Where's the front door?

Question

My home was built with a protruding side entry garage which hides the front door.  What landscaping or other options can I do to direct attention to the front door and make it look pretty?  It's pretty bland right now.

Lagree Wyndham · Answer

OK, if budget is not an option, I would add a circle drive to guide vistors to the front of house, attached side walk, colorful plantings and bright front door and for night add landscape lighting, it looks like you have a lrge enough yard to add the drive.   The budget option, would be a curved side walk from drive to front door,  that is not right up on the house also include bright landscaping and lighting.

Carolyn Leneberg · Answer

You need a side walk from the driveway to the front door.  My friends house is like this and EVERYONE uses the laundry room as the entry.  You need a practical sidewalk from the driveway  to the front door with plenty of attractive landscaping for interest.

Janet Pizaro · Answer

First idea is definitely a side walk from your front door. I would make a retaining wall in the front and start to the left will a focal specimen and continue plantings based on your hardiness zone. On the side that goes out further again make  retaining wall  and plant another focal specimen and again continue plantings .If it is possible make sure you include all season color interest.The tree in the yard is looking a little lonely. I would cut the grass out and make a shape . If you are happy with just the one tree then put mulch or rock with a border going around.

Amy · Answer

Create a path from the driveway to the front door with landscaping and stones...

Cindy Hagemann · Answer

I think I see a sidewalk in the photo from the driveway to the front door - but it is hard to see. Widen it with flat stones and landscaping along side of it. Add a larger rounded area with flat stones near the corner of the garage and add a bench and more landscaping to draw attention to the area. Also, paint your front door a bright color such as red or teal, add more landscaping and keep your garage closed as much as possible to prevent people from coming in that way. We added an entry code to the outside of our garage so that we can close it and family can have the code to enter if they are on foot.

Bob Sgle · Answer

I'd just move.

Johnchip · Answer

Welcome to my garage!  The biggest home design mistake of the late 20th century. I would consider making a park place in front of the garage then blocking it off from the parking with a wall or hedge. Make the garage a separate place that becomes private for the family use. This also  gives a sense of a bigger property with designated  'areas', more estate like.

Lorrie · Answer

Your walkway to the door is bland, small and undefind.  This would be a great area for a larger sidwalk. Or if you cannot afford it perhaps white gravel outlining the walkway you have. Paving stones?    Perhaps a small decorative fence which borders the path as well.  And some small ornamental globing shrubs every few feet.  Such as arbirvitae. Golden globe?  As your home has many straight lines I would add circular paths for contrast.

Sheri N · Answer

I  would  create a patio area in front of your front door and a sidewalk to the driveway.

Sherry Fram · Answer

I agree with MarketingMomx4 build a sidewalk from the driveway to the front door. I would frame the sidewalk with pavers or old brick. That will give you a path around the garage to the front door. Build the sidewalk far enough away from the garage wall to plant some flowers then plant more along the sidewalk.

Suellen Hintz · Answer

I think you could plant in the area to 'cut off' the entrance to the garage...going to where the curve begins.  Plants that grow upright, with little horizontal spread for the back row, some colorful upright plants and some shorter border plants.  Make your sidewalk grander by making it wider, so 3-4 people can walk side by side.  Could be packed gravel, more concrete, pavers, etc.  plan a large flower bed at the front door, repeating plants you used by the garage/driveway area, adding another color, I.e. Use purple and pink by the garage, adding yellow by the front door.  Paint your front door to pick up one of those colors.  Lots of work but it will help the appearance of you house and help direct people to your front door.

Talina · Answer

Widen the path with some bricks or pavers, then do a flower bed along the path with bright colored annuals to naturally draw people in that direction.

Ljgordon · Answer

FYI: Frank Lloyd Wright, the archetectural genius, designed many of his houses so the location of the front door was not readily apparent.

Suzette · Answer

This might sound a little odd, but, if your walkway is concrete, you could stain it a contrasting color.  They have lots of beautiful colors to choose from.    You might even want to paint your font door the same color!

Debbie · Answer

You could paint the front door a really vibrant shade of red. This way, it will stand out and say hello and welcome to my home!

Cathy · Answer

Can you widen your walkway beside the garage to make it more welcoming, make a better flow pattern?  How about putting up a partial fence there at the corner with season decor kind of inviting someone to walk that way?---you definitely need to make the path more inviting to draw the eye towards the hidden entrance.

Bonnie Woolever · Answer

Paint your front door a brighter color and possibly add some type of patio to the front door area.  You could then add benches or white rocking chairs with nice bright cushions on them.

GoddessOdd · Answer

I would start a path further down on the driveway,  to meander between the driveway and the little tree, and landscape the bejeebers out of it, make it curvy with lots and lots of bright border plantings...paint the front door to harmonize with the bright plantings,  and make the area between the garage and the walk a landscaped garden area, maybe even adding a seating area there.   There would still be a walk to get  to the front door, but the way would be obvious, and would add a lot of interest to your front yard, and a lot of curb appeal.   Depending on the materials you use, this could be done quite inexpensively, if you garden from seed and find free materials for your walkway.   I did drunken paving (broken chunks of concrete set in new concrete) from the street to my front door for only the cost of a few bags of quikcrete.   The big broken pieces of concrete were free from a nearby sidewalk repair.  I have even had contractors deliver broken concrete, as it saves them the disposal fee.

Mari Detto · Answer

I would build a brick or a covered cinder block wall even the the front wall of the garage with an opening to a beautiful courtyard  leading to the front door.  It would make your home look massive like an estate.  I'd put a beautiful iron gate in the opening.

Snapoutofit · Answer

The entrance needs to be landscaped. I agree with @GoddessOdd on making the walkway curvy and landscaping the 'bejeebers' out of it.  :-)
The pic below is on a larger scale but you'll get my idea....remove some grass,   plant some decorative grasses, flowering begonias, etc.  Don't forget to add some taller plants as well.  Love the idea of painting that front door too! also, some planters next to the door with foliage would look good too.

Where's the front door?

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Where's the front door?

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