* LOWE’S HOME IMPROVEMENT IS A SPONSOR OF THIS BLOG POST. THEY PROVIDED ALL OF THE ITEMS I CHOSE AND WAS COMPENSATED FOR MY TIME CONCEPTUALIZING, SOURCING, DECORATING, PHOTOGRAPHING, EDITING, WRITING AND PROMOTING THIS BLOG POST. IF YOU CLICK A LINK, I RECEIVE NO COMPENSATION. THANK YOU TO LOWE’S FOR SPONSORING THIS GREAT BLOG POST AND PROJECT!
In California, we can’t predict if we’ll be lucky enough to have a rainy winter. But thankfully this year we’ve had an incredible, much-needed season of rain. It’s been raining week after week and been super cold too – my favorite! Spring will be stunning when it officially arrives…tomorrow! And when the sun is out and shining for good (we have more rain coming in this week), I anticipate the sounds of a lot of neighborhood outdoor home improvement projects. Everyone’s exterior is in desperate need of TLC!
We had the most incredible glimpse of Spring this weekend with temps in the 70s. No better time to get outside and tackle a front yard home improvement update. I can’t wait to share this before and after I completed this weekend in partnership with Lowe’s. And in only 2 days time!
BEFORE
My front yard has come a LONG way since June 2013…
While it’s going to be a little painful, I can’t wait to dig deep into the vault of historical photos to share a complete before / after. But can you believe this used to be the front yard? No grass or sprinklers or paths. Nowhere. Not even a driveway. While it’s been slow, steady steps to improvement, it’s amazing how far it’s come. From the moment I drove down this driveway, I saw the potential…this house was definitely mine. It captured me right here…
Couldn’t be more proud…or sad about leaving it behind.
Anyway, back when I was planning the front yard – the end goal was to add something temporary until we decided on a kitchen renovation plan. Interior plans included the front porch / windows / wall getting pushed out completely to make room for a bigger kitchen. Therefore I added a temporary path and flowers I didn’t really care about removing or relocating at a later point. With changes happening personally, the new kitchen never happened. So the front yard began to look sad and overgrown. Not at all what was planned.
The overgrown hedge you see here was not intended to look or be maintained this way. It started out as small, delicate shrubs but became overgrown and transformed into this beast…
The jasmine and lavender were overgrown as well…
Between sad plants and flowers and the incredible rainy season we’ve had, it was time to clean up the front yard. I couldn’t wait to dig in and thankful the weather was great all weekend!
THE PLAN
My game plan for updating the front yard was:
* scope out the Lowe’s Garden Center to purchase available plants & flowers
* remove old plants and relocate the jasmine to the front fence line
* plant new flowers & shrubs and add black mulch to the beds
* fertilize the front lawn
* refresh the front porch
Everything happened this weekend and even more! Was thrilled to have enough plants and flowers remaining to improve a couple backyard beds.
THE DEMO
The demo and removal process took a solid day…
I was able to salvage the jasmine and plant them along the front fence line. These nicely filled in the empty gaps between the trees…
Once everything was out, I placed the plants and flowers to be ready for planting on day two…
My dream was to keep the front yard in tones of green and white. But also didn’t want everything to be totally matching. Lowe’s already has an incredible variety of flowers and plants in their garden center for the Spring season. It was hard to narrow down and get focused with their full stock and inventory! I chose several white flower varieties, a few English lavender and stuck with fresh, beautiful boxwood for the greenery…
AFTER
I was up bright and early on day 2 to get get this beautiful project completed – get ready to see this after!
THE DETAILS
Oh my gosh – love! Let’s get into the details please!
The hedge was replaced with Monrovia Green Beauty Boxwood Shrubs…
I can’t begin to explain or photograph just how delicate and beautiful this boxwood is! It makes me so so happy! It’s fresh and light….
I spaced the boxwood 3.5 feet apart each to give the space an airy feel. And I planted a row of white flowers along the front…
I chose a mix of perennials and annuals that could handle full sun, which is what happens in this front yard.
Chills!
I mentioned above just how much inventory was available at my Lowe’s Garden Center – I mean that! It was easy to find the variety of flowers and plants I was dreaming of and the staff couldn’t have been more helpful pulling items onto the cart and loading the car.
Along the path border I chose the same mixed variety of white flowers…
English lavender is one of my favorites – the light purple color is a classic. And it gives that little bit of color I was looking for in addition to the tones of white and green…
I added a few lavender here and there around the front yard beds…
To really make the front yard pop, I chose Scotts Nature Scapes Black Mulch…
This mulch is guaranteed to maintain its vibrant color all year long and prevents weeds naturally…
It smells fresh out here and looks really pretty!
To update the front porch I found this beautiful Monrovia Emerald Colonnade Tree and added it to a black planter…
It was the right height and fullness for the space. Personally, I don’t like an overcrowded front porch – especially when it’s as small an entryway as mine. And I love the delicate green leaves…
For more front porch color I layered a pretty striped rug under my current welcome mat, which will probably get updated in the next few weeks too…
And added these gorgeous throw pillows on my porch chairs. I love this blue!!! It’s the same blue as the SO | Home and Simply Organized Blog branding…
I have smiled each time I drive in and out of my driveway – the sight of this front porch makes me very happy. This house was begging for this Spring update…
My 14 year old crushed me…in a good way. When the project was completed he said he didn’t want to tell me how much his disliked the front yard – especially the overgrown hedge. And he shared his love of the front yard now. Such a sweetie! Made my heart burst to hear him love the after just as much as I do…and that he didn’t say anything about the before because he thought it would have made me sad. Love this guy!
Finally, when all was said and done, I fertilized the front lawn with Scotts Green Max Lawn Food. This lawn needs some serious attention after all the rain!…
What sold me on this lawn food, besides the incredible results I know are on the way, is that the kids could re-enter the lawn after feeding. There was no wait time…and with the weather as nice as it was this weekend, they wanted to play ball.
I fertilized everywhere, but paid close attention to the patchy areas…
With the excellent price point at the Lowe’s Garden Center, I had enough plants and flowers remaining to update a few beds along the back of the house too. I’ll eventually mulch here, but waiting until after the exterior is painted. Yes, that is my next project with Lowe’s – can not wait to see that transformation! It’s going to be epic!
In these beds I added the boxwood and annuals as well, but in shades of pink…
I added a few geraniums too…
SHOP THE POST
I hope you enjoyed seeing this easy and fun outdoor update for Spring! If you saw something you loved from Lowe’s, you can shop the post right here!…
Scotts Green Max Lawn Fertilizer
Monrovia Emerald Colonnade Holly Tree
Scotts Nature Scapes Black Mulch
Visit your local Lowe’s store or the Lowes.com website for the best prices on all things spring! Lowe’s offers the strongest promos of the season, price-matching and free shipping / easy returns. They truly make your shopping experience painless and easy. I get totally lost walking through the aisles – no matter what project I’m working on, there is something to inspire me!
Are you getting ready for Spring?? I hope this post motivated you to start thinking about Spring updates and outdoor improvements.
Next on my improvement list? It’s a long one! I’m going to continue mulching and planting the various beds around the property, clean up the front path with fresh pebbles, update the exterior lighting on the house, work on interior updates / fixes and the biggest impact will come when the exterior is painted. We’re waiting on the weather to cooperate for this one…can not wait to see this house with a fresh coat of paint and a new front door!
Thank you for reading you guys! It means so much to have you here and be able to share the progress of my house getting ready to go on the market.
Happy Spring!!
xx,
Sam
** don’t forget – you pay nothing more by clicking any links in this blog post! Thank you for supporting this blog and thank you to Lowe’s for partnering with me! xoxo
Awesome transformation! Our ranch has basically the same size front porch…nice, but not deep enough to really do anything with. Same brick facade on the front too…I think we even have the same front door mat. Love what you did with the driveway…such a difference, very clean look. You’ll have to try your hand in landscape design!
Awe thank you! It was an easy project with more to come soon. And thank you for the driveway compliments. It truly is such a unique property!
Thank you again,
Sam
Looks great !
Thank you!
xx,
Sam
So welcoming.
Thank you!!
Happy spring. Better days are ahead I promise.
Thank you! Wishing you a wonderful spring too!
xx,
Sam