Adding a fence to your yard is probably a necessity. You need it to delineate space to keep pets and kids in, and to add privacy to your yard. However, a fence also impacts the look of your house. Choose a fencing style that complements your home's façade.

Decorate a Chain Link Fence

Chain link fencing is a popular choice. It's relatively maintenance free and low-cost. However, the basic profile doesn't meet some homeowners' design sensibilities. The answer is to decorate the fence. You can weave wooden slats through the links to create a woven texture. Another option is to hang planters along the perimeter. Choose planter colors that complement your house, and hang them from S-hooks. You can even create a gardening center in a corner of your backyard by using the S-hooks to hang pretty containers for your tools.

Surround the Garden with a Picket Fence

If you're looking to delineate space and add beauty to your garden, consider a picket fence, which adds classic appeal to the garden. Indeed, Better Homes and Gardens suggests pairing the fencing with a picket gate and arched arbor. Such an installation welcomes guests to your garden. The fence and gate don't have to mark the boundaries of your whole yard – they can simply provide definition to the space around your garden. For a cottage feel to your installation, consider planting climbing flowers at the base of the arbor and training them over the arch.

Choose an Ornamental Iron Fence

For a historical home, ornamental iron fencing is a great option. Ornamental iron was once the purview of upper classes – the more ornate the design, the higher the owners' station in society. New technologies for manufacturing iron fencing has made even elaborate wrought iron relatively affordable. What's more, the curlie-cues of wrought iron look attractive when blended with other materials, such as brick or stone. For example, consider having a wrought iron fence punctuated with brick or stone posts. For more privacy, have a low wall built and top it with ornamental iron. This could be your whole fencing installation or just a private corner of your yard.

Add Visual Interest to a Privacy Fence

Speaking of privacy, many homeowners want the security a wooden fence gives them. However, a full fence of wooden panels can feel a little closed off. Add visual interest to your privacy fence with lattice panels. The lattice panels can go on top of the fencing or alternate with the solid panels. You can even add visual interest to your gate by selecting a model with lattice worked into the design. If choosing alternating lattice panels, consider planting climbers at the base of these, too. Not only do the climbing plants add beauty, they replace some of the privacy lost with the latticework.

Beautify your home and yard with your fencing choice.