It’s a little over two years now that we’ve been living in our home on St. Simons Island. Recently, I was looking through old pictures of the house post-renovation. It was so fun to see the transformation over the years, especially with our ivy growing strong! Today, I’m outlining four elements that made the biggest impact during our renovation.

Paint.
Just by painting the existing shutters and front doors, the house had a whole new level of curb appeal. My brother-in-law and I actually painted the shutters ourselves which made it so rewarding to see the end result. Before I chose the colors, I took a picture and opened it up in Photoshop. Then I played around with different colors and I finally decided on Blue Danube by Benjamin Moore for the front doors and Charleston Green for the shutters.

Striped Awnings.
Just this past fall, I decided to create a cottage look by adding black and white striped awnings over a select number of windows and our back door. I ordered the awnings through an online company and then I installed them myself. They add just the right amount of character!

Landscaping.
One of the reasons why I was drawn to this house initially was the lush landscape though it was overgrown at the time. We just did a couple things to clean it up and it made the world of difference. I also let the ivy grow on the house to add some texture.

Gas Lanterns.
The investment to run a gas line in order to install gas lanterns in the front entrance was worth it. It truly creates a relaxed atmosphere and adds a dimension that only gas lanterns can provide.

Looking for more? I’m sharing a tour of my front entry including where I purchased the hardware, gas lanterns and more.

Tamara Gibson Photography (Featured Image, 2) Kelli Boyd Photography (1,3) and Brooke Roberts Photography (6)