2023 Outdoor Living Tour : Exterior
Happy Friday, friends! Today, I’ve got the last stop on my 2023 Outdoor Living Tour lined up for you. I wanted to share some snippets of our exterior that include our front porch, garage, driveway, and front yard. Click through for a closer look, future plans, and the sources…
I mentioned this awhile back, but I was in North Carolina at the end of April for a work trip and I arrived home to our front landscaping totally ripped out… apparently Emmett had been busy while I was away. We had some plants die over the winter and had been wanting to line our sidewalk with boxwoods anyway. He took it upon himself to knock out the project while I was away for work, so it was a fun surprise to come home to. They’re filling in nicely and it looks so much better, in terms of curb appeal.
Our front porch really hasn’t changed much since we replaced our front door back in 2019. I still love our exterior sconces, my faux (can you believe those aren’t real?!) viburnum topiaries, and our classic mat. Sometimes keeping it simple and maintenance-free is the best!
The one item I’m asked about more than any other thing in our home is our door hardware, and believe me when I say- this HEAVY gorgeous vintage brass hardware is well worth the investment. I still love it years later… it fact, we had the same handleset at our previous home. I liked it so much, I wanted to repeat the look. I’ll never tire of a timeless black or white door with brass hardware.
Our monogrammed doormats (we have one at the front door and back door) are also over five years old and are wearing nicely. They’re another classic exterior item that is splurge worthy, in my opinion. The fact that they’ve held up so well confirms that for me. I’ll link sources for you below…
Click the thumbnails below, or use the links below the collage to be redirected to each source.
lantern sconce // vintage brass door hardware // string lights // house numbers // lanterns // remote candles // viburnum topiary // pedestal planter // personalized doormat // gooseneck sconce // terracotta planter // boxwood topiary // marble table // patio chairs // terracotta bowl
Someday, I would like to tile or install pavers or something more interesting on our front porch, but for now- the concrete is durable, pretty classic looking, and is working well… that’s really just an aesthetic future want, and we definitely have higher home priorities on our to-do list at the moment. Maybe someday!
I still have my patio chairs in our front side yard. I thrifted those and gave them a little makeover a few years ago. To be honest, we never use them- they just fill visual negative space.
If we ever get a pool or spa someday (which would be a dream come true), I do think it would be fun to bring this set into the backyard for an additional seating area.
You know I love my container plants, and this time of year I’m constantly shuffling planters, styling them around our home exterior, and I thoroughly enjoy watering them a couple times each week… that has become my zen moment to reflect and do something mindless. Sometime about watching your plants grow and caring for them is rewarding.
These tiny wispy white flowers in one of our front beds have been blowing up this season- I love watching them dance in the wind, so I wanted to grab a closeup for you… aren’t they pretty?
You can catch the shed tour here, if you missed it, but it lives to the right side of our driveway, while the garage is on the opposing side. I also like the way it filled an otherwise useful empty corner of our yard.
I snagged a couple giant vintage terracotta planters during a Facebook Marketplace pickup a few years ago. They were just sitting in this guy’s garage, so I offered him $50 to take them off his hands… he even helped me load them. They were a major score and I love their patina! They stay outside (with the planted boxwoods) year round. Here’s a closer look…
We did replace our garage doors a couple years ago, which made a big difference in the aesthetic of this side of our home (we went from white to black), but the biggest change has been our new roof. We had it replaced in 2021 after a big storm damaged our previous roof, which was original to the home. We ended up using slate looking tiles, which added so much dimension and energy savings. It’s one of my favorite parts of the exterior.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this series! It was a good incentive for me to clean up our outdoor areas for the season and show you around. While we haven’t made any big recent changes outside, I think making small adjustments and planning for future projects has served us well. Here’s to a fun weekend ahead, enjoying the outdoors!
