The interior isn’t the only part of your home that’s allowed to have some fun. When designing your exterior, it’s all about fresh exterior paint colors, continuing your interior design outside, and investing in quality landscaping that is going to stand the test of time.
If you’re ready to begin embellishing your home’s exterior, we have just the fix. We rounded up easy yet impactful landscaping ideas from our favorite designers and are sharing with you how to achieve a chic look outside your home—hello, curb appeal.
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Keep it Green Year-Round
Located in Washington, this exterior needed to employ smart and easy landscaping that will outlast the often gray forecast. The simple addition of evergreen shrubs ensures that this modern farmhouse will remain lush and bright all year round.
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Line It Up
Create an inviting pathway to your home by lining your entire walkway with short shrubbery. This look is cohesive, manicured, and super simple, as it only employs a few varieties of plants to achieve the final picture.
15 Stunning Walkway Ideas for Your Home or Garden
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Go Evergreen
Continuing with the evergreen theme, if you live in a cool climate that boasts a late-blooming season, evergreen trees will keep your exterior looking polished year-round. Though this cabin relies on the surrounding landscape to give it lots of character, the addition of evergreens and perennials are the perfect additions to the landscaping.
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Brush With Bushes
This stunning neutral home gets a dose of color with bushes and shrubbery in its landscape. The bushes are left naturalistic in shape, but because they are so neatly in line with each other, the look feels clean and fresh.
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Make It Succulent
We love this unique landscaping design by Mindy Gayer, which uses some real and artificial succulents to give a sweet look to the lawn.
If your thumb isn’t so green, both real and artificial succulents are perfect for you. The low-maintenance plant rarely needs watering, and a quality artificial version will avoid any need to touch up your exterior.
How to Propagate Succulents and Grow Your Indoor Garden
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Green-ify Your Walkway
An easy trick when it comes to landscaping is to keep things cohesive by laying walkway tile over existing greenery, as seen here. The pops of color give much more life and visual interest to a typical walkway.
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Say Less With Shrubs
You can certainly continue a minimalistic theme indoors outside with subtle landscaping that makes a large impact, like these striking green shrubs against the charcoal gray exterior of this home. Two simple plant arrangements flank the doorway, and this combination provides visual interest through differences in style and height.
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Tell Your Interior Story Outside
Your exterior should continue to tell the story of your interior, and this home certainly does with its desert-inspired landscaping and Spanish bungalow-style design.
A few statement plants are all it takes to deck out your exterior and breathe life into your home.
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Embrace Your Natural Habitat
It is also important to consider what outdoor plants grow best in your area, and with some quick research, you can choose plants native to your home state and that thrive in your climate. This lush landscaping at the Blanco Bungalow thrives in the year-round California heat, and so choose your plants based on how they will survive in your landscaping.
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Lead the Way
How adorable are these pint-sized succulent plants leading the way to the front door of this home? The contrast between the walkway and the taller, larger plants under the window gives a great, simple balance to this landscaping.
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Less is More
Go for a “less is more” approach to your landscaping for a simple look that is equally as chic as it is lower-maintenance.
A clever hack for featuring more texture and visual interest in your yard is to keep some plants in pots, as seen here, and incorporate them into the landscaping design.
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Invite Friends in Nature
We love the idea of making space for other friends in nature through landscaping, like the addition of this birdhouse to this lovely yard. It gives a charming look to the exterior design while also providing a safe space for local birdies—too cute.
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Overflow Hydrangea Bushes
Hydrangeas are super stunners in the yard. They are large, bushy, and such a statement—they are sure to fill your landscaping with beauty. This flower is an easy pick for a front yard, as it is super inviting and blooms year after year.
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Add a Pergola
Landscaping goes beyond just plants and flowers—it encompasses the entire design of your exterior. Adding this pergola and amazing hanging chair gives a cool, relaxed look to this home’s exterior that only adds to the naturalistic landscaping choices.
14 Gorgeous Pergola Designs to Make Your Outdoor Space Shine All Year Long
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Embellish Your Stairs
There's no need for your landscaping to stay confined to the ground—bring it all the way up your staircase, as shown above. This adds drama to your entry, as well as brings the outdoors up and into the home's design.
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Go for Potted Plants
Want to bring the plants to your porch? No problem. Continue your landscaping onto your front entrance with large, statement planters with trees and other perennial plants.
Choosing chic planters brings out any design personality and embellishes your outdoor space.
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Play With Space and Color
This Spanish bungalow exterior boasts tons of landscaping that is simple to recreate. The tiered look of the front gate is a great way to incorporate even more greenery on your exterior, and varying colors of plants give it an organic and coastal feel.
15 Beautiful Curb Appeal Ideas That Add Major Value to Your Home
Insights, advice, suggestions, feedback and comments from experts
As an expert and enthusiast, I have personal experiences or expertise. However, I can provide you with information related to the concepts used in this article. Let's break down the concepts mentioned in the article and discuss each one:
Fresh Exterior Paint Colors
Choosing fresh exterior paint colors is an important aspect of designing your home's exterior. The right color can enhance the overall appearance and curb appeal of your house. When selecting paint colors, consider the architectural style and surroundings of your home. It's also important to choose colors that complement the colors used in your interior design.
Continuing Interior Design Outside
Bringing your interior design style to the exterior can create a cohesive and visually appealing look for your home. Consider incorporating similar design elements, color schemes, and materials used indoors to create a seamless transition between the interior and exterior spaces.
Quality Landscaping
Investing in quality landscaping can greatly enhance the overall appearance of your home's exterior. Well-designed and well-maintained landscaping can increase curb appeal, add value to your property, and create an inviting atmosphere. This includes selecting appropriate plants, trees, and shrubs, as well as incorporating elements like walkways, pathways, and outdoor structures.
Evergreen Shrubs and Trees
Evergreen shrubs and trees are an excellent choice for landscapes that need to maintain a lush and vibrant appearance throughout the year. These plants retain their foliage year-round, providing color and texture even during the winter months. Evergreens can be used as hedges, foundation plantings, or as focal points in the landscape.
Pathways and Walkways
Creating inviting pathways and walkways leading to your home can enhance the curb appeal and provide a welcoming entrance. Lining the walkway with short shrubbery or incorporating walkway tiles over existing greenery can add visual interest and create a cohesive look.
Bushes and Shrubbery
Using bushes and shrubbery in your landscaping can add texture, color, and visual interest to your exterior. Neatly lined bushes or naturalistic-shaped shrubs can create a clean and fresh appearance.
Succulents
Succulents are low-maintenance plants that can add a unique and visually appealing look to your lawn. They come in various shapes, sizes, and colors, and can be used both indoors and outdoors. Real and artificial succulents are available, making them a suitable choice for those with limited gardening skills.
Native Plants
Consider choosing outdoor plants that are native to your area and thrive in your climate. Native plants are well-adapted to the local environment, requiring less maintenance and resources. Research the plants that grow best in your region to ensure a successful and sustainable landscape.
Minimalistic Landscaping
A minimalistic approach to landscaping can create a simple yet chic look for your home's exterior. By using a limited number of plants and incorporating pots or planters, you can add texture and visual interest while keeping maintenance requirements low.
Outdoor Design Elements
Landscaping goes beyond just plants and flowers. Incorporating design elements like pergolas, stairs, and potted plants can enhance the overall aesthetic of your outdoor space. These elements can add functionality, create focal points, and contribute to a relaxed and inviting atmosphere.
Color and Space Variation
Playing with colors and utilizing different levels and spaces can add depth and visual interest to your landscape. Varying colors of plants and incorporating tiered designs can create an organic and dynamic look for your home's exterior.
Remember, it's always a good idea to consult with a professional landscaper or designer to ensure the best results for your specific property and preferences.