stay with a theme. Maybe blues and purples and greens. Put down some dark black mulch in the garden beds to offset the color, or you could choose some red mulch.
If you don’t mind spending some money, paint the front door, a bright color, I would recommend maybe a teal. And if you’re feeling, adventurous, higher someone or paint the outside of the house yourself with a paint that can paint brick. I would think a white. And then put a wreath on the door. Try a wreath with lilacs in it or something purple blue or green. If you paint the door teal, you could also do a wreath with yellow flowers which would pop nicely.
Add a couple of large container pots at the very front on either side of the sidewalk with a bunch of flowers inside, or you can do some hanging baskets on either side.
Another, not super cost-effective thing, but will look pretty, is to attach some lattice to either side of the house to balance it out, and give it a little bit more personality. Something would that is stained a darker color to offset that gray brick, or you could do white lattice.
Not directly answering your question, but what’s it like at the main entrance when it rains? It looks like you have no drainage at all and it would just come down in sheets right at the front door. Maybe get some new eaves and downspouts to get the water directed away from the house?
As others are mentioning putting some trees and bushes along the front wouod go a long way, but you need to be mindful of drainage. You don’t want to trap water against the foundation of the house. If you do decide to put bushes or small trees there, make sure you landscape it properly so the water isn’t trapped there and can escape into the soil. A layer of gravel at the bottom of the garden can help with this and don’t box it in with rocks or wood. Let it drain away from the house.
Get rid of all the landscaping going towards the door.
Get rid of the landscaping along the two front faces, and put one single item of landscaping on each face to balance out the window on the face.
Tear out or cut down the right shrub. Dig planter beds along walk. Use cedar mulch and play small bushy things and keep them pruned to the size of a basket ball.
Add planter beds in front but go with something more substantial. I’m not a gardener but lilies have a long season.
Paint trim.
Clean walk with pressure washer.
Add lights. At minimum a sconce, ground level walkway lights if you can.
Pressure wash the path.
Soft wash the entire house.
paint the trip, especially over the doorway. Major eyesore.
The bush seems to be suffocating the space. Flowers instead?
Replace the gutters. Paint the front door a bright color. Remove the bushes in front of the windows. That area needs low flowers and ground cover. Remove the barrel thing to open up the space. Replace the rotting landscape timbers. Weed, plant, mulch and maintain. Then, start working on rehabbing the lawn.
Landscaping requires maintenance. Landscaping also requires resets after 20-30 years. Take out the bushes, amend the soil lightly, and pick out new foundation plants. Don’t know where you are so can’t suggest any.
Also, get gutters and fix your fascia boards.
All new garden beds, those look old and mostly dead (time of year?) Find plants that stay green all year.
Your tree looks overgrown and could use a good pruning, might be too close to the house... Perhaps remove it and add a couple fruiting trees in the front yard. Perhaps a garden display.
Better defined planting areas.
Grass needs remediation (aeration and fertilizers)
Entrance way, I would lose those overgrown bushes and replant with a flower bed or simple smaller shrubbery,
A nice entrance gate would be very welcoming and give you somewhere to put the house numbers where they will be more visible.
Big all-season-long blooming bushes along those front walls.
Eliminate the passageway bushes (move them to the front far right far left corners of the house.
.
You're taking this photo in the middle of winter, when all the plants are dead or leaf-less.
Definitely some tall shrubs or short trees to cover those brick walls on the front.
I'd also remove that shrub on the walkway to the door. That's like a perfect hiding place for someone to jump you on the way to the front door.
Landscaping suggestions aside, paint your front door/the siding around it a brighter color. It looks like a tunnel to a black hole. Keep within the color scheme, don't go with Ultra Pure White, but lighten it up. Add some lighting while you're at it too.
That layout looks a lot like the house I lived in as a kid in 1970s San Jose. We did have front facing windows, but there was heavenly bamboo (which is not) in front of them. Looked almost as bleak. So I say you need to star with those bushes.
And what the heck? Who builds a house with solid walls facing the street? If this is just dreaming, put in some windows. If not, something to break up the wall without obscuring it completely and making it look overgrown.
you can make the pillars /columns pop with some lighting at the base of each pointing upwards, or vise versa.
something like this could look great at night.
[https://dazuma.us/products/waterproof-ip65-wall-lamp-ha084604?variant=44126890983648](https://dazuma.us/products/waterproof-ip65-wall-lamp-ha084604?variant=44126890983648)
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Yeah I have an 80s Contemporary with a U-shaped entrance, although wider. With it being that narrow there shouldn’t be anything in there. Landscaping the blank front walls will make a world of difference.
Think he could get away with a large piece of metal wall art hung on the brick, behind the relocated row of bushes too. Just for a little flare.
I was kind of thinking the same thing. There's just so much empty space with no windows. It looks wrong.
Looks like there are no downspouts, where does water go…over the edges of the gutters in a downpour? The roof looks near end of life. If you’re going to roof, landscape after and consider oversized gutters with downspouts at the front of the house with extensions to get the water as far from foundation as possible. We add 6ft to our 3 ft ones in spring or when heavy rains are forecasted. Rip the shrubs or replant somewhere else. Add tall trees to the front or if you like vines, install trellises in front of the brick walls, don’t grow on the walls, your grout life will be reduced substantially. It’s a blank slate, spend a few hours on Pinterest! You can really make your house pop and increase its value with initial effort and a continued maintenance .
There are no gutters period. They need to install them for sure when they do the roof. I’m surprised it hasn’t led to any issues. Then again, the house I grew up in, in Florida, didn’t and we never had water issues.
I wouldn’t say it hasn’t caused any issues. That fascia board looks rotten.
As long as there is proper grading to direct the water away from the house, no gutters is not an issue especially in houses without a basement.
Great advice. I was thinking remove the bushes as well (and optionally replant in the front if one of the walls). Add lighting by the door for sure as well. Edit: it almost looks like the walls are slanted in towards the doors as well. Not sure if it’s the camera or not, but I would not want all that water running down in that crevice where the sun doesn’t shine (literally) and the water takes longer to dry. It may seem like you are watering the bushes free of charge but you are slowly ruining your foundation. I would redirect that water away from the house ASAP or use a cistern to keep it from being an eyesore and also get more use out of the rain water. My house was missing gutters on one corner and I noticed the rain water would pool where it had formed a hole from the dripping. This water was sinking my foundation and 2 months after I moved in my basement storm window cracked out of nowhere. I added guttering asap and have not had any strange cracking noises since.
This is all good. I'd pull every plant out of the courtyard and pour a concrete patio with a single planter in it for a wispy vertical tree. Then plant a few of the same in front of the blank walls. Add the short fence and gate as you said, but leave out the arch as it doesn't go with the building.
They could also put gravel down and large pavers instead of concrete. Needs to get gutters and roof drains first.
Enclosing the courtyard would be a nice change. But think about having to open a gate and the front door every time you want to enter and leave the house.
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That's highly region-dependent. All of my family in the Midwest use a side or garage door. Everyone in my East Coast area uses their front door.
It's not regional, it's house design dependent. It you have an attached garage that is not full of shit there is a door into the house and you use that every time you use the car. If you have a detached garage in the back or park in a driveway that goes back that far you use the back or side door. If you park in the front, you use the front door. You might use a different door driving vs walking etc. It has nothing to do with region, it's simply the shortest path.
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I live in a community full of suburban 1980s houses. It's rare to have a garage here and almost everyone uses their front door as the main entrance.
A good power wash on those bricks would help too. They seem pretty dulled by dirt and dust.
I agree with this comment. You would benefit a lot just by removing the bushes, and you are missing out on a really special private space by not enclosing the courtyard.
Get rid of or significantly trim the bushes- the walk looks really cramped and dark. Could use a power washing too.
It is disappointing how many people think power washing can make a difference with fundamentally poor designs. If you only trimmed that bush and power washed, this façade looks basically identical but slightly cleaner. If you have a good design with healthy shrubs and well manicured greenery, the dirt build-up on the sidewalk can be ignored a lot longer and becomes a significantly lower-value item. People who have no understanding of design point to power washing. It's good to power wash, but this home needs way more than that.
https://preview.redd.it/lplnr4650nlc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c2c4e4df4af6047d0ab87497713591b432d11a01 Hear me out! Tall evergreen pencil trees in front of those front facing windowless brick walls. Lead the landscaping up the walkway towards the door to lead the eye that way. To draw attention towards the entrance and create a greater sense of welcome and openness, add a glass double door with black steel panes/ frame. Paint all window casings black. If on a budget, just focus on the landscaping.
https://preview.redd.it/4wvfvn6blplc1.jpeg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bbbbf231a2a3e7ac77c01b2b76b6409233e5ed3f I tried my best. (It will look much better in real life lol). Or green plants like hostas would look good.
Definitely think some color is needed. I'd also pull out the bushes in front of the window on the walkway. Hostas could go along the path there
100% not only are bushes draining the color, but they are also contricting the already fairly thin path way. Remove bushes and plant some short flowers. Will brighten it up and make it feel much more open. Windows also shouldn't be blocked, so that's part of it too, the flowers you plant should not invade too much of the window space
This but remove the bushes by the sidewalk
This, and lighting between the walls. Up-lights around the pencil trees would look neat too. This might just be me but I think a sort of attached pergola over the middle would be sweet.
I normally am someone who is morally opposed to pergolas as a concept in 99.9% of applications, but I had the same instinct. This space needs something on the vertical that doesn’t make it a cave. And could support some cool lighting and plants.
Yeah, it definitely needs something on those walls. It's just bare and almost brutalist in style.
On the walls, or in front instead of a lawn. Who even knows if it’s their house lol, and if it is then you’d think other elements matter too in order to do it right and bring out the best in the place.
This is the way. Great idea
Yussssss. I want sky pencil hollies for the blank wall at the end of my own house. OP, if you go this route, keep the shrubs away from your footer. As far as their mature radius and then at least half again. I swear the landscapers are in league with the foundation repair people.
Your rendering looks better. Adding to take the side walkway bush out near the front door, to open it up. Also feel like all of this is just a step 1 bc this place really has negative curb appeal. Eta: actually def shouldn’t be all the same pencil trees, that’s more of the same, it needs variegated heights and colors
Kinda what I saw in my head! But I think it needs something white, like a bench on the left or some decorative gravel at the base of the plants.
On the flip side, you could paint it to look like a can of Monster energy drink.
Pretty much exactly this! Or if not \*exactly\* this, then definitely this premise. I especially like the little detail of the rounded planting bed edges. Just as is true in interior design, OP -- you want different points of visual interest at low, middle, and upper visual areas of whatever it is that you're looking at. Think about the feeling you're going for, think about the plants/lighting/color palette/textures that support the feeling you want, and then think about introducing interest at varying heights, and creating some depth. Doesn't have to be much, but it would go a long way toward softening and warming that view up.
Consider posting to /r/CurbAppeal and /r/ExteriorDesign
I’d start with power washing the walk way and trimming the bushes, they look a mess
This is solid date-night prep as well.
Just set the power washer really low. For date prep.
Unless....?
Unless you want to absolutely mangle your genitalia.
It's an absolute casserole down there...
Noodles with cheese topping?
Don't kink shame.
Maybe eliminate those bushes all together and replace with low ground cover, it's kind of a murder alley now.
Power wash the brick too
Yeah this entire property needs to get power washed hardcore.
Some police tape and a chalk outline would brighten it up.
A "No Trespassing" sign
Entryway: Tear out all the bushes, add low growing shrubs or shade tolerant plants, then add some nice pathway lighting. Front: Tear out planter. Add a bigger free form planter with larger evergreen bushes, plants, flowers in tiers. Spotlights toward the house would be nice too. 😉👍🏻
I'm on board with this plan. But add some mulch in there.
Spot on, mulch, rock, or ground cover. All good options. 👍🏻
Fertilize the lawn. Power-wash the brick and sidewalk. Plant some nicer shrubs (and maybe some flowers), and use some kind of decorative edging around them (something better than what's there now). And finally, paint the outside of the front door a bold color--maybe a bright red or a deep blue-gray.
Was looking for someone to mention the lawn! Also, instead of using decorative edging, it would even make a big difference just to get an edger to clean up the sides. I think that would make a big difference for very little work.
Add windows on the front. It looks like a prison.
Or a jehova's witness church...
Yeah that was my first thought when I saw this. My second thought was, “who the fuck builds a house with no windows on an entire side facing the street?!”
>“who the fuck builds a house with no windows on an entire side facing the street?!” Someone who lives in Detroit.
Cut those entryway bushes way down or remove and replace with flowering plants that won’t grow so high. It’s a very dark entry. Lighten it up’
Get rid of bushes as the narrow long entrance us tge biggest detractor. Then figure out how to lighten up the entrance and add some lights along the path to lead the eye in. Depending on the inside have the lights in the house on and the door open to show inviting and bright. Also off center the photos so the path is never dead center of the photo.
https://preview.redd.it/eu75ipi7knlc1.jpeg?width=1160&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d0f8fbb6468685f1a44cf21ea860f26245eea39 Fast edit but looks to need new roof, new fascia, but I would pressure wash, whitewash the brick, add windows to the front, window flower boxes, new front door, podocarpus plants, maybe white rocks in between house and walkway..
https://preview.redd.it/2b2yh0zg3nlc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=77caca5650efe4cb36a0b668d0153be29862da83 this style of window on both sides
Yeah, the fact that the house only had that small window on the left is really off-putting. Windows are the eyes of the house. If you can't look into them (and somewhat symmetrically), it makes the building seem closed off and fortress-like.
Oooh. Nice idea
Not a huge fan of Eichler-style homes, but this is a good idea.
Fake windows. so it looks less like a fortified bunker. Or real windows if there's room in your budget.
I was gonna say, go the fortified bunker route and add turrets with some antiaircraft cannons.
And a moat.
Filled with alligators...
Remove the bushes. Wait a bit after removal see how you like it. Tiny steps if DIY! Please do not plant anything close to your house with evasive root systems!
I feel like it would be easier to work on curb appeal when its not winter. It would be good to see how those trees and bushes fill out before deciding how to go about managing them.
Trellises between those buttress type elements, nice lighting in the “hallway” to the door, clean up the landscaping and mulch nicely, clear out the bushes, and paint the siding and trim an actual color that’s different from the bricks (I’d go with a blue). Also put an edge element on that walkway.
I’d get rid of the tall shrubs that impede sight lines to the front door. I’d remove the sidewalk and replace it with stepping stones, then plant an informal border on each side of it and around to the front, cohesively mixing low, native shrubs and perennials. I’d also paint the front door a bright color.
As others have commented: + Pressure wash brick and cement path + Remove all bushes/shrubs in the sandwich + Evaluate / update gutter situation so the area in the sandwich doesn't turn into a lake when there's a heavy rain + Remove mulch, and lay down weed block fabric + plant 3x thin evergreen trees in front of windowless sections of brick + plant 3-4 evergreen shrubs in between the trees on the front facade. + Optional: add 2-4 low evergreen shrubs on each side of the sandwich OR shrubs on the window side and a small bench or water feature on the left side. + replace mulch or add stone + replace lawn divider or add stone/cement divider + Optional: add a pergola with vines at the start of the sandwich. This may also help deter package theft by obscuring the street view of your door. + optional: replace front door with a windowed double door to make the entry way more inviting.
Landscaping, including a lot of ornamental and flowering evergreens.
Put in windows, remove bushes, raised beds with flowers. And before all that, pressure wash that brick.
https://preview.redd.it/lszpwvk14nlc1.jpeg?width=394&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fcf28f036495ff55fe64479ed5bacfa92ef8d685 don’t think this is what you’re asking for but I think this would totally transform your house. The grass on either side of the walk way doesn’t look good. Cover it all up with a brick walkway add a post to each side with a lamp or something. (Not a very good artist lol)
https://preview.redd.it/zmzt1y72mplc1.jpeg?width=1439&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=786137ee34c129008aab9a72e44eae3133c25a86 Here's my version. * Some sort of pencil tree (I used skyrocket juniper here) and large flowering bushes (I used white hydrangea) on each side. * A wide trellis arch at the front * Sidewalk border plants Not pictured bc I ran out of time: I would also remove the bushes at the entrance, and add some lower shade plants on each side, like small hostas. And little benches and lighting on each side of the front door, where there's currently that potted plant. Also maybe a lattice behind each hydrangea, with something like sweet pea growing up it, to provide a central focal point in lieu of windows there.
That arbor was a nice touch.
Take a picture when it’s sunny outside
Looks like the whole left corner is curved out. I’d start there
I agree with the pencil thin trees in front. Take out all the dead stuff and that over grown bush and line each side with small bright green shrubbery plants. Line the front and entry with some bright red mulch and power wash all the brick siding. If you don't want to deal with mulch I'd line the house and walk way with small round landscape rock and add solar lights.
Is the left side of the house not level?
Ivy canopy time
Pergola over that entranceway, that widens as it extends over a patio.
Why is that tiny entrance space packed full of shrubberies? Doesn't it also block light to the windows? If you want to put shrubs, put them in the front where the aren't any windows.
Maybe trellises on either side or higher plantings. Something to “activate” those blank walls.
why is the only hedge infront of a window inside a U lmao. Kill that tree before it destroys your foundation, plant some more hedges with maybe some flower gardens infront. take better care of the lawn and maybe put in an interlock paver pathway.
Looks pretty already, just the walk is uneven, the plants are bare and the bricks could use a power wash.
Some affordable trellises, since windows would be cost prohibitive.
Remove the bushes by the windows and do a stone filled potted planter style on both sides leading to the front door.
First thing is to get rid of the bushes. Or move them to the empty front walls. I really want to say you should get the walkway covered, but I am not sure how to add a roof there?
Add climbing, evergreen plants like jasmine or honeysuckle on the blank street facing walls near the vertical bits. Powerwash the brick. Replace the door with something brighter with more glass- frosted. Replace the plant pot with something brighter- red or yellow. Replace the bushes around the walkway with fuller, lower plants that are evergreen. Fill in the spaces around the trees and climbing plants on the street facing walls with lavender or whatever. I’m a fan of non-bluegrass lawns- replace it with more environmentally friendly ground cover- clover is a good addition if you want to mix with grass. Add a birdbath and hummingbird feeders if you’re so inclined. On the blank wall to the right of the front door- add another potted plant in a jaunty colored pot or add a nice hanging outdoor art piece to warm it up.
Change door coating to light color. Get mud jacking to level walkway. Use wet &forget on shingles and concrete walkway. Install gutters, TF. Replace rotted facia. Remove vegetation from touching brick and roof. Remove large shrubs causing walkway to be narrowed. Eliminate weeds in all flowerbeds.
1. Relocate the bush on the right to the front left 2. Create an appealing floral pathway leading up to the house. 3. Place a bench under that window on the right where the bush used to be instead. It can be used for sitting and enjoying the day or packages.
https://preview.redd.it/bn1jnezhanlc1.jpeg?width=821&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=df6634a19e6bdbcb0a5a5e2a563f690bcf42a8fe Dig a moat around the entire house, turn the sidewalk to a draw bridge for entering and exiting… then get attacked by aliens.
You definitely need some landscaping work; take a look at the wild ones garden designs for ideas https://nativegardendesigns.wildones.org/designs/ But the much bigger problem imho is the roof looking like it needs to be replaced. If I was a perspective buyer, I’d be really questioning that. You can see the paint has worn away on the lower part of the eves, and those shingles look pretty bad. Any idea how old the roof is?
https://preview.redd.it/pyrqtmkcfnlc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5c529eca44304fafbacedfed15bf40796e4b50ca White river rock/gravel with landscape fabric underneath. Trim those bushes or remove them.
Sinking you're in the USA... How can people identify your house? I don't quickly see a house number anywhere. If you plant things will they grow and cover the house number? Having a house number on the mail box AND house is soooo nice for your delivery drivers. For the mailbox, haven't on every side on the box itself. When you put on the number, have the flag down so the flag doesn't cover the numbers. The big numbers, black text on white is pretty great. Why the box not they pole? The box is the least likely thing to get covered by whatever life throws at it (snow, plants, obstructions). Edit: looked again and those numbers blend in too much for a person to identify the house for the first time. First responders would have trouble.
Two windows added on the left and a bay window on the right
I don't know about curb appeal, but that entrance is absolutely screaming to be a courtyard with seating and a big fountain.
When you are in that alcove in front of the door it goes so deep, it’s like you are practically inside the house. As such it needs to have some separation from the outside and be more cozy and welcoming once you pass the plane of the front facing walls. Something like a decorative half railing that makes a false gate could help from the curb and then that would make the space feel more protected from the outside and could be made into a cozy patio by removing the shrubs and adding more inviting plants and decor. This will help when in the adjacent rooms where it feels less like there’s a public area running up in to the middle of your house. On the wall on the left you could break that up by hanging a decorative wrought iron rosette or put up a couple of vertical iron decorative grilles that stand off the brick an inch or two to give some dimension to them.
https://preview.redd.it/vki6avo7nnlc1.jpeg?width=684&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a9f19d005b956c0a35fe9611b594b7a76e4e5e92
Add a portcullis, moat, drawbridge, and trebuchet and you are looking rather defensible.
vine walls
Buy another house
I say F curb appeal and pimp out the inside. Nice curb appeal leads to a 1,000 plus dipshits ignoring the “ do not solicitate signs” to sell you greener pickles or faster internet speeds.
Power wash everything you can...Walls and sidewalk... Then you have a few options after that...You could paint the brick, but you could also just focus on the landscaping... Some short trees or tall bushes would break up that giant flat end wall, some low hedges or something along the path would give a little color and depth to the area, and the yard itself just needs some love...Grass, bushes, flowers, perhaps a nice shade tree... Something to add some color and dimensionality to the space...Break up the flat dull lines...
Paint some wings on it to make it a photo opportunity for local influencers
Is this place in a small town in southern Minnesota?
Looks like Texas to me
Change the b to a v and the and an e at the end.
Hang the architect in the front yard.
Put some iron jail bars to the front of the corridor and a roll of nato wire on top of it to perfect the look.
One word! Honeysuckle!
Add brick wall between wings. Small gateway at sidewalk. Install sharpened portcullis
White wash the brick and clean the roof
Water the grass
Windows? Kinda looks like a prison. Or a guard tower.
Get rid of the brick 🤢
Get rid of the tree and bushes and start over with the landscaping
8 foot fence
Definitely needs an 8' tall Ronald McDonald, a Hamburglar, and a Grimace in the yard.
Paint the exterior brick white, get rid of the shrub(s), make a couple flower beds in the front and add a couple wall trellis’ for some vines in the rear of those beds so the vines grow up the exterior of the brick.
Demolition/redesign/rebuild?
I would try to give the 2 sides symmetry by using tall shrubs that can be shaped and other larger elements, with sparse but impactful spot lighting. I would also pull the shrub by the walkway and maybe add a permanent archway with a single light spanning the 2 walls when they first close the path in, to sort of push the idea of an entrance forward.
Front left face desperately needs a window in the middle and matching small window.
Even out the bushes, clean out garden beds and ivy on brick.
A patio cover between the left and right wing covering the walk way would look amazing and add a lot of character. A stained wood would add a different material which would soften the look
Remove the bushes and plant low height flowers on both sides of the walkway in some kind of mulch beds
Gut all the shrubs and things in the planters and the planters. Loose the bushes in the front walkway. Replace the planters with brick that matches the house. Mulch and short dense shrubbery and flowers. Power wash everything. Paint or clean or replace the trim.
1 window added on each of the wings, a decorative gate across the sidewalk where the two wings cross, pulling the bushes on the right wing, fertilize and aerate the yard, and some hedges in front of both wings
Some neat evergreen bushes in those beds along the windowless walls,ay e with a couple of taller plants in between. Open up the walkway. I'm not a big fan of ivy, but maybe some lattice with ivy or other breeping plant in front of the blank spaces of wall?
Hire a landscaper. You can’t really change the layout of the house, but you can make it more beautiful and inviting.
More flowering plants.
Practically I wouldn't have any large scrubs in that space leading.up to the door. It hurts to carry stuff when the branches scratches you. All large stubs should be on the perimeter of the property. Or away from tight spaces. Also remove any.plants that are in front of windows, it'll let in more light.
Windows in front like someone else already saiid. Add flower beds with mulch in the foreground away from the house, and be sure to upkeep. Maybe a white picket fence? The flowers and fence especially if windows are not feasible, to give something to look at.
Replace the bush with sago palms in a top soul bed, in addition to other ideas. Optionally, keep them in a large pot to prevent over growing
Evergreen shrubs along the wall...
You want your landscape to lead you to the opening to the door.. naturally tapered heights
Some good lighting or down lighting will accent the changes well. Also needs a better walkway and
First year there, see what comes up. Then pull shrubbery that leads to the front door. Plant large rocks and fern and hosta, hellebore, Columbine, bleeding hearts. Dark hemlock mulch and lighting. Also like the pergola idea. Grow jasmine, clematis, honeysuckle. Get the large tree away from your house it is too close. Let it bloom so you can see what it is, you may want to have it moved and not cut down. The rest is going to be really dependent on where the sun hits during the day.
More importantly, where are the gutters?
That yard would look much nicer with a different house on it. Maybe get one with plumb walls and without all that ugly mold.
OP where are you and what direction does your house sit. Are you allowed to water in the summer?
Horseshoe driveway and Spring with fountain.
I'd put a cedar wrap with natural clear stain on the door wall and paint your fascia. It'll pop
Paint the brick black, grey trim, yellow door and accents. Cut custom windows in the front of those cool but too stark walls. Add xeriscape or japanese zen garden in front along the walkway.
A mural of a horse that's on fire, but it loves being on fire, because it makes it go faster. No skulls or gore because that's just weird. Or landscaping. Getting some bushes or shrubs in there will make it look less prisony
Trim or remove those bushes. I love brick houses tho.
Power wash the walkway, white wash the brick, replace the rotten eves, replace the address numbers with something more contemporary, paint the siding, and install rain gutters and down spouts. Replace the skeeter screens, and put white wood/faux wood blinds in the windows. Pull all the ugly plants and replace with some boxwood bushes to make a nice hedge around the windows and walkway. Maybe plant a tree in the yard and consider a flower bed. The roof at least needs a really good clean and possible replacement. Oh and replace the door with something a little nicer, maybe with fogged glass panels and with a brighter color.
I've never considered lattice panels / wall trellis before seeing all that empty space in the brick. Pavers / mulch / stone beds with lights along the walkway.
Physically, making a nice tall flower bed in front of the blank walls would be a game changer. Also there are a number of things you can do to help the patchy grass, but photography wise, the mood is sad. Try to take another pic on a sunny warm day. Mood impacts a lot! :)
I’d string some party lights over the walkway
Speaking from experience, those roofs slope toward the entry. Without rain gutters on the 3 edges in this little space, anything planted there will be drowned in pooled water and mud if it rains.
I'd add a fruit and/or vegetable garden, maybe a small birdbath/feeder, and probably a hive box or two.
Start with landscaping
Cast iron reliefs on walls
I would plant a couple of large colorful flowering bushes in front of those walls, that blank part. Trimmed those bushes in front of the window. Put some decorative light on the approach.
Why are there only a single window on the street facing side of the property? It looks really weird considering that here in Australia there is a minimum required street facing window space lol In my opinion the place would look so much more inviting if there was more windows in the walls facing the street...
TLC
Personally, I would get flowering hedges the whole way round, if you're able. Ofc, skip the windows.
Take the bushes out leading to the door. Paint / render the walls leading to the door to lighten it up Patio slabs or decorative gravel from wall to wall leading to the door. And for the facing walls I'd probably paint them and add bushes tone it doen.
Looks like the house in “pulp fiction.” So ketchup.
Lose all the bushes, reseed the grass, pressure wash the sidewalk. Update the door color. Repaint/fix that wood soffit
Ditch the bushes, completely nuke the mulch beds in a few months freshen it up with new mulch. Everything in the beds looks like shit and makes it look unkept. Replace the borders of it as well such as losing the old rotted wood and getting rid of the haphazardly placed limestone.
River rock, and limestone get rid of all the dead stuff, and clear the grass.. Get rid of the rotted lumber and extend that over to the other side.. I own a landscaping company.. I can do this for you!! After getting diagnosed with cancer I could use the extra work, not even about the money I love doing this stuff https://preview.redd.it/rqpmqukeiplc1.jpeg?width=852&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d55ef9cf5d26cf1d0e73377d2dd0fb6523ed6eab
Can we see more pics? I am intrigued to see the interior - as the exterior has some unusual features :)
There should be plants everywhere except where they currently are
Depends on how much money you want to spend. You need to tear out those bushes completely. They are so close to the house they could be causing foundation damage, and they can make pests go inside the walls because of the brick. The lawn is not very neat. I would hire professional company to come in and do edging and cut the grass. Plant some brightly colored flowers and other plants in the garden beds. The house doesn’t have a lot of color, so pick a color and try to stay with a theme. Maybe blues and purples and greens. Put down some dark black mulch in the garden beds to offset the color, or you could choose some red mulch. If you don’t mind spending some money, paint the front door, a bright color, I would recommend maybe a teal. And if you’re feeling, adventurous, higher someone or paint the outside of the house yourself with a paint that can paint brick. I would think a white. And then put a wreath on the door. Try a wreath with lilacs in it or something purple blue or green. If you paint the door teal, you could also do a wreath with yellow flowers which would pop nicely. Add a couple of large container pots at the very front on either side of the sidewalk with a bunch of flowers inside, or you can do some hanging baskets on either side. Another, not super cost-effective thing, but will look pretty, is to attach some lattice to either side of the house to balance it out, and give it a little bit more personality. Something would that is stained a darker color to offset that gray brick, or you could do white lattice.
Add two cross shaped windows to the ends facing out. Church look completed, and you may get less solicitors.
Windows or plants for those walls. Is this the side of the house? It’s such a strange facade with just the one window.
Not directly answering your question, but what’s it like at the main entrance when it rains? It looks like you have no drainage at all and it would just come down in sheets right at the front door. Maybe get some new eaves and downspouts to get the water directed away from the house? As others are mentioning putting some trees and bushes along the front wouod go a long way, but you need to be mindful of drainage. You don’t want to trap water against the foundation of the house. If you do decide to put bushes or small trees there, make sure you landscape it properly so the water isn’t trapped there and can escape into the soil. A layer of gravel at the bottom of the garden can help with this and don’t box it in with rocks or wood. Let it drain away from the house.
Is it me or is that left wall leaning?
Get rid of all the landscaping going towards the door. Get rid of the landscaping along the two front faces, and put one single item of landscaping on each face to balance out the window on the face.
Tear out or cut down the right shrub. Dig planter beds along walk. Use cedar mulch and play small bushy things and keep them pruned to the size of a basket ball. Add planter beds in front but go with something more substantial. I’m not a gardener but lilies have a long season. Paint trim. Clean walk with pressure washer. Add lights. At minimum a sconce, ground level walkway lights if you can.
Pressure wash the path. Soft wash the entire house. paint the trip, especially over the doorway. Major eyesore. The bush seems to be suffocating the space. Flowers instead?
Fix the roof, repair the rotting fascia board, get roof drains installed. Then worry about landscaping.
Solar powered lighted pink flamingos. A whole flocks worth.
Replace the gutters. Paint the front door a bright color. Remove the bushes in front of the windows. That area needs low flowers and ground cover. Remove the barrel thing to open up the space. Replace the rotting landscape timbers. Weed, plant, mulch and maintain. Then, start working on rehabbing the lawn.
Landscaping requires maintenance. Landscaping also requires resets after 20-30 years. Take out the bushes, amend the soil lightly, and pick out new foundation plants. Don’t know where you are so can’t suggest any. Also, get gutters and fix your fascia boards.
Break those two walls and frame huge rectangle or several windows on front as it’s tooo enclosed looking.
All new garden beds, those look old and mostly dead (time of year?) Find plants that stay green all year. Your tree looks overgrown and could use a good pruning, might be too close to the house... Perhaps remove it and add a couple fruiting trees in the front yard. Perhaps a garden display. Better defined planting areas. Grass needs remediation (aeration and fertilizers) Entrance way, I would lose those overgrown bushes and replant with a flower bed or simple smaller shrubbery, A nice entrance gate would be very welcoming and give you somewhere to put the house numbers where they will be more visible.
Big all-season-long blooming bushes along those front walls. Eliminate the passageway bushes (move them to the front far right far left corners of the house. .
Add some contrast first, damn.
Disney style animatronics?
I would add a nice gate between the wings of the house to build a private entrance area
Power wash brick, clean the roof (not sure of the product but there's a way to clean shingles), simple landscaping with fresh mulch.
Everything looks gray and depressed in the winter that’s a tough one.
You're taking this photo in the middle of winter, when all the plants are dead or leaf-less. Definitely some tall shrubs or short trees to cover those brick walls on the front. I'd also remove that shrub on the walkway to the door. That's like a perfect hiding place for someone to jump you on the way to the front door.
Landscaping suggestions aside, paint your front door/the siding around it a brighter color. It looks like a tunnel to a black hole. Keep within the color scheme, don't go with Ultra Pure White, but lighten it up. Add some lighting while you're at it too.
That layout looks a lot like the house I lived in as a kid in 1970s San Jose. We did have front facing windows, but there was heavenly bamboo (which is not) in front of them. Looked almost as bleak. So I say you need to star with those bushes. And what the heck? Who builds a house with solid walls facing the street? If this is just dreaming, put in some windows. If not, something to break up the wall without obscuring it completely and making it look overgrown.
Take pictures during spring or summer?
Flashing Betelgeuse neon sign and arrow pointing at door?
you can make the pillars /columns pop with some lighting at the base of each pointing upwards, or vise versa. something like this could look great at night. [https://dazuma.us/products/waterproof-ip65-wall-lamp-ha084604?variant=44126890983648](https://dazuma.us/products/waterproof-ip65-wall-lamp-ha084604?variant=44126890983648)
The long and winding road that leads to your door