Curb Appeal & Front Porch Renovation (Phase 1)

I have not mentioned my opinion about Content's curb appeal on the blog before (that I can recall anyway), but if you follow along on Instagram, chances are you may have noticed a general theme around the topic. Basically, I really, really, really dislike the front of our house. I won't go as far as to say "hate" because although I loath it, I know there's a ton of untapped potential.  Just currently, there is zero curb appeal.

And, its not just the front porch. There are a bunch of "issues". All of which make me turn my head the other way when we drive by, as not to remind myself that we are the black sheep of the neighborhood. 

Over the holidays, I even refused to hang a wreath out front. Christmas light, yeah right!

Some of the issues are things that we could never change. Like for instance, the awkward positioning of the house on the corner lot. It was likely placed in this fashion to maximize natural light, at all hours, and to face the river and marina across the street. Seems nice, right? 

Well, this also leads to:

• a tremendous, sloped triangle front yard
• long, narrow runs along the sides of the house
• parking in the rear (opposite of the front door).

 Entering the house is a whole separate challenge!

The bags of trash in this pic really sets the stage for home buyers.

Now, I realize the above photos are from the MLS listing and likely not the best representation, but you see my point. It's no wonder this house sat vacant for almost 2 years! Who in their right mind would have seen these photos or driven by, and thought, "YES, there's my dream home"?

Well, enter onto the scene John and Courtney Gullible.

Like everything with Content, we wear permanent rose colored glasses. Even with the curb appeal! But, more practically, we have an insurance provider whom is less than trilled about the current state of the front porch. This became a justified concern when John's Dad almost went over the side of the porch last summer.

This photo I've entitled "John, Please Fix the Railing; We Almost Lost Your Father Off the Porch". Sorry Dave, and thank you for being so understanding! That was a close one... #porch #woodworking #sorry #contentcurbappeal #rehabrealities #rehabaddict #renovation #fromwhereistand #contentfrontporch

A photo posted by c o n t e n t + c o . (@contentandcompany) on Jul 23, 2015 at 4:57pm PDT

Honestly though, we needed to save some cash before we tackled the exterior. But to keep the ball rolling, even just a little, John did a couple free, hard labor projects, like removing the HUGE Yew shrub and tons of grape vine that had wound itself around the porch posts.

This was another insurance company suggestion, but in hindsight, also explains the tremendous amount of rot that has set into the porch floor boards.

(before) #contentcurbappeal #landscaping #yardcrashers #diynetwork #hgtv

A photo posted by c o n t e n t + c o . (@contentandcompany) on Sep 3, 2015 at 4:07pm PDT

(after) If only John knew our friend had rented a backhoe for the weekend, BEFORE it took him 2 days to get these old Yews out. #contentcurbappeal #coolcautiontape #diynetwork #yardcrashers #contentfrontporch

A photo posted by c o n t e n t + c o . (@contentandcompany) on Sep 3, 2015 at 4:11pm PDT

Our big goal over Christmas break was to work on the front porch. Unfortunately, time and illness got the best of us this holiday season, and not that much was accomplished.

But we're in a better place now. We've assessed the structure and are more prepared to move forward. In an effort to address guest access to the house, we'll be reconfiguring the layout, and adding a main staircase. We'll also add some interest to the gable, mimicking the architectural details in the back of the house.

Also, to save money, John will be carefully removing the floor boards, one by one, in an effort to reuse the "good" boards and weed out the "bad".

The front porch renovation started today! Luckily, the bones of the porch are in good shape (well, not that corner...) Overall it will get a new layout, stairs, handrails + decorative gable detail. To save money, we're salvaging as many of the deck boards as possible, which requires John to take up each rotten board, without damaging the 'good' one next to it. Very time consuming, but a process I'm willing to support in order to keep my monthly wine allowance intact... Fingers crossed! 🍷 #contentfrontporch

A photo posted by c o n t e n t + c o . (@contentandcompany) on Dec 28, 2015 at 12:11pm PST

Much more to come on the curb appeal. But in the meantime, if you drive by, turn your head, its much prettier if you look at the river, for now....