What's your zone? I'd start with something along the garage wall, in the ground. Who wants to fuss with grass there anyway. Maybe an inexpensive piece of metal art to hang on the garage wall? I know the big ones can get pricey . . . That's enough for the first year. Low hanging fruit. Delineate the little dirt patch/garden bed to the right of the garage as a dedicated garden. Some type of edging. I like edging bricks but they sell plastic edging too, and metal. Plant a few colorful annuals and some type of nice dwarf shrub or something colorful for that garden. Lay down some Preen" to keep the weeds out, and then mulch it up real nice. I suggest undyed hardwood fines/shredded bark or the stuff they sell in the big box as "compost" or "garden soil." Avoid anything labeled cypress. Weed the rest of the grass behind that, seed in the patch areas, and after that gets established, throw down a correct amount of fertilizer, organic if you can find it. Call it good for this year. Later you can add some decorative planters for color if you don't mind the constant fertilizing and watering and deadheading to keep them looking nice.

I knew there is a way to update your beautiful home. Consider spending your limited resources on the front entrance and garage door. FIRST SUGGESTION: 1) Paint the front door, garage surround and window framing (the trim everywhere) a spruce green. (or med brownish green) See the first & second pic. 2) Paint the shutters a butter sand. 3) And now the fun stuff: Add a wood arbor over the front door to focus on a welcoming entrance. Add the same color wood garage door and short arbor as shown in the pic. Continue the same at the back. SECOND SUGGESTION: 1) Paint the front door, garage surround and window framing (the trim everywhere) a blue grey. See the last pic. 2) Paint the shutters a pale grey. 3) And now the fun stuff: Add a wood arbor over the front door to focus on a welcoming entrance. Add the same color wood garage door and short arbor as shown in the pic. Continue the same at the back. (see pic) IMHO I like the first suggestion because it's fresh and new and be a showstopper on your street. The second suggestion is more traditional and sophisticated. After that, we can concentrate on the plantings and landscaping. Hope this helps and please comment on what you think! Suggestion #1 Note the colors: Butter sand for the shutters and brownish green for the garage surround and trim Note the colors: Spruce green, butter sand and arbor. This obviously is a back area but can be adapted to a front entrance. Note Garage door and arbor Suggestion #2: Note colors: Blue grey and pale grey and black window frames and garage trim around wood door

Hi Melissa c- I like your shutters. If they don't need painting, I would leave them alone and save the money to use on something else. I think the front of the house could be improved by putting something over the front door. I am not sure what, maybe a portico. If it could be something that sticks out a bit to protect from the rain, that would be great. if not, then just something for looks. What color is your front door? If it is wood, then leave it that way. If it is painted red, I might change it. Larger light fixtures might be nice. And big brass house numbers to the left of the front door. I love, love window boxes. Some people hate them. I don't know your climate and the exposure of the front of your house. Before you decide, think about whether you are willing to water the boxes upstairs. With the blue shutters, depending on your tastes, you can choose foliage that is variegated like coleus, tradescantia, plectranthrus and intersperse flowering plants. Or go for something like ornamental cabbage. If window boxes are not you thing, I would really buff up the area in front of your house with some great bushes. I am crazy for things in colors of purple, blue, pink and white, and that attract butterflies and hummingbirds like lilac, buddleia, hydrangea, salvia, passiflora, ipomoea, morning glory, jasmine, nicotiana, foxglove. I would get some solid perennials and supplement with annuals for color and things you can cut and bring in for your vases. Maybe some things you can sow by seed easily like cosmos. Drape a string netting against the bush and sow sweet pea, they grow so easily and smell lovely, and not too strong. If you have lots of money, maybe you can build a little sitting area, maybe even a pergola. Then perfect your sweet tea and muffins because the neighbors will come running.

We have a lot of drivers at our house, and though our driveway is shorter than yours, it holds a lot of cars. Function first, people! The driveway NEEDS to accommodate the cars, and I think this one will. Additionally, it is notable that the front yard is huge (by the standards of where I live in SoCal), so there is so much to work with ! This is mainly a landscape issue, with the addition of blfenton's comments about exterior lighting fixtures, numbers, etc. So much could be done with the yard! A lovely curved walkway through the grass, elevation change(s) perhaps so the yard isn't so big and flat without something to look at. I think your house is really cute and you have room for shutters. I like them when they look like they could be operable (or even better: are operable).