first impressions: home edition
Knock, knock....who's there?
Ken.
Ken who?
Ken you tell me what your front door says about you?
Often they are mostly used by guests than homeowners, but that's even more of a reason to understand that your front door truly is the FIRST IMPRESSION of you and your home. Starting with the overall style of the door, says a lot about your personality. Like these two for example:
Glass says, let's see what's out there and "hiya, how you do'n?" While a solid door says, I like my privacy and need space between my home and the world. Neither one is better than the other and the configuration or combination of the two can create a happy middle ground to portray exactly what you want your home to say to your guests. Adding a transom or sidelites to your front door with glass in them can be a perfect way to increase the size of your front door, making it more grand in appearance.
Follow the yellow brick road...or pavers...or stamped concrete...or pebbles to create easy way-finding to your front door is equally as important as the door itself. Believe it or not, some homes have a front door with no obvious path to it. Even more confusing is when there are multiple doors that create confusion to which door is the main door. Can you imagine being a delivery person standing there scratching your head pondering the thought of which door to go to? They have to be thinking....shut the front door! And hence why packages end up in your yard!
A quick way to identify your front door can be with a literal messages and information such as customized rugs, door greetings or house numbers. With rugs, layer it up. Use a play on patterns and get crafty with your message. Door greetings are fun and to the point. House numbers can be on the door, on a sign by the door or above the door and clearly identifies that door to be the front (main) door.
The material of your door will give a very distinct aesthetic to the overall look of your home. There is steel, fiberglass and wood. In Michigan, wood doors are highly discouraged as the weather never knows what state of mind it is going to be in. Fiberglass for a wood look or painted is a very stable and high performing material to use, but often more expensive than steel. Fiberglass can also be smooth or wood textured and comes in a large variety of styles. Steel is mostly used for painted since it is smooth. And don't forget you can jazz it up even more with the hardware choices. That also includes door knockers. Yes, those are still something that puts you in the cool cats club.
Lighting serves two purposes: decorative and function. Don't be left in the dark...there are some oogly-boogly things out there. Now-a-days, there is an unfortunate reality that we live in a world where people steal packages straight from your door. We also have some negative Nelly's that don't want to be part of the trick-or-treat festivities and that is when having light at your front door can benefit both safety and introverts.
But, let's be real here...with Pinterest, google, Houzz and other online sources, most of us find great joy in decorating our front door. Some decorate just for the holidays and some every darn day of the year! Wrap that door with love using wreaths, layer your accent pieces with flowers or greenery and don't you dare be ashamed to use faux plants. Who the heck has time to remember to water those things anyways! Remember how we mentioned that homeowners rarely use the front door? Its easy to forget they are even there. So our motto is: why kill yourself trying to keep something alive when that focus should be on your family (shout out to all moms and dads out there!).
Be bold, be daring, and let your door be the first and best representation of YOU!