Cute house! I agree that landscaping will do wonders for the front of the house. The shutters look odd to me so the next time you paint consider removing them. Your kitchen is cute -- all it needs is some color. Dishtowels, a rug, curtains and a bowl of fruit will instantly warm it up. Any chance you can replace the carpet in the living spaces? If so a solid flooring would look good. If not consider painting the walls with a hint of color. New drapery panels and a different ceiling fan would look nice, but not critical. Get your furniture in then doll it up with art on the walls, pretty pillows, a throw, etc.

All of these things can be done slowly over time -- don't rush and enjoy turning your new house into a home.

Thank you! I thought the same thing about the shutters but didn’t know if it would look weird without them. By solid flooring you mean like a hard flooring? Or just solid color? Thank you a lot.

Congratulations!!!🎉🍾. It’s adorable. I would replace the storm door with a full glass storm door, and paint the entry door a fun, bright color. Find a large, pretty door mat and pull a color from there. A portico or front porch and new garage door would add curb appeal for when you hit the lottery!!

Or with dark window frames

Ohh...I forgot fascia.

These are SOOOO cool! Thank you for the visuals❤️

Cute house... Here are my suggestions.

Of course landscaping will be a major improvement for curb appeal, ask for advice at your local garden center if you don't know anything about gardening, it can be made easy maintenance. I've removed the shutters and added flower boxes for detail, I also show all black door for impact, larger black sconces and numbers.

For the kitchen, I would replace the ceiling and above sink lights, install natural fibre roman shades on the window and door, and a long runner along the counter (the one I show is from Ruggable and is wash & dry). With the options I show, you can accessorize with the accent colour of your choice.

For the living room, I would replace the fan with a nice large semi-flush lighty (I show a black Vertigo Chandelier from Amazon 31 inch). I don't know if you plan to keep the curtains but they are too short, I show them longer. And, don't know what your plans are about the flooring but if you're keeping the existing rug, you can always complement your decor with a flatweave area rug on top of the existing one.

If your budget allows, or perhaps another project later on, you can build a pergola to enhance the front door and enlarge the porch also in wood.

@Celery. Visualization, Rendering images What about a Portico?

Congratulations on your new home! As for anything inside can you post some blueprints or give us some measurements of the rooms you want help with? Also, more pictures of the rooms and what you want in the living room. Do you want a tv?

I would do this to the exterior:

Sherman Home Co · More Info

I think all one color, that works with the roof will make the house look more important.

This house, obviously, has replacement windows, but yours could be painted (no shutters).

Follow the link and take a peek at what was done around the front door.

Love it! That’s close to the color I was thinking for the front door

Mae Day, yes! I want a tv in the living room and the room is a long rectangle with windows. Not sure how I would do it. I’m going to the house again tomorrow. I will take measurements.

Ha! The portico is cute! I’ll have to save my pennies. So cute!

Lisedv! Those small changes make such a HUGE impact. Love the breezy vibe inside. I hate the carpet. But money is tight right now for a bit. A flat weave rug….would a natural fiber look ok over that weird color carpet? I guess I’ve seen dark jute

I would say, live in it for awhile. Get all of your furniture in and get it set up and then live in it for a while and see what bothers you the most also you may end up wanting to paint etc. so I would buy light fixtures and things like that after you make a few more major decisions. Landscaping isn’t that cheap so you will have to put a little bit in your budget into that and decide when you want to attack that I found out here most people do the interior and then move to the exterior

@ Mae Day Organizing and Interior Design I did not do portico cos OP asked of suggestions on small changes. To build portico need some extra $$$.

Sunny Fields, the rug is something you'll have to try colour wise. You can also find coloured natural fibre ones, and Ruggable thin rugs offers a variety of styles and colours (I show a vintage one below). I have no idea of your furniture nor colour scheme so unable to suggest anything precise.

Here's an article on how to use and area rug over carpet:

https://boutiquerugs.com/en-ca/blogs/boutique-blog/how-to-use-area-rugs-over-a-carpet

@Celery. Visualization, Rendering images You do such great work with your overlays that I thought it would be nice to show her what a Portico would look like. They are great protection for bad weather and do add curb appeal.

My husband and I do as much DIY as we can because the contractors in our area charge so much to do almost anything. To paint a house can cost $8 to $10,000 for a 1000 sq. foot house. Landscaping: $20 to $30,00 if it includes a watering system. An upgraged cement walkway $2 to $3,000. My husband building a Poritico with materials and labor $2 to $300. Our neighborhood is not upscale, and our little house looks a lot like Sunny's but we have a carport not a garage (wish we did)

So Sunny if you have a husband or friends that can help with any of the work that will cut your costs significantly. Also, sometimes the guys at the local hardware store can give you names of local people who will give you a break then there are those retired folks that give you really great price breaks. I suggest asking the guys at your local hardware store. They are often very helpful but find someone who has been working there for several years. They often have more info.

Best Wishes,

MAE

Sunny,

I will keep and eye out for the measurements so I can do a virtual build of the room. May we have a picture of the living room and kitchen from the opposite side of the rooms?

Thanks,

Marcie

Here's one idea with a portico and pergola above the large window...

Mae Day, the living room is 11 x 19. The kitchen is 11 x 9. I appreciated your post regarding DIY. I am a single working woman on a tight budget. I do as much of my own repairs and updates as I can. I appreciate this help more than you know.

Hello Sunny,
Thanks for the pictures and measurements that helps a lot. I’ll do a virtual build in order to see the room so you can tell me what you want added to each room. sorry to ask, but do you have any pictures of furniture that you already have? Or, can you tell me what type of living room furniture you do have? This is a wonderful little house and a great starter home. It looks like they have done a lot of painting already. What a sweet little kitchen!

Oh I forgot an important question; how many guests do you want to accommodate in your living room?

The sofa I have in my apartment now is ikea and is very small. I plan to get a different couch. I have a round glass coffee table and a 42” tv on the wall. I am pretty minimalistic and like my plants. I was thinking to put a small round dining table in the living room, splitting the space since there’s no room in the kitchen. My apartment now has a built-in island/dining space so I will be purchasing a small table. I’ve never liked curtains, but I’m not opposed to trying something different.

I have a group of friends that come over routinely and my grown kids/family a couple times a month so about four people at a time, two or three times a month. Otherwise it’s just me and my springer spaniel.

Thank you Sunny. Love it.! Got it. That helped a lot. See you real soon. Makes me want to sing the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song. Lol

Lol thank you Mae

Hello sunny, haven’t forgotten you. It’s been a long weekend and now I’m trying to catch up with myself. Hopefully I can put things together today to show you. Thanks for your patience. MAE

Here are some ideas for the layout and inspiration for your living room.

Hello Sunny,

The virtual construction is done. The furniture and so on are based on what you posted. The furniture placement, not the colors nor styles, are all that is being suggested. I placed a cafe table in the kitchen with two bench seats that can also be used as a prep station.

The following is presented for your consideration and viewing pleasure. Hope it helps. ;-)

More pics;

Okay here are a couple more.

Wow. Great ideas!! It helps so much to see it like this. I have such a hard time visualizing and this is perfect.

Happy to know it helped. By the way the table is a small 3 foot wide table. About the same size as a game table. It would be nice to be able to find one that you could put leafs in for extra seating. I wish you the very best in your new little home. Best wishes, MAE

MAE. You are so talented! i use marketplace on Facebook and am keeping my eye open for some options. In my current apartment, I have a solid wood island that has a really beautiful wood top and an edge that comes out for seating with cute bar stools. I’m wondering if that would work in the kitchen like you have that little table. I would have to put the open shelving against the wall, but maybe I could even put casters on it so I could store things inside that I don’t use often, but could access easily enough

Lots of potential over time. I really like this exterior from celery, since you mentioned you are on a budget. I’d make one change though, I’d choose a charcoal instead of black. It just seems a bit softer, not as harsh and easier to look clean. Remove the shutters, at least from the large window. 2nd pic attached shows a greyish trim, not quite charcoal. Green trim is interesting too.

Thanks Bette. The green IS interesting. I love the second picture with the gray trim and the wood door. It’s nice.

Thank you Sunny For your kind words. I sincerely hope it helped. If I can ever be of any help in the future please let me know. Again, best wishes in your new home. MAE

@njmomma Merry Christmas to you and yours. And, thank you for your kind support through out the year.

Sunny, Merry Christmas to you and yours as well. I wish you the very best in your new little house. Best Wishes to All, MAE

Merry Christmas @Mae

It's hard to tell from a distance, but the cabinets don't look too bad from here. I assume someone painted them in the past. What I would really love to see changed is that countertop. Something like either butcher block or a charcoal gray laminate top would look great in there. If the sink is beat up, I would replace that at the same time as the counter. Otherwise, you can do minor repairs to the cabinets on your own.  

I like the idea of painting the windows and doors charcoal gray. Black is a bit too harsh. Since the window on the left is so small, I would leave the shutters on it and put a window box under just that one, to give it more presence.

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year @Mae, njmomma, Bette, lisedv, Celery, Nancy, Sigrid, einportlandor, Anon, ShadyWillowFarm, RL, and elcieg!💜 you are all so talented and I appreciate all the wonderful ideas you provided!!🏠

Happy New Year to you too!

Enjoy your new home and post some updated photos if you can!

Some updates

I bought longer curtains and hope to change those out this afternoon. Same color. Just longer

Coming along nicely!
Post a picture of the new curtains when they arrive.

Nice! and, love your dog!

Looks great, but you originally complained about the house being too vanilla, and you are adding creams and neutral colors. Other than the bathroom. Do you want more color for interest?