Dear Homework,
My spouse and I moved to this house in March. The interior is refreshed, but we need help in improving the street appeal. The enormous boxwoods conceal the beautiful front door. What should we replace them with?
— Sincerely, New Nesters
Dear New Nesters,
I love your house. It has beautiful proportions and bold, simple detailing. I think the main issue here is not to hide the fine façade with the kind of haphazard landscaping we see here today.
I suggest planting a low evergreen hedge at the edge of the front terrace, with taller, pyramid-shaped accents to frame the front door and the left edge of the elevation. The existing white dogwood tree has been retained. By keeping the hedge low, the long, elegant French doors are framed, not hidden. The landscape and architecture now work together in harmony.
You will also note that I have added new black wrought iron gates at the driveway. These help extend the width of the façade and make use of the existing brick piers. They also hide a chain linked fence and tidy the view to the rear of the lot. I haven’t changed much, but I didn’t need to.
Welcome to the neighborhood,
—Homework
[Homework is penned by Paul Doerner, Founding Partner of the Lawrence Group. If you would like your home critiqued, contact us at homework@townandstyle.com ]
