Paint all that white trim a bright color that you like. That alone will make it pop.

Such a cute house! I'd power-wash the exterior if you haven't already. I like the idea of painting the trim. You could build new front steps out of cedar that would age like the house. Maybe replace the walkway with something fun or put a border on it.

Hydrangeas are great at the beach and give a great pop of color. Love your beach house - Enjoyit!

Cute house! Would it interest you to have a larger trough planter? Agricultural supply places or hardware stores sell water or feed troughs for animals made from zinc-coated metal, 2 x 2 x 3, 4 or 6 ft. Kind of an industrial look, but works well with the coastal vibe. Look for a new mailbox to put on a post -- the poor mail carrier must stoop to deliver the junk mail, then you have to stoop to get it out. Collect a lot more driftwood to make a "sculptural" pile. If possible, widen your boardwalk by 2 more boards. I agree with the others -- cut loose with some color on the trim, you won't regret it.

Adorable little gem.

I'm leaning toward staining the siding a color and leaving the trim white. Coral? Bright blue or green?

Then remove little front step and run more of those boards you used for your boardwalk along the entire length of the front of the house creating a little 4 foot deep porch/patio. Imagine a couple of planters with what ever you want in them and two little chairs?

Is that a porch on the front portion?

Since it’s a beach house I’d stick with seaside plants and materials, not try to use things more at home in a suburban garden. Driftwood, rope, weathered metal, smooth rocks and plants like Eryngiums, Chasmanthium, Armeria etc. And I’d make the planters and driftwood piles much more generous in size than the current ones. And a sitting area out front would be good, unless of course that’s a busy road in the foreground. Seeing what’s in front more clearly might help with ideas. I wouldn’t power wash it. The lovely maritime patina on the shingles would be lost. Have you ever seen pictures of Derek Jarman’s garden? Just Google it for images.

These windows would look great with shutters! :-)

I disagree with changing the trim color. I'd keep it white and instead paint the shingle siding to something along the likes of seafoam, lichen, oxidized copper, etc.

The planter doesn't seem near big enough. If you had one that held several times as much soil and then placed a pair of them in front, one below each window set, it would have much more impact.

With the walk being so short, there was no reason to make it narrower than the step. Make it wider by patching in with additional concrete.

I agree with placing the mailbox on a post. Even if it doesn't bother you to have it like it is, it reads as some sort of bad midget joke. A post would be an opportunity to inject some spark into the scene. It could be wildly colorful, patterned, adorned or whimsical ... like a men's necktie gets to be in spite of business suits being generally non-flashy.

Nice job Dig - ty!

A pair of aderondack chairs in red or white would immediately give the front a feeling of relaxation.

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I didn't recommend paint because then it will require more maintenance. The natural siding may have faded quite a bit, but there is very little to no maintenance associated with it. You could freshen up the trim paint if it's getting worn. Love the landscaping ideas! Definitely use local flowers that won't need you to do anything. The grasses are good and the sand/rocks are perfect. You could also do small sculptural pieces or hardscaping that wouldn't require any maintenance.

One fun idea would be to make your own house number sign. You can get super creative with it, even add pops of color to enhance the current color scheme. I've attached a link that shows some DIY options similar to this!

DIY house numbers

Since you were able to build the walkway yourself, I would suggest replacing the steps with a narrow-ish low deck to run the width of the front. One step down to the ground level. 4 corner posts, 2 posts on either side of the step. You could use heavy rope or chain from post to post to form a nautical "railing". Simply cover over the stump and the existing planter with the decking. Repaint the mailbox something pretty & mount on one of the posts. A couple of large brightly colored planters, a rocking chair, you're good to go!

It would be a bit of DIY, but I'd like to see the little shed awning replaced by a pergola all across the front. You could grow morning glories, roses, etc on it.

I have a question for you: Don't you get termites there? I ask because if we have buried tree stumps here, it draws termites so we always recommend getting rid of them. But I am much further south of you. Just curious.

Mailboxes as seen on Balboa Island and Laguna Beach, California. Images borrowed from the web (Getty images, balboaisland.com, Laguna Beach Magazine)

love DigDougs turquoise rendering! perfect for the beach.

Thanks everyone for your input! I think I will do the following this spring:

-Install a paving stone border

-Plant something bigger in the planter ? Armeria I will ask local landscape for recommendations

-Update mailbox/House number with a pop of color: there were a lot of comments about the mailbox but since this is a beach house, we barely get any mail! Maybe 1x month

-FIND driftwood to make the pile bigger…did you know driftwood sells for $250 for a two foot piece!

I hope to share and updated photo. Also, stayed tuned for photos of the interior!

In the future:

Painting the trim…my contractor/handyman/painter aka DAD just repainted the white…so we won't be touching that for a few years.

Plant hydrangea bushes or, various plants on the whole front year, or replace the small planter with two larger

Dig Doug: I love your renderings, especially the trellis!

Additional comments:

House is in Lavallette (good eye Dig Doug!)

Won't widen the boardwalk…it would expand into the driveway

Won't paint or stain the shingles…too much upkeep.

Yes, the front room is a porch. The "real" front door is inside there.

Creating a patio/porch: I like the idea and the look but the front room is a porch and we have outdoor seating out back.

Town rule we cannot pave (or paving stone) the whole yard=drainage issues during storms

Not sure about termites…will look into this. Thank you for the warning!

Would love to see photos as you go along

I think the plantER needs to be much bigger. Not just the plants.