13 Ultra-Creative Curb-Appeal Ideas for a Wow-Worthy First Impression

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First impressions are crucial in most scenarios, and your home is no exception. Here's how to make a wow-worthy introduction -- just let your entryway and facade do the talking.

Photography: Ngoc Minh Ngo

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A Terrific Topiary

Those hoping to create a welcoming entrance without growing a full front yard can do so through sophisticated, sculpted topiaries. Take into account the scale and style of your home before selecting a shape and pot to suit the plant.

Get the Topiary Guide
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Pave the Way

Don’t muddy your home's reputation with a path that’s past its prime. A clear cut walkway of rustic stone or brick pavers will do wonders for your walkway.

Learn About Planting Outdoor Pathway Perennials
Photography: Jennifer Causey

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Nurture Native Plants

Native plant growth in the garden is a burgeoning trend that is both eco-friendly and efficient. Impress guests with a verdant spread of the region’s finest flora. However, be sure to understand the distinction between “native plant gardening” and “letting your garden go.” Allowing an infestation of invasive weeds to overcome the garden is not the same as intentionally encouraging local plants to thrive.

Learn More About Native Plants
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Wonderful Water Features

Not everyone is blessed with a green thumb, but festive flora isn’t the only way to plant a dash of nature at your front door. Add an element of serenity to your front stoop with a soothing water feature -- or two.

Learn to Make a Sonorous Ceramic Water Feature
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Pump Up a Porch with Potted Plants

If you love a lush garden but dread the intensive upkeep, begin with a garden in a pot. Created with the help of a wire basket, unmilled sphagnum moss, and potting soil, a garden in a pot suggests the aesthetic appeal of a full garden, but with significantly less labor.

Learn to Make a Garden in a Pot
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Light the Way

Insufficient illumination on your front path is a recipe for disaster. Guide guests to your home by the glow of landscape lighting. Stake and path lights cast a warm glow along footpaths to ensure safe passage from the street to the front door. If you wish to illuminate the architecture of your home and artistry of your garden, look to landscape spotlights, wall lights, or a pendant fixture inside the arch of your doorway.

Learn More Outdoor Lighting Ideas
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Wonderful Window Boxes

Draw guests in with the captivating charm of your abode using a winsome window box replete with beautiful blooms.

Learn How to Arrange a Window Box
Photography: SUSIE CUSHNER

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Provide a Pop of Color

Don’t shy away from strong, striking hues when planning your garden and front door. Choose a palette for your garden that complements the hue of your home, such as red, orange, and maroon; or yellow, chartreuse, and peach -- and don’t forget the front door! A fresh coat of paint will freshen the facade of your home without undue work.

Learn More About Creating a Garden Palette
Photography: Con Poulos

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Cultivate a Container Garden

Make the most of a sunlit porch and create curb appeal by cultivating a container garden with edible plants. Herbs, vegetables, and edible flowers all make marvelous doorstep companions and offer hearty helpings of curb appeal, to boot.

Get the Container Kitchen Garden How-To
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Hedge Your Bets with Hedgerows

Carefully curated hedgerows serve double duty as a privacy shield and a pristine, picturesque accent to your home. While hedges require months to train and grow, the regal results are well worth the effort.

Learn How Martha Prunes Hornbeam Hedges
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Consider Climbing Vines

Nothing lends a home ethereal allure quite like a halo of climbing vines. Whether wrapped around courtly columns or trained to encircle an arbor, an explosion of climbing roses or aromatic honeysuckle will enthrall all who enter your home.

Learn to Create an Invisible Trellis
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Decorate a Doormat

Nothing says "welcome" quite like a customized doormat to adorn the front step. Personalize a doormat with your monogrammed initials, address, or a thoughtful salutation.

Get the Custom Doormat How-To
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Heavenly Hanging Baskets

Pay special attention to exterior decor details at eye level. Add vibrancy to the view with luxuriant hanging baskets teeming with blossoms. Ivy, petunias, and verbena are several of Martha’s preferred varietals for the front porch.

Get the Hanging Wire Baskets Planter How-To