Our Front Porch Was Bumming Me Out, So I Fixed It

I don’t know about you guys, but there are almost always tiny things in my house that make me cringe, and some of them are in places I walk by ALL the time. The one that bugs me the most in my house is the front of my house.

I take the trash out several times a day. Don’t even count leaving the house for errands or vet visits, or when I step out front to check the mail. So each time I walk through the front door, it’s like a full-body cringe and a massive bummer.

The truth is, the front porch isn’t horrible, but it is the story of our house over the last few years. A sun-baked doormat that looks trashy. Mildew staining on the door casing from when we had some damage done to the side of the house before we got the roof replaced. Our dog alert sticker that you can’t read anymore thanks to the sun. And then our beloved dogwoods, which died after last year’s cold snaps and have started to get dangerous.

It’s just a buildup of a million little things.

None of this is the end of the world. Everything is functional. Is it ugly? Sure, some of it is. The ASPCA sticker isn’t doing its job, and we all know I am a super nervous dog mom, but it’s not essential.

Let’s face it, leaving the house with a mental inventory of everything I don’t like about my porch is not a great start to any trip. So I figured I could change this, and probably not spend a million bucks doing it.

The first big problem was also the only one that really needed to be dealt with. We had to say goodbye to our trees.

This was definitely not a job I was going to do by myself, so I found myself a tree guy. Gotta love an arborist. I was reassured to hear that a lot of dogwoods died after the cold snaps this past year, so apparently ours weren’t alone. We got a very reasonable price, and the next day they came and took them away.

I knew removing them would make a difference, but I wasn’t prepared for just how big of a difference it would make. Every time I drive up now, everything feels so much more open. I can actually see the front of the house, and I love how bright and beautiful it feels.

/

Next up, the mildew. We had an issue with our roof and, well, we didn’t notice. It caused some water damage, but it wasn’t until we saw mildew growing that we realized the siding needed to be replaced and we needed a new roof. Once the heavy lifting was done, we used Concrobium Mold Control to clean up the mildew, but it left the staining behind. I’m more than a little embarrassed to say I left that staining there for about two years before it finally bugged me enough to do something about it. But that brings us to here!

Truth is, I was avoiding this task. Sure, it bummed me out every time I looked at it, but it’s summer, and the idea of scrubbing the door frame for an hour in the heat was not high on my list of things I wanted to do. I bought some RMR 86 Mildew Stain Remover, and let me tell you, it was a purchase 1000% worth it. There was almost no scrubbing. I honestly felt a little silly for how long I put this task off when the issue ended up being so easy to solve.

So, looking at my porch that is no longer in danger of being impaled by a dead tree and has no more ugly stains, it’s time to bring the JOY!

First up is my doormat. I had this super cute straw kind of doormat, and it was cute. Didn’t work well. It was constantly shedding, wasn’t great at getting stuff off my shoes, and bleached so badly in the sun.

So I wanted to find something I could put in my washing machine that would actually clean my shoes, wouldn’t break the bank, and would just be a nice, simple, clean visual. Enter the Gorilla Grip WeatherMAX Doormat.

Next up, something pretty. I’m a girl who likes sparkle, what can I say? But I am also the dog mom of six dachshunds who don’t like random sounds playing, so no wind chimes for me.

Enter my brand new suncatcher. It’s crystal, it’s got a lot of colors, and it’s not over the top. It’s just a little bit of sparkle and color that makes me happy every time I see it.

And lastly, for some ridiculous pure joy, window clings. I LOVE window clings. You can often find them at Target in the dollar section at the front of the store for major holidays, but I also buy sets online, like this set of Summer Window Clings.

I get to change out the window clings every week or two to keep things fresh and fun. They cost very little, take almost no effort, and are just pure joy.

You might have noticed the window stickers are gone, so my old ASPCA sticker is officially no more. Come back in a few weeks to see how I’m replacing it with something specially ordered all the way from Turkey!

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