Best Ways To Spruce Up Your Home’s Exterior Without Painting

Your home’s exterior must always look its best. It sets the tone for what’s inside, and if it looks immaculate, it can be a major selling point when you put it on the market. Painting your home is one way to improve your home's look, but that’s an expensive and involved ordeal. Lucky for you, there are things you can do to spruce up your home’s exterior other than painting.

You can make the outside of your home look great without painting it by adding a trellis to grow climbing plants, or plant flowers along the border of the home. You can even add window boxes. Add a new pathway, or improve your existing one. Power wash your driveway, and add new lighting to make your home glow at night. You can also just paint the front door.

Before anyone enters your home, they have already made a first impression based on your home’s exterior. Therefore, you must take the time to ensure the outside of your home looks as great as it is inside. If you want to upgrade the way the exterior of your home looks but don’t have the money or energy to paint the whole house, keep reading. Below is a list of all the best ways to spruce up your home’s facade without painting it all.

13 Ways To Spruce Up Your Home’s Exterior Without Painting

1. Create A Stylish New Walkway, Or Upgrade What You Have

One great way to spruce up the outside of your home is to add a new walkway. A walkway can come from a sidewalk to your front door, or from the driveway. There are all sorts of unique and beautiful walkway designs.

The key is to choose the materials that match your aesthetic. If you are a minimalist, a stone path or linear brick path might be the way to go. If you want your home to be more like a beach house, consider a path with shells. The key is to opt for something that will bring new life and style to your home’s exterior.

2. Add New Fencing Around Landscaping Or Pathways

Another way to add some elegance and style to your home’s exterior without picking up a paintbrush is to install some decorative fencing. Fences add color and order, which can go a long way in making your home look great.

You can place fencing around the landscaping and front yard gardens. Alternatively, you can place fencing along a pathway. There are many styles of fencing, including short white picket fences, bamboo fencing, and even cast-iron fencing. Choose the style that works for your design vision and budget. 

3. Grow Flowering Plants Along The House

If you have a green thumb, consider choosing some beautiful flowers to help make your home’s exterior shine. You’ll be surprised at how some bright and colorful blossoms can improve the way your home appears from the outside.

Choose flowering plants that will bloom for several months. You can also opt to plant different species that bloom at different times, beginning with early spring blooms, and lasting through to the first frost. This ensures there is a natural pop of color throughout the year.

4. Pressure Wash Your Driveway And Pathways

Sometimes the best way to make the outside of your home look good is to clean it. To quickly improve the way the outside of your home looks, use a pressure washer. There are many things you can clean with a power washer. You may even be able to wash your home, roof, and foundation.

One spot that almost always benefits from pressure washing is the driveway. Applying a pressure washer to a driveway can get rid of oil spills, dirt, grime, and hard-to-remove stains. A thorough washing will leave your driveway looking a decade younger. This, in turn, will make your house look refreshed and tidy from the outside.

5. Add A Seating Area By The Entrance

If you have a home with an ample entryway or even a front porch, then you should think about adding some fresh furniture to the area. A chaise lounge, rocking chair, and even a porch swing can make a worn-down porch look new and welcoming.

When searching for furniture, look for pillows and cushions that are built to last outside. Choose materials that match the rest of your home. This will ensure everything looks unified. 

6. Build A Trellis For Climbing Plants

If you don’t want to paint your entire home but want your house to look fresh and alive, then consider hiding your old paint job with a trellis and climbing plants. A trellis is a fantastic garden feature that will help your climbing plants reach new heights.

You can plant classic ivy, or opt for a flowering climbing plant like wisteria or jasmine. Keep in mind that climbing plants can damage the exterior of some homes, so you might need to keep the trellis a safe distance from your home.

7. Swap Out Old Hardware For New

Another area of your home’s exterior you can focus on to spruce things up is the hardware. You can swap out old rusted or dated hardware for modern and unified fixtures.

External light fixtures, door knobs, mailboxes, and even your doorbell are all small and relatively inexpensive items you can replace. You might want to consider installing a Ring or another smart doorbell, as this will modernize your home and improve your home security.

8. Install Planter Boxes Under The Window

Another way to add life to your home’s exterior without painting is to install planter boxes under your windows. Planter boxes add a lot of personality to a home. This is particularly true when you fill them with flowering plants or stunning hanging plants. Just remember that window boxes often require daily watering, so this is not the most low-maintenance option.

9. Buy A New Doormat Or Outdoor Rug

If you have a tired-looking outdoor rug or a doormat that’s so old you can’t remember when you bought it, then it’s time for a new one. A doormat might not be visible from the street, but it is where most of your company will stand before they enter your home. A new doormat is an inexpensive improvement, but it will look great and help keep mud and sand out of your home.

10. Add New Decorative Pots For A Front Yard Container Garden

A container garden, or even just a few potted plants can do a lot to spruce up your home’s exterior. What’s great about potted plants is you can place them strategically. This allows you to hide anything unsightly, or highlight something beautiful. Opt for colorful or well-made decorative pots to make your potted plants look even more beautiful.

11. Hang Seasonal Wreaths

If you want your home to look current and festive, opt for a seasonal wreath for your front door. You can find a wreath to help celebrate pretty much anything. From spring, or fall, and from July 4th to Christmas, there is a wreath available.

If you want to build up your seasonal wreath arsenal, check out discount home stores like Marshalls or HomeGoods, as they often have seasonal wreaths on clearance after each holiday.

12. Add Thoughtful And Chic Exterior Lighting

All of the ideas listed above will help the outside of your home look better during the day, but it’s important your home also looks its best at night. To make your home look amazing at night, you don’t need to paint it, you just need some new lighting.

You can add stylish path lighting, or even arrange flood lights, so your home is well-lit at night. This will make your home look great when it’s dark, and may also keep burglars away.

13. Paint The Front Door

If you don’t want to paint your entire house, but you want the exterior to pop and shine, then you can just paint the front door. Some say that painting your front door (especially the color red) makes your home look better. Believe it or not, it can even increase the value of your home. Best of all, you can paint a door in just one day.

Wrapping Up Sprucing Up A Home’s Exterior Without Painting

If you want to make the outside of your home look better, but don’t want to paint it, then there is good news for you. To spruce up your home’s exterior, incorporate more plants by adding window planter boxes, installing a trellis, or adding potted plants. Power wash your driveway, or add a new pathway. You can even improve your exterior lighting so your home looks great at night as well.

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