Rid Your Entry of the Blahs With These Front Step Decor Ideas
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When we think about improving our home’s entry or front porch, the steps are usually the last thing we consider. Although they may seem like a minor detail, your home’s front steps can make its exterior stand out and improve its curb appeal. Plus, sprucing up your neglected stairs is an easy way to give your home a seasonal update, not to mention give your visiting friends and family a warm welcome.
“First and foremost, outdoor areas like porches are the quintessential first impression of a home,” says Sarah Hamlin-Hastings, the owner of Fritz Porter. “They should give you a cue as to what lies beyond the front door, but it is also a chance to step outside your comfort zone a little bit.... I like to think of it as a space that gives you a little wink and says ‘come hither.’”
An easy place to start? Plants—and lots of ’em. “I love decorating a front porch with a variety of potted plants," says ELLE DECOR A-List designer, Young Huh. “For my daughter’s wedding this past summer, pots of red geraniums, dahlias, vines, white flowers, and climbing purple wisteria arranged at different heights on the steps made for a beautiful entry. We had a mix of ceramic, iron, and terra-cotta pots to create the varied, pretty, summerscape. The emphasis was on prettiness and less on formality.”
Although there’s no doubt that adding greenery and flowers will automatically beautify your sad steps, other elements—such as statement pieces, color, and textures—have the same effect. Try painting your steps or embellishing the risers with colorful tiles. You can also group colorful pots or cluster a chic array of outdoor furniture nearby. Whether you like to host or just relax, these 20 front porch step decor ideas will catch the eye of anyone walking by.
Frame Your Steps with Twisting Topiaries
This Queen Anne–style farmhouse has a front porch that just practically shouts ‘classic.’ With perfect views from all angles, the homeowners decorated the entry with regal potted plants on both sides. If you prefer to keep the details of your home a neutral tone, adding hints of color, as with these yellow planters, incorporates a fun pop.
Cluster Cacti
If your climate permits, swap deciduous shrubs for a cacti, as with this contemporary Austin ranch home. These prickly pals add a fun, sculptural quality to your front steps while also embracing a local, Southwest vibe.
Match Your Steps to Your House
If your house has a bright exterior paint job, consider painting your steps in the same hue. We love this monochrome scheme which—in keeping with its lush setting—matches the shutters, trellis, and steps with the same emerald green.
Mix Your Timbers
A different wood treatment for your steps is a fun way to mix things up on your front porch. Garden designer and construction expert Inge Jabara decided to create "an elegant look with a hint of country vibes. The timber gives it a casual feel but the modern steps create an elevated look," she explains. For the final touch, Jabara had to add a lemon tree as the welcome plant. "Thoughts of having a lemon tea (or gin and tonic) after a long day looking out over the garden seemed like the perfect detail," she says. Cheers to that!
Add a Statement Chair
Incorporating a small seating area alongside your front step is a simple yet effective way to create an entry that feels inviting. After falling in love with the English aesthetic of the home, Minnie Driver jazzed up her Hollywood Hills house with a bright blue door that is both vibrant and welcoming. To complete the look, she added a statement chair right by the front porch steps to complement the colorful flowers and trees.
Match all of Your Flowers
If you enjoy the simple things, let the flora surrounding your home be the main attraction. Blogger and interiors enthusiast Stephanie Kane kept the decor around her entry pretty uncomplicated “and let the flowers and greenery surrounding it really shine!” Changing up the color of the flowers throughout the year is a beautiful way to embrace the different seasons. For the springtime, Kane has a collection of “pink hydrangeas, another variation of blue hydrangeas and boxwoods and the window boxes have pink geraniums,” she says.
Keep It Minimal
"The entry to a home is all about curb appeal and setting to tone for welcoming guests and family," says interior designer Mindy Gayer. If you want to keep the front steps of your home minimal, add two big pots and change the greenery as much as you want! "This home is decorated with beautiful lighting and potted greenery that can be changed out seasonally as needed," she adds.
Think About Complementary Colors
If you want to welcome your guests with bold colors, consider working with vibrant, complementary colors. This quirky Miami Beach home incorporates a fusion of Art Deco and Mediterranean, so when it came to decorating the front porch, it made sense to add a bit of both. The blue and white patterned tiles on the front steps match perfectly with the bright blue round planters and the striped awning.
Add Elegance
If you like neutrals but still want to make your front step look beautiful and inviting, you can always keep it monochrome. Interior designer Michelle R. Smith stayed true to her style and opted for cream colors in her New Orleans home. The brick steps make the porch stand out along with the footed planters and classic lantern.
Add Vines
For this elegant home nestled in Hollywood, Alabama, interior designer Danielle Robins from Twin Construction wanted the home to feel modern, but with a historic twist. The brick steps—which feature a crisp white paint job— are simply adorned with potted flowers. But the showstopper is the climbing jasmine arch that makes this entry special and distinctive.
Add a Hedge
A quaint hedge outlines the front porch of this traditional home in Greenwich, Connecticut, a move that highlights the front step and entry. Looking to make your welcome extra warm? Consider adding gas lanterns. "Lighting helps elevate the style of a porch," says Alisberg Parker, the home’s designer. You’ll find us on one of the rocking chairs—mint julep in-hand!
Dimension Is Everything
This shaker-style home has undertones of blue and green throughout the front porch and around the house. If you have a hefty porch like this one, think about scale when it comes to your step decor. "Scale is important when using floral pots on a big porch, and nothing has the big scale like a pot of large blue hydrangeas," explains designer Elizabeth Drake, who decorated this lake house alongside architect John Hagenah.
Complement Your Door Color
Adore your front door color? Consider it bringing it to the plants that flank your steps. In this idea, interior designer Sarah Storms left her stairs bare to let the architecture shine. "An interesting front door color and beautiful lighting is sometimes all you need," she says.
Give a Sneak Peek
Interior designer Gabriela LaBoy of the firm O'Hara Interiors is a firm believer that "the entryway to the inside can set the tone for the home's interior." In this case the homeowners were inspired by the color pink, and it was up to LaBoy and her team to make this vision come to life. In this case, the bold pink door and the pair of planters create a playful look that hints at blushing interiors just beyond the doorstep.
Give it Charm
The hydrangeas surrounding the entry steps of are the focal point of Cincinnati native Stevie Simonson’s front porch. "I wanted to represent the type of porch you read about in Southern stories,” she says. To accessorize the stone-paved walkway and steps, she added a pair of rocking chairs and big planters. Bonus points for the blue-painted porch ceiling!
Cover Your Risers with Vines
The home of David Alhadeff in Hollywood, California, is nothing short of spectacular, and the magic starts with the front steps. Landscape designers Art Luna Studioensured the front porch steps as well as the surroundings full of plants—including (surprisingly!) the stair risers, which are overgrown with creeping fig. For the finishing touch, two Mexican grass trees frame the entrance.
Use Stone
While most front steps tend to be made of timber or brick, you could also consider stone—a material that adds dimension but still feels traditional. “The cozy entry porch of this New England shingle-style home frames the home's main entrance with a classical column screen set against the home's large rusticated stone walls,”explains architect Charles Hilton. Planters overflowing with petunias add the finishing touch.
Incorporate Grass-Lined Pavers
The owners of this Homewood, Alabama home wanted a front entry that would stand the test of time. Designer Crystal Tucker from Twin Construction knew how to make this come to life. "Since Homewood is very much a front yard community, we wanted to create a cozy lounging spot on the porch to visit with neighbors and watch the kids play," she says. Here, contoured corbels on the front porch frame the front steps, which are decorated with potted spring blooms. But to us, it’s the grass-outlined paving stones that put the extra spring in our step.
Go Wild with Botanicals
Grandin Road’s Kelly Lambert loves to pick herbs and florals from her backyard and place them in her front entry urns. If you want to create an added dimension, different shapes and sizes of urns will do just that. Add a matching wreath, and you’ve got a vignette that can be tweaked with the seasons.
Add Illumination
Making sure you have adequate lighting along your front pathway and entry steps ensures a warm—not to mention trip-free—welcome. “It's important not to overlook the significance of good lighting,” insists interior designer Jessica Dorling. For this home, Dorling also softened the wall leading to the front porch with a trellis. “The addition of a jasmine vine proves to be the perfect solution!”
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