5 Easy Exterior Design Projects

While we are mostly focused on the overall, big-picture when it comes to our exterior home designs, we thought we would share some of our favorite quick and easy DIY projects that you can master in a weekend. And as you glean from our wisdom, we may benefit from your purchases!

1. Pizzazz Your Door With Some Pizzaint

You've likely heard this one before because it's low-hanging fruit! Painting your front door is quick, cheap and easy and can have quite an impact on the look of your home which makes this one of our favorite easy projects!

Our expert tip; Have fun with this and be bold with your color selection! This is an easy place to introduce complimentary color and, most importantly, showcase your personality. We've designed homes with all types and colors of doors, including purple! A semi-gloss paint is recommended for these high-contact spots that will protect the finish and keep it easy to clean.

2. A Place to Hang says... Stay a While!

Adding seating is another very simple addition that can add to your homes design. Find some chairs and a bistro table or toughen up those keyboard hands by making your own porch swing. Adding a seating element to the front of your home, yard, or garden can instantly make your home feel more welcoming and inviting!

Our Expert Tip; If you don't have a large covered porch just add a couple of Polywood Adirondack chairs to the yard. Not only do these come in a wide array of fun colors, they can be placed almost anywhere to give you a comfy place to enjoy your yard!

3. Do 'You' With a Freak'n Sweet Welcome Mat

Stop boring your guests' feet and welcome them with a welcome mat that excites—they'll be tickled you did! After all, the front door is the first place your guests interact with and a welcome mat can be a tone-setter for your home! And better yet, you can practice all those skills you've learned from your weekends at the art and wine to practice and DIY your own with a bit of paint and your boring mat.

Aren't up for the challenge to make it yourself, check out the awesome selection available from Etsy!

4. Can I Have Yo Number?

Chances are your house number is probably due for an update, especially if its comprised of those 4" gold serif font. Do your house a favor and get some upscale numbers, make sure they are large and legible from the street, and place them on a contrasting plaque. You can even find numbers to match the style/architecture of your home.

5. Light Up The Night!

Updating light fixtures is quite easy but the right fixtures can elevate your exterior design! Good lighting greatly increases safety, helps with wayfinding by lighting pathways at night, but most importantly, it gives your home those sexy night vibes! Uplights on your landscaping gives you off a soft lighting and can border a nice patio. Path lights are a great way to quickly provide some light on your paths and string lights exclaim PARTY!

Our Expert Tip; Be sure your fixture style matches your house design; when you get it right, it may go unnoticed but when it you get it wrong it stands out. Also make sure your house numbers are illuminated at night! Fixtures don't have to break the bank either—like these sexy little modern porch lights.

If you're looking for more assistance with your exterior design project we would love to help you discover the right design for your home! And if you're looking for some other simple DIY projects, and even on the interior, check out this blog post from our friends at Redfin!

Design Features That Will Elevate Your Home Design

When projects similar to this one come across my desk all I can think about is "what can I do to best increase the curb appeal on this home?" This often leads me to considering features and other design elements that will make impactful statements for the overall aesthetic of the home. In this post I will share a bit of my thoughts and insight on this home.

My initial thought on this home is that it has a great presentation; it's up on a hill which gives it a sort of prominence from the street— (fun tid-bit: past civilizations would elevate buildings of importance— Temples, Cathedrals, Civic Buildings, Castles, Palaces, and the like. They would even elevate the first floor from the street and add grand staircases to signify their importance). In addition to being elevated, this home also had a nice material balance and the entry was tucked into an alcove created by the home's architecture which lends the opportunity for a nice patio to add function to the point of entry.

1. Adding Transparency

When a home is lacking windows it closes itself off from the world. It's as if the home is crossing its arms and communicating that it's not approachable. Adding transparency to the front elevation helps create that warm, welcoming feeling and quite literally tears down the walls and communicates that 'doors is always open' feel.

2. Adding a Chimney Anchor

Sometimes when we're faced with large expanse of wall it's nice to break up that expanse with a solid anchor point. Sometimes it's a change of material, a cantilevered multi-story window feature, it can even be a tall landscaping element; but with how much horizontal lines this home has, a strong vertical element in a chimney is a solid knife-in-the-table statement. Bifurcating the main facade and the paired windows on both stories adds a solid visual break in the design.

3. Opening Up The Point of Entry

This home had a brick wall that partially concealed the point of entry from the street. If your home isn't clearly defining the path to enter then your home is communicating 'do not enter'. By opening this up and creating large, visible landings and gradual steps to the door this design completely transforms the point of entry and like a friendly dog ambitiously wagging its tail, communicates a message "please pet me" or "You are welcome to approach"— something like that; you get the idea!

Bonus: the wood knee wall brings needed warmth while providing privacy from a seated height to the front patio.

If you want to see how any of these features can dramatically impact the design of your home, visit our website to see how our online exterior design services can help you complete your home design!

VisioneeringHomes.com

If you're curious where this design ended up; below is the final design the client landed on after we worked through some of the finer details. It turns out they were after a more modern look, wanted more wood tones and were unsure about the added work for the chimney (but they didn't rule it out completely!).

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7 Craftsman Design Transformations

Updating your Craftsman home can refresh its aesthetic appeal and increase its value while making it a more desirable place to live. These Craftsman exterior design transformations are from all different house shapes and styles. Take a look at these Before & Afters to get inspired to update your Craftsman home!

1. Unique Craftsman Two Story

Two-tone complimentary paint schemes are quite common in Craftsman homes. Color and contrast can work together beautifully when done right. The dark and light grays have the same base tone and the blue door is cheerful, airy, and refreshing. I also love how the paint scheme was carried over into the garage doors.

2. Modern Craftsman Ranch

Craftsman design can borrow elements from Modern design, when incorporated thoughtfully. While the cedar shaker siding, wood frames, and front door point to a Craftsman style, the paint scheme and stone knee wall add a Modern flair to this home. This combination can result in a Modern Craftsman design for the 21st century.

3. Craftsman Ranch - Porch and Garage Addition

The right color, trim, and placement of materials make or break Craftsman style homes. The warmth of the stone and wood elements are balanced with the coolness of the color scheme, with a thoughtful decorative trim detailing. Notice the wood ceiling beneath the post and beam entry gable and the rafter tails above the garage addition! These elements make all the difference when it comes to creating that stunning Craftsman design.

4. 80s Craftsman Conversion

This dated Craftsman needed a bit of creativity. A new color scheme with a thoughtful balance of warm and cool elements completely changed this home! Sometimes new doors are not quite enough of a change and adding a mix of materials, fixtures, and landscaping gives this home the update it needed.

5. Focused on Earth Tones

A simple color refresh can make a huge difference for your Craftsman home. Focusing on a blend of complimentary earth tones with a third accent color, in this case it was a deep burgundy, can highlight your home's architecture in the right ways. This particular home also included a two-tone paint scheme with the garage volume in a darker shade.

6. Complete Bungalow Transformation

The above transformation of this beautiful bungalow speaks for itself. The stone base creates a plinth type appearance, giving the home a look of strength and adding prominence to the first floor. The brighter paint scheme adds dramatic contrast between the siding, roof and the accented gable brackets. The classy, half-glass wood door balances the design with a warm welcome at the entry.

7. Craftsman New Build

Sometimes an accent material can make a big impact. This elevation incorporates a cedar shaker shingle for the shed dormer (say that 5 times fast!) to add a warm material into the mix. The decorative trim is an elegant addition, prominent in the Craftsman language.