Cosmetic stuff is easy and fun and totally within the bounds of DIY. You don't have to "gut" things to necessarily achieve big style improvements. Just paint, tile, new doors, ripping out nasty carpet, etc. can make a HUGE difference in the feel of the home. Don't think structural, think color, texture, etc. for the look and feel you like. A couple of thoughts: If the kitchen is melamine, it isn't all that great aesthetically, but it does clean up well. White kitchens are "in" right now and you could change out the pulls for wrought iron ones or less modern, more cozy silver ones, and do something warm and cozy with the backsplash color and and paint the walls and island, and curtains and appliances, etc. just for starters. Google "white farmhouse kitchens" or "white country kitchens" or "white cottage kitchens" for some inspiration about small appliances, patterns, dishware, linens, colors, etc. Consider the cabinets neutral for now. As for the bathroom, you can get many elements of the look you like by tiling the shower enclosure, ripping out the door and replacing it with a curtain, and painting or tiling the walls of the rest of the room, or even putting up beadboard. I agree with others though about thinking a lot about how it will clean up when considering bathroom finishes. Barnboard is lovely in small doses but a dust magnet. I know, I had barnboard paneling in a house I lived in once, it does NOT grow on you!! Use it as an accent. As for the bedroom with the tub, you can redo the surround and also put up a wooden screen around it for now. At the very least, you could build a half wall around the tub, like the photos Nosoccermom posted. I love the Scandanavian country/cottage look, that's the way I would go.

Just so you know, getting any plant established will require watering on a regular basis the first season, so plan on doing that and get the length of hose needed. One suggestion would be to lay hose under the mulch with a sprinkler set at the top of the slope and leave it there so that all you have to do is hook it up to the water and turn it on whenever it's dry. The fewer times you have to walk on the slope, the better, so you might want to ask your up hill neighbor if you can use his yard for access the first season since it's also to his benefit to have the slope stable in the long run. Or use the stake and board method below to build a temporary set of steps. Or a more permanent set along with a path across the midslope for easier access when needed. I have a steep sandy hill from an old river channel that was disrupted by construction in a few areas, and here is what we did. We began by doing things to stabilize the slope on a short-term basis. First DH created a bunch of 2' wood stakes and got long boards (just pine sawmill cutoffs) which he staked in place across the slope, slightly below the soil line, but mostly above. I followed with a rough mulch that knitted together well and didn't slide down the slope. Look for gorilla hair mulch or chipped arborists' trimmings, both of which work well. I did a lot of the work from the top of the slope since gravity helped me out. face on - Over to the left by the concrete wall ( which was poured as part of the building's foundation) you can see some of the boards. Looking across the slope you can see some of the stakes sticking up. There are boards under the mulch. Once you have done that, then you can start working on your wall and planting the upper part of the slope. I agree that a modular concrete block wall would be the way to go, though I would also check into a poured concrete wall to see if that may be cheaper and/or more stable in the long run. Read up on how it needs to be built to be safe - tying back into the slope and a proper foundation. Plan on getting all the materials and doing the work in chunks so that you don't have exposed soil for long periods of time. I would be more likely to do a two or three foot wall to decrease the slope's steepness and then use plants to stabilize the remainder of the slope. Multiple walls that together equal more than a certain height need engineering to be stable. My slope pictured above is in shade most of the day, so the plants I used there won't help you much. In another sunnier spot I used a combination of old-fashioned orange daylilies (Hemerocallis fulva) which spread (unlike many of the modern daylily cultivars) along with Centaurea dealbata, a perennial magenta-flowered cornflower. Both spread vigorously and are in the range of 1 1/2' -2' tall out of bloom, and I usually weed the slope once or twice annually (takes about 20 minutes for 60'x15') and renew the mulch in very early spring every few years before the plants have sprouted to keep the weeds from getting a foothold. Here is a photo of the slope, freshly mulched early season before the plants came up. By now this is about 20 years old and only gets a few hours of attention per year on this west-facing slope. It is densely packed with plants and has flowers from late spring into summer, and I have added a few shrubs to the slope to provide interest when neither of the groundcovers are blooming. I got the Centaurea as a hand-me down plant from a neighbor and the daylilies were already on the property so I only had to divide and move them. You will most likely want to get started on your plantings in the spring, and if there is a plant source that will sell you flats or you know someone with either of these plants (or can find them somewhere like Craiglist), you can increase them over time with division.

Added photos that show the whole front of the house and yard would help. Stand 15 ‘ or 20’ from the front door and take one photo straight on and without moving to another spot take one or two slightly overlapping photos to the left and right so that we can see all the way from the left side of the property to the right, and up to the roof line of the house. Plantings need to be in context, so we need to see windows, doors, other plantings, etc. so it all works together and looks proportional to the building. For instance, are there trees shading this spot? Is it a one or two story house and how big is the roof overhang? What do the current shrubs look like? Since you aren’t in a desert area, an organic mulch such as shredded bark mulch or chopped leaves will work much better than stone for your mulch. Knowing the nearest big city will help as well so we can have an idea of soil pH. In my area, acid loving plants like Rhododendrons do well, but in areas with more neutral or alkaline soils, they aren’t happy.

Thank you for all the ideas! Beverly, I do love that taupe house with the brown roof. What I meant to say is that with my roof being gray, I don't think I want gray siding to get the same effect. I would consider a brighter or bolder color over pastels. Sasha, i like the 2nd image with the bright yellow and wood door.. I am really drawn to the white images above and Beth's mockups. TY! Deco- that Deephaven Cottage pic looks a lot like my current color. I like the brighter blue on the door. Norwood- no offense taken. I realize it is plain, and that is why I posted. There was a huge tree in front at the curb that was recently taken down and so it feels especially plain and exposed now. I am in NJ and many trees are dying from a bacterial disease. Wsea- cool deck with the lighting. And, I agree that adding a full width front porch is most likely out of my price range,