Creating Curb Appeal with Planters
If you’re a renter or homeowner living in the Colorado Springs area, now is the perfect time to boost your curb appeal with planters. There are so many options available when it comes to putting together a great planter that often times people get overwhelmed by the whole process. So today I want to share with you a few things I have learned over the years to help you create the perfect planter for your front porch. Know When to PlantThis answer depends on the size of your planters. I have large planters at my house that I can’t take into the garage when there’s a late spring freeze, so I always wait until just after Mother’s Day to plant mine. Yes, it’s really hard for me to wait this long to get started, but I have lost entire planters in the past, so I have learned my lesson the hard way. However, if you have smaller planters that you can easily move inside when the temperatures drop, you can get started a little sooner in the season. Know Your LocationKeep in mind the location of your planters in relationship to the sun. Are they in the shade most of the day? Do they get morning sun, or are they in the sun all afternoon? This will determine which plants and flowers will be best suited for your planters. Often times the plants are labeled as shade, part sun, or full sun when you purchase them, so there’s no need to do a lot of research ahead of time. Be Mindful of the SeasonDifferent flowers bloom at different times of the year. So, if you want to use a single type of flower, make sure it blooms from spring to fall. Or you can mix up different flowers that bloom during each season, so there’s always something blooming and you’ll get lots of variation throughout the growing season. Many different flowers have variations that will bloom during each season depending on the variety that you choose. Follow These Design Ideas1. Go Modern!The key to a modern planter is to keep it simple. When it comes to the planter itself, think straight lines. Cubes, rectangles, cylinders or geometric shapes lend themselves to modern designs. As for the foliage, keep it simple and stick to one type of plant. It could be a type of ornamental grass, a green shrub, succulents, or flowers with striking leaves. Check out the collage of modern planters below for some inspiration.Flowers – Alyssum, Cannas, Kangaroo Paw, LavenderShrubs – Boxwood, Dwarf Alberta Spruce, EuonymusOrnamental Grasses – Blue Fescue Varieties, Little Bluestem Varieties, Switch GrassSucculents – Yuccas, sedums, Ornamental Kale, Hens & Chicks 2. Use the Thrillers, Fillers & Spillers MethodThis is a good method to use if you want to use different plants in the same container. The thriller adds height and is the focus of the container. The filler does just what it says and fills in the container and the spiller trails over the edge of the container. You can add additional interest by mixing in foliage along with the flowers. I’ve provided a few examples of thrillers, fillers & spillers below. Thriller Flowers – Cannas, Celosia, Cone Flowers, Dahlias, Daisies (Gerbera), Delphiniums, Lavender, Mandevilla (on a support), Pericallis, Pincushion, Poppies, Salvia, Snapdragons, Stock, SunflowersThriller Foliage – Cordyline, Dwarf Egyptian Papyrus, Ornamental Grasses, Spider Plant, Spike Dracaena, YuccasFiller Flowers – African Daisies, Calibrachoa, Dianthus, Euphorbia, Geraniums, Lantana, Pansies/Violas, Petunias, ZinniasFiller Foliage – Caladium, Coleus, Coral Bells (Heuchera), Dusty Miller, Hens & Chicks, Ornamental KaleSpiller Flowers – Bellflowers (Campanula), Black-Eyed Susan Vine, Creeping Phlox, Mandevilla (unsupported), Snow in Summer, VincaSpiller Foliage – Ferns, Ivy, Creeping Jenny, Livingstone Daisy, Sweet Potato Vine, Sedums, Stonecrop Don’t Forget the Holidays!After my planters are finished for the year, I will clean them out to make room for mums or asters. However, I don’t actually plant them in my planters. Instead, I keep them in their original container and simply set them inside my container. It’s totally cheating, but it totally works! Then I add small straw bales and pumpkins to finish out my fall décor. Although I have seen winter planters, I have never actually created one. I like to change out my planters from year-to-year, so putting in an evergreen is more of a commitment than I want to make. However, if you are more of a plant-it-and-be-done-with-it kind of person, this might be a good option for you. Fall – Mums, Asters (fall varietals), Straw Bales, PumpkinsWinter – Dwarf Alberta Spruce, Dwarf Mugo Pine, Emerald Green Arborvitae, Green Mountain Boxwood, Holly, Junipers (Blue Chip, Blue Star, Blue Rug), Nest Spruce Colorado Springs Real Estate Professionals – TEAL Pro Team backed by EXIT Realty Mountain View Natalie Olmsted and Jennifer Mencl are motivated REALTORS® specializing with Future First Time Home Buyers and Last Time Home Sellers located in the following areas; Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Monument, Peyton, Fountain, and surrounding areas. Natalie and her team strive to provide you the very best service to make your real estate experience stress free. Call Natalie Olmsted at 719.287.8067.
Phelan Gardens
Phelan Gardens is one of my favorite nurseries in town. I go there when I’m looking for something unique as they always have a great selection of shrubs, flowers, and trees. Plus, their staff is super knowledgeable and willing to help in any way they can! They even offer educational classes all summer long that you can register to attend on their website. So whether you are just starting out, or an experienced green thumb, I highly recommend giving Phelan Gardens a visit. Click here to visit their website. Colorado Springs Real Estate Professionals – TEAL Pro Team backed by EXIT Realty Mountain View Natalie Olmsted and Jennifer Mencl are motivated REALTORS® specializing with Future First Time Home Buyers and Last Time Home Sellers located in the following areas; Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Monument, Peyton, Fountain, and surrounding areas. Natalie and her team strive to provide you the very best service to make your real estate experience stress free. Call Natalie Olmsted at 719.287.8067.
Prepping Your House for Market
Making the proper preparations to your house before going on the market can help you get top dollar when it comes to selling. Below is a 3-step system you can apply to every room to get your house looking its best. You can also click here to download a detailed list of items for the important areas of your home. 1. Declutter & Depersonalize Decluttering and depersonalizing will achieve two goals. First, it will reduce the overall number of items in the home making it appear larger, and secondly, it will neutralize the space which helps buyers to imagine themselves living there. The simplest way to begin this process is to start with depersonalizing. Box up any personal items, such as photos, calendars, uniforms, and religious keepsakes. Again, the concern is not that home buyers will be offended by you or your lifestyle. The goal is to neutralize the space and to help home buyers imagine themselves living there. Now, how do you decide what goes and what stays with everything that is left? Start off by getting rid of items that you don’t want to take with you when you move, via a garage sale or donation. Next, box up your least-used and out-of-season items. For instance, keep the coffee maker out because you use it daily. But can you go a couple of months without waffles? If so, pack up the waffle iron. Apply the same theory to closets. If it’s in the middle of the summer, pack up all of your winter clothes. The same goes for toys, box up the least used or most space consuming items. Remember, you’re just packing them away for a couple of months, you’re not getting rid of them. So now what are you supposed to do with all of these boxes? You can stack them neatly in the corner of the garage or store them off-site in a storage unit. Hopefully now, you’re down to about half of the original items you had in your house and that’s great! It’s going to make your house feel bigger. 2. Repair & Upgrade Making small repairs may seem like a waste of time, but they can give buyers the impression that your home has not been well maintained. So go ahead and repair or replace leaky faucets, torn window screens, and any cracks or holes in the walls. If the carpet is old, stained and worn, replace it. You could even go one step further, and have a pre-sale home inspection done. An inspector will be able to give you a good indication of the trouble areas that will stand out to potential buyers, and you’ll be able to make repairs before you go live on the market. Plus, there won’t be any surprises later down the line when the buyer has their inspection done on the home. Once all of the necessary repairs have been made, think about what upgrades you can make to catch the buyer’s eye. For instance, new house numbers and a new porch light can spruce up an entry making for a great first impression. Upgrading light fixtures, hardware and plumbing fixtures can breathe new life into bathrooms and kitchens. Hiring a handyman can save you time and ensure the work is done correctly. 3. Clean & Stage Now it’s time to clean. And I mean the whole house deep cleaned kind of clean. Wash the windows, shampoo the carpets, wipe down light fixtures, baseboards, and ceiling fans (most definitely the ceiling fans). Why is this so important? Two reasons. Buyers will walk in, see a dirty house, and will turn around and walk right back out the door. I’ve seen it, first hand, in a seller’s market, it happens. So set your home up for success. Secondly, buyers don’t like odd smells, and if everything is clean, it’s not going to smell. Simple as that. If you’re not feeling up to the task, no problem, hire a professional and have them do it for you. Just make sure it’s done! Once you’re done with the upgrades, it’s time to neatly organize what’s left in the house. Don’t have an eye for design? Think about hiring a professional stager. They will know how to use furniture and décor to highlight the best parts of your home. Just remember, your home only has one chance to make a great first impression. Anything you can do to create a welcoming environment that appears clean, comfortable, beautiful and relaxing will pay off in the long run! Oh, and one final piece of advice - When you’re sorting through everything, gather up any warranties, guarantees, and user manuals for the furnace, washer/dryer, dishwasher and any other items that will remain with the house. You’ll want to leave those for the buyers to have when they move in. Colorado Springs Real Estate Professionals – TEAL Pro Team backed by EXIT Realty Mountain View Natalie Olmsted and Jennifer Mencl are motivated REALTORS® specializing with Future First Time Home Buyers and Last Time Home Sellers located in the following areas; Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Monument, Peyton, Fountain, and surrounding areas. Natalie and her team strive to provide you the very best service to make your real estate experience stress free. Call Natalie Olmsted at 719.287.8067.
Categories
Recent Posts
