April 2024
Mamaroneck waterfront property exudes serenity for visitors due to its calming combination of eye-catching white and green flora that highlights the front of the home.
As the weather gets warmer, the sight of so much greenery appearing after the dull grey winter seems to always set off a surge of calls to our office with people interested in creating curb appeal.
Now what exactly is curb appeal?
This is a term used frequently to refer to the first impression of one's home a visitor can obtain when they visit it. And even if you do not intend to put your home up for sale soon, creating and maintaining this visually appealing appearance of your property is important for when you may consider doing so in the future.
The National Association of Realtors has compiled an interesting report on the impact of curb appeal on a property. It's worth a read when you have time:
2023 Remodeling Impact Report: Outdoor Features from The National Association of Realtors. ( summary) . Full Report can be downloaded from above link and also be seen here.
When I begin a project with curb appeal in mind, my main goal is to create a cohesive design where the appearance of the yard and home is unified. It is vital that these elements complement each other in both scale and proportion.
One of the ways I can create this feeling of unification throughout is by the repetitive use of similar plants, hardscape materials, and a specifically selected color palette across the property. By doing so, the eye of someone looking at the property naturally circulates from one element to the other: appreciating the repetitive patterns and colors and recognizing it as a unified whole.
For this property we decided to use taller boxwoods along the front of the home, creating an eye-catching evergreen foundation to frame out the house and stands out against the white exterior paint of the home. We added a second layer of plants that would bloom throughout the year giving seasonal interest for the homeowners. The plant palette is repeated in order to give a sense of order and symmetry.
Another design technique that I like to use when developing a harmonious feel for both property and home is the layering of particular plants for dimension and visual interest. I try to alternate shapes and heights of plant material to create something interesting for the eye to see. In addition, I enjoy using certain trees and shrubs to create focal points and frame out architectural elements of a home.
As you can see, the visual appeal of this garden is due to its multiple layers, as we chose plants of varying heights, textures and colors to create it. The evergreens were selected specifically to frame out all the flowering plants that sit within the pockets. We also used higher taller plants to flank some of corners of the hardscape to soften the hard lines of the stone wall.
My final tip to you is, regardless of the actual design itself, to keep things well-maintained, and uncluttered. Sometimes too much of a good thing can be overwhelming to the eye and the adage "less is more" can create a bigger impact than trying to squeeze too much into one space.
The repetitive use of these white native hydrangeas create an orderly and elegant atmosphere for the home, its simple, clean palette adding to the serenity of its appearance.
Below are a few more examples of how we created curb appeal for our clients. Perhaps they may inspire you to make design choices for your home as well!
Photo 1: We chose to highlight the beautiful architectural features of this home with the specific placement of evergreens through our design. An example of this in the photo is how they frame out the gorgeous bay window in the front of the house. Another striking feature of this design is how the variations of heights and textures of the other plant materials we used, which causes the eye of the visitor to follow the whole design along the front of the home.
Photo 2: For this home we chose to use evergreen in the design in order for a contrast against the white exterior of the home. They were planted specifically to frame out the the garden beds along the front foundation of the house , while having the flowering interest in the back of these beds. With the addition of a colorful crepe myrtle, we created a focal point for the eye as well as some noticeable height difference amongst the plant material in the landscaping - something that one would notice as when you walk down the walkway to enter the home.
Photo 3: This is a classic approach in designto create the curb appeal to a traditional looking home. Here we chose the repeated use of boxwoods for evergreen layer along the house foundation. With the selection of similar plants for this design, and the evenly spaced layout, these plants creates a sense of symmetry to the eye and is a wonderful way to bring out the beauty of this home.
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