Home Design: Front To Back Porches

Posted on Sep 7, 2016 in Home Improvement, Newsletter Article, Outdoors

Beautiful sunsets, soft breezes, greeting the neighbors while you rock in your porch swing…you can enjoy all these pleasures right on your front porch. If you want to enjoy the outdoors more, here are four easy ways to create the porch of your dreams.

1. Find a paint color that compliments your home’s exterior and shouts “I’ve been updated!” Have fun with colors on the floorboards, columns, shutters, front door, and trim, and don’t forget that a blue ceiling keeps mosquitos away, or at least it did 100 years ago.
2. Refinish or replace your old porch furniture. Depending on the look you want and how much space you have, think about scale and function. Choose furniture to suit your activities, to read and relax, or entertain friends with refreshing summer drinks, or watch the children play.
3. Decorate with flowers and plants to add a splash of color and style. Check with your local nursery to learn which plants do well potted, whether the porch gets direct sun or shade, and how large the plants will grow.
4. Decorate for character. Each home has a personality, just like its owners. Search online or the local flea market for treasures like chimes and garden stools. Try the new “living room” style, complete with curtains on a rod and an outdoor rug.A porch is like a perch – you can use it to enjoy your place in the world, and it has the added benefit of bringing more curb appeal to your home.

From Chuck Barry’s September 2016 Issue of the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Monthly Newsletter.

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