Do you ever get those last-minute worries about how your house looks before hosting a party? In the run-up to Clara’s birthday on Saturday I found myself thinking things like “I should touch up the caulk in the sunroom,” even though no one would probably notice. Sherry was worrying about repainting the patio table while we were covering it with a tablecloth. What neither of us expected was to think, “The back door looks rough — maybe we should fix it before it becomes the backdrop for kids playing with bubbles for hours.”
The good news is that the garage-access door could have been worse. Last summer, after we removed the broken screen door and swapped out the rusted light, the door stood out even more. The cream-colored door didn’t match the white trim on the rest of the house and it showed dirt where the screen door had been attached. With cracking and flaking paint, an obvious meter box, and a hose that never seemed tamed, the entry looked unkempt — despite the fresh mulch and stones we’d added to keep mud from splattering during storms.
Twenty photos of kids beaming in front of that door were enough to push us into action. I started by filling holes with wood filler, scraping off peeling paint, sanding rough spots, and thoroughly cleaning the door and its windows. Then I applied two coats of Sherwin Williams Snowbound (leftover from the rest of the house trim), rolling the flat areas and using an angled brush for the window mullions. Once everything dried I ran a straight razor along the mullions to clean up any paint build-up.
While I worked on the door, Sherry painted the meter box a brick-hued color to help it blend in. It’s a simple trick we used at our first house: a small test pot of exterior paint and about twenty minutes for two coats. We also bought a hose pot from Lowe’s to keep the hose under control — we’ve tried winding storage boxes before with mixed results, so this felt worth a shot.
We had already switched the light fixture over the winter, but the gloomy weather then kept us from taking after photos. The fixtures we installed in November were nice but didn’t cast light the way we wanted, so we hunted locally and found a matching pair at our favorite lighting shop. Both had a cracked side pane and were half-price. We swapped the cracked panes with mint-condition panes from the backs of each fixture, which you can’t see from the front anyway, and ended up with lighting that fits the house better.
When the updates were finished the area looked noticeably fresher, even if it wasn’t dramatically different. We’ll eventually plant flowers or greenery in the mulched bed to add life, and we might pick a bright doormat for a pop of color — for now we laid down a spare black-bordered one from the garage.
Because the deck area already has a lot going on, we chose white for the door so it would blend with the house’s trim and the sunroom’s French door instead of drawing attention. It helps the whole backyard read as a cohesive space rather than spotlighting one imperfect element.
We don’t have more big parties planned, but we expect to host casual family barbecues this summer. Last year’s gatherings were more cluttered and less tidy, so we’re hoping this year will be easier on the eyes and more welcoming.
Riding the momentum of these outdoor updates, we also bought a three-tiered plant hanger from Home Depot (by Pennington) and mounted it near the kitchen window on the deck. Because we were drilling into brick we used a hammer drill and masonry bit, plus two brick anchors and screws, to secure it. It now holds basil, parsley, and lemon balm — herbs we hope won’t attract the deer that patrol our yard.
Down the line we’d like to build a large, movable wooden planter for bigger edibles like tomatoes and peppers, so we can experiment with placement on the deck before committing. For now, the hanging herbs feel like a sensible, low-profile way to add greenery without inviting wildlife onto the lawn.
Do you plant herbs or tomatoes? Do you get those random pre-party worries about fixing something tiny like caulk? Often it turns out no one notices — though last summer’s baby pool/mower/dead grass/slate-collection/table combo probably was hard to miss.
P.S. We took Teddy’s five-week photo yesterday; he already looks twice as big as in the first one and this morning weighed in at 11 pounds.