We cannot forget about the importance of exteriors! This is essentially the first impression people get and what you see after you come home from a long day at work. In other words, the exterior often sets the tone for the entire house. Having a great front and backyard makes it easy to gather with friends and family to enjoy the outdoors. Whether its relaxing on the front porch or BBQ-ing in the backyard, the exterior should be a place where everyone can relax and unwind!
When it comes to our home renovation, the exterior is the last thing that still needs some work in terms of front/backyard landscaping. Our old home was painted a light earth tone color and the front featured a small porch and large grassy area with plenty of plants and flowers. For the new exterior we went with stucco again, but painted it a dark grey (Benjamin Moore- Kendall Charcoal) with bright white trim. I love the contrast that the dark color with the bright trim brings and our faux wood paneled garage door almost gives the home a cabin-like feel. With the renovation of the exterior it was important to us to make sure that the home looks brand new, but still fits in with our neighborhood, which I think we were able to accomplish! My only words of caution here are to make sure you sample the exterior paint color you like before painting the whole thing. Kendall Charcoal is a gorgeous medium charcoal when painted onto shingles or siding, but looks way darker on our sand finished stucco (I think it has something to do with the density of the texture and the way it sucks up the light instead of reflecting it back). Either way I have grown to love the color because it makes the house look larger and more stately.
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