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By Dave and Mary
Front Porch Appeal Newsletter
Issue #129 September 2022
September welcomes the start of autumn
By now, most young people are in school again even though many of us are still experiencing very hot summer-like days.
Autumn begins on September 22 which promises cooler temps eventually.
And that equates to the best time of the year for porch time.
At least where we live and in our humble opinion, of course.
What's the best time of the year for porch sitting where you live?
Stunning autumn branch
This time of the year unfolds majestic beauty in even the simplest of things, like this colorful leafy branch
Oh yeah, autumn's coming!
It's time to stock up on pumpkins soon. A pile of pumpkins makes the easiest fall decoration ever.
Last year, we realized almost too late, to keep our pumpkins after their prime.
We cut them in smaller pieces and the deer absolutely love them in the woods beside us.
Inside This Edition...
- Autumn Decorating Inspiration
- Grandparents Day, Sunday September 11th
- Imagine the Possibilities: Walkway Ideas
- *** Introducing Our New Amazon Storefront ***
- Porch Ideas Network - Porch Ideas for Mobile Homes
- Look at These Porch Plans
- Porch Podcast Entertainment: The Fairy Tale of Sixto Rodriquez
- Inspiration and Tidbits - World Gratitude Day
- We Appreciate Our Porch Sponsors
- Thank You As Always
If you're reading this and haven't joined our newsletter family, won't you please subscribe here and get our free Curb Appeal ebook.
Easily decorate your porch steps for autumn with a bushel basket, a leaf garland and a big beautiful mum.
How easy is that. And it looks spectacular on these porch steps.
Tucker Hill, a porch community in McKinney, Texas, has some wonderful porches, like the one above.
Our painted pillow toppers
Painting these pillows was a fun time and got me interested in painting.
Get a few more autumn decorating ideas here and here.
Please watch our video to see us making these watercolor pillow toppers
A sneak peek of a bit of our upcoming fall porch decor
Being that we live in the south, it's still quite warm here when September begins.
Hence, we don't have this year's fall decor out quite yet.
But this is a sneak peek of what is coming and you'll see more in the October edition of our newsletter.
In the meanwhile, we have tons and tons of fall decorating ideas on our site.
Here are 12 fall decorating ideas to get you started.
Remembering grandparents
Whether you're a grandparent yourself, or simply enjoy the memories of your own grandparents, Sunday, September 11th is a special day to honor them.
When Dave and I started dating, Dave's Grandma Ethel adopted me as her granddaughter.
At the height of four foot eleven, she had the crazy ability to pack for a trip with the tiniest suitcase.
And yet, she always had everything she needed and more!
She was the best kind of grandma.
She took time to listen, baked cookies, grew amazing flowers, knitted slippers for us, and knew how to enjoy her life till the last day.
At the age of 99, we asked her what she believed to be the secret to her longevity.
She replied, "I don't worry about things until they happen."
And that, dear friend, is something to ponder.
As grandparents ourselves (fourteen grandchildren), we try to remember the influence a grandparent can have on their grand kids.
I still find it surprising that now we are the grandparents and those kids look up to us.
It's humbling indeed.
Happy Grandparents Day!
And speaking of being a grandparent, who knew there was such a thing as back to school subscription boxes (affiliate) from Amazon?
If you're a grandparent from afar, this would make a pretty neat gift for a grandchild.
And they are tailored to many ages.
"By all these lovely tokens, September days are here.
With summer's best of weather and autumn's best of cheer." - Helen Hunt Jackson
Imagine the Possibilities - Walkway Ideas
A walkway is one of the first things someone sees when approaching your front porch or door.
They are also one feature of a home that is often neglected, yet can add much curb appeal in addition to its functionality.
You may be surprised at the many options, starting from the simplest natural path to an ornately laid brick design.
A concrete walk way is perhaps the most common and at first glance can appear quite ordinary.
The right walkway design can add lots of interest to your front yard and make a typical concrete walkway aesthetically pleasing.
Curving concrete walk way adds interest
Another popular idea is to stain or stamp your concrete walk way.
You can choose from various colors and designs to suit your own tastes.
A more natural walkway can your home a more cottage appeal and is perhaps one of the most inexpensive projects to construct.
Natural look: flat stones amidst grass
For a more formal look you can't go wrong with brick which can be laid in many patterns.
Brick walkway and porch steps
Our DIY gravel walkway is still going strong
If you love the look of a cottage-style walkway, we bet you would like ours.
Here's how we did it.
For more walkway ideas, please stop by here.
Not sure why it has taken us so long, but we finally have our own Amazon storefront.
What does that mean?
It simply means we hand-picked products from Amazon that we think you'll enjoy for your porch, plus a few of our personal favorites.
We will also upload photos to our storefront to show you products on our own porch or home.
As an Amazon Influencer we earn from qualifying purchases.
We invite you to take a look at our new Amazon storefront.
Thank you!
Mobile home porch designs is one of our most popular topics and we have enjoyed discovering just how creative mobile and manufactured homeowners can be.
In most cases, you shouldn't attach a porch roof directly to the home.
However, you can construct a stand-alone roof or build a porch without one.
Thank you to Marybeth Henderson for sharing
Many mobile or manufactured homes have what we like to call deck-style front porches.
They too, offer lots of curb appeal and space for relaxing and enjoying the outdoors.
The one below is accessible from two sides.
We had the honor to interview Tim Peele, President of The Mobile Home Parts Store.
Tim shared with us what is trending with mobile homeowners in creating curb appeal and increasing pride of their homes.
Listen to Our Audio Program with Tim Peele: 00:23:38
See our mobile home porch section for lots of ideas.
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
If you make a purchase through affiliate links on our site, we earn a commission at no cost to you.
See our disclosure policy.
We've been sharing porch plans for years and here are some we love - and our readers love, too.
Plan #503498 - affiliate
If you've been longing for a porch, these porch plans might be something to really consider.
Plan #90012 - affiliate
Here's a plan that is perfect for one story homes.
This screen porch could be wider and longer depending on your specific building area.
Plan #85948 - affiliate
Just a generally awesome screened porch plan that many of our readers have purchased over the years.
Enjoy a few other hand-curated porch plans we've shared right here.
Tracing the Path podcast
You are in for a treat.
After the Friday night football game (or anytime, of course), grab a drink and listen to the latest episode of the Tracing the Path Podcast on your porch.
In this episode, The Fairy Tale of Sixto Rodriquez, Dan traces Sixto's roots from Ghandi and apartheid to Rosa Parks.
We found this story quite interesting and has a surprise twist we didn't see coming.
September 21, 2022, is World Gratitude Day
Grateful for peaceful moments
Showing gratitude towards one another and for our many blessings is a fundamental part of World Gratitude Day.
Feeling deep appreciation brings joy to our daily life.
I like to take what I call "gratitude walks".
That's when I think to myself the things that make me extra grateful that day.
And often times it's as simple as my shoes or the fact I can breathe and walk with ease.
You might find it silly that I often think of how I would miss my toothbrush if I didn't have one.
A toothbrush is a small thing, but without it, I'd be missing it greatly.
Do you have small, seemingly insignificant things in your life that you'd miss too?
I remember when our older son lived in Romania as a college student.
He called home and said, "My host family doesn't have stoppers in their sinks, a shower curtain or any storage containers for their food."
We often take so many small things in our lives for granted.
Being grateful and outwardly telling someone we appreciate them can go a long way in deepening our friend and family relationships.
We appreciate all the work our two sons and daughter-in-loves do every single day to keep their families running.
All the cooking, cleaning, laundry and transporting kids, helping them study, soothing their worries, paying bills, not to mention all that goes with their daily responsibilities.
Many days I wish my parents were still on this earth to thank them for the millions of small and large things they did for me.
Feeling gratitude may seem trivial, but beneath the surface, it's a powerful force.
Gratitude helps us focus more on our blessings than on our daily challenges.
Having a thankful mindset not only boosts our well being, but when we share a kind word with the people we see throughout our day, we are lifting them up too.
Dave and I appreciate YOU and we hope you can feel it. Thank you for being here with us.
Adorable hedge hog
In honor of Talk Like a Pirate Day on September 19th:
Question: Why do pirates have trouble learning the alphabet?
Answer: Because they spend years on the C!
We value and appreciate our relationships with our sponsors. May sound corny, but it's true!
Our sponsors are like family to us - very fine, good people and we are proud referring their services and products to you.
They each have amazing business ethics and at the top of their game in what they can provide to you.
Vintage Woodworks handcrafted products are beautifully planned
We love the details in their wonderfully crafted porch trim
The Porch Store creates these wonderful cathedral railing panels
In addition to many other gorgeous products for your porch
Where might this road take you?
The two of us appreciate you being in our porch family.
You're always welcome to send us pictures of your porch at info@front-porch-ideas-and-more.com
While we cannot promise it, we often feature your pictures in our newsletter and website and social media.
We thank you for stopping by and hope this finds you well this month.
Wishing you warm, sunny skies, gentle breezes and flowers blooming on your porch steps.
We are grateful for you!
Will you get to enjoy time on your porch today?
We value our sponsors and the products and services they provide.
They are like family to us!
You're invited to be part of our Facebook community.
We share ideas with one another for decorating and using our porches.
We are blessed with over 17,000 followers and would love to count you among them.
Please enjoy browsing past issues of our newsletters right here.
Take a few moments of chill time.
Happy porch sitting from your friends,
Mary and Dave
Life is short. Enjoy your porch.
As an Amazon Associate and Amazon Influencer, we earn from qualifying purchases.
We also earn commissions from other companies where are are participants of their referral programs.
Here is our full disclosure about affiliate marketing.
Hi! We're Mary and Dave, lifelong DIYers, high school sweethearts, and we both love porches.
You've come to the right place for thousands of porch ideas.
Our Sponsors
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Hi! We're Mary and Dave, lifelong DIYers, high school sweethearts, and we both love porches.
You've come to the right place for thousands of porch ideas.
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Another popular idea is to stain or stamp your concrete walk way.
We value and appreciate our relationships with our sponsors. May sound corny, but it's true!
Our sponsors are like family to us - very fine, good people and we are proud referring their services and products to you.
Please 
