Front Porch Makeover

Hello!

I’ve been absent from my blog for quite a few days now. Sorry about that! We’ve been enjoying the summer weather. But that just means I have something new to show you! One of my favorite parts of May is planting all my annuals and revamping my front porch. It definitely needed a makeover after a long winter.

Front Porch Makeover — Winter = Blah and Bland

So to the flower nursery I went, along with my lovely mother and side-kick daughter. Who happens to be 2. And tries to pick the petals off of EVERY flower in the thousands of square feet they have. This place is serious about their flowers and I LOVE it. It is one of my favorite family traditions. Except for the whining from my 2 year old and the constant chasing through the aisles. But people tell me I’ll miss it when she’s older. So I’ll just trust them.

And it is always our mission to fit everything into one car. Which typically poses a challenge. But we have risen to the occasion every year.

When you are planting a large area you have to have a plan before tackling this type of nursery. Here are some tips on forming your plan so you only have to make one (…or two…) trips.

Know how much light your space gets. My front porch is very shaded with the sun rising behind the house and setting in the front. So the majority of sun these flowers will get will be low evening light.
Plan out where you will place your flowers ahead of time. I use specific pots on the front porch, in front of the garage, and on the back deck. This way I know how many flowers I’ll need to fill all my pots. Plus, I always throw in a few perennials in the flower beds each year.
Get hanging baskets! Hanging baskets on a front porch instantly dresses up your home. If you don’t already have hooks in your porch ceiling then make sure you plan out where you’ll put them so you know how many baskets to get to have correct spacing around the porch.
Determine your commitment level. Seriously. This is important. For years I bought needy annuals and hanging baskets that had flowers. And every year by the end of the summer the baskets looked skeletal and the annuals were withered. If you are noncommittal (like me!) then get hardy annuals that don’t need to be watered daily. I LOVE Boston Ferns for my hanging baskets. They live in shade or sun and only need to be watered every 2-3 days. I also like grasses for this same reason. I am also really bad at fertilizing. Like, I never do it. So if the instructions say to fertilize on a schedule then either make sure to work that into your plan or pass on that particular annual.

Now on to the best part! Putting it all together. First, I pulled out all my outdoor cushions. That instantly cozies up the space.

I have two seating areas on my front porch. Ideally, I would love for them to all have the same cushions for cohesiveness. But, I am a thrifter and I scored the love seat and chairs from Craigslist and had to buy cushions to fit. Then I got a wicker rocker and chair from another sale and had to buy cushions to fit those. And I bought them in different years. And I am cheap. So I didn’t re-buy all of them in the same pattern when I couldn’t find matching ones. That’s ok! I did it on purpose, right? I created “zones”. Problem solved. You have to be resourceful when you are on a budget!

Once I staged all the furniture it was time to plant! I like to first place all the plants in the area that they will be living for the summer. That way I can see if my plan is going to work.

One of the things I like to do is buy cheap hanging baskets to fill planters. These white baskets (above) were only $5 and couple them with cheap $1 asparagus ferns and I can fill the entire planter for $7.

Once they are all placed, get to planting! Have some gloves ready and a good gardening shovel as well as some quality soil. Invest in the soil. I used to get cheap potting soil but now I splurge for the good stuff with the fertilizer built in.

Another quick tip is to get some planters with character. Not everyone likes the farmhouse look, but I do, so I found some baskets to go under my potting bench and this fun chippy wood box. I have no idea what it used to be used for but as long as it has sides and can hold dirt, it can be a planter! Get creative!

Here are some before and afters. I love how plants and flowers liven up the space and make it feel more welcoming.

Front porch — See how well the baskets fill in the planter right away?

Front porch potting bench — A little green goes a long way!

Front porch front door — Balance out both sides of the front door.

Next up is adding my homemade welcome signs. I searched high and low for something that was just right to go with this awesome window I found at Pink and Frillos. But I wasn’t able to find just the right thing. So I made them! I’ll give the how-to and debut them in another post to come.