Our enclosed sun room is one of my favorite spots to sneak away to when I need a few minutes of quiet. It's also where Brett goes to read (when it's warm enough), where Sebastian likes to hide, and where Ruby likes to play with Sunday as her captive. I've always dreamed of having an enclosed front porch just because I liked the idea of sleeping in it in the summer time but since we live on one of the main arterial streets into downtown, it's really just a daytime kind of room.
When we moved in I didn't know if I could handle the mango colored paint and the blue carpet but I had no choice so I decided to work with my restrictions. I went with the tropical color scheme but added in wood and toughened it up with a little metal here and there. The white curtains were one of my first projects and it instantly made the whole room feel like a private getaway.
I replaced the ugly front door curtain with vines all over it with a simple white one made from a thrifted sheet. All of the white curtains came from three sheets that I simply measured out and ripped. I made sure the hem of the sheet was at the bottom and then hung the edges from hooks that I drilled into the ceiling. I simply cut little slits to hang them on the hooks. The hairpin leg coffee table was put together after switching out the long hairpin legs it came with to the shorter pair that originally belonged on a mosaic table. Both were thrifted. Being able to switch the leg length is one of my favorite reasons to use hairpin legs! You can see the long pair being utilized here. I made the trio of macrame plant holders in the corner and placed succulents (originals died over Christmas due to a frost) in thrifted terra cotta pots.
I found the perfect size daybed at a local thrift store and drove home with it tied down and sticking out the back of our Volvo. I'll show you how I gave it a new look in another post. The letter banner DIY can be found here. The play teepee that our kids truly love to hang out in was a gift from Play Haven. It sometimes gets stored under the bed and is just the right size for our space. The industrial bench has also been used to store records but it works in here as extra seating, workspace, and an organizer for books, colored pencils, and sketchbooks.
I found the green rug during a huge neighborhood garage sale. It's old and still sheds like crazy but I like how it breaks up the blue carpet and coordinates with the linens on the bed. The bedspread was also a local find from an estate sale, the cushions are from a vintage couch that we didn't have room for, and the daisy blanket was thrifted.
We keep a basket under the bed to help corral a lot of Ruby's toys and hide the fold-up, mini trampoline under the bed as well. It's perfect for burning off some energy when it's too cold to go outside.
We don't use our front door to get in and out of the house, only to get our packages from the mailman and when we have guests visit. It really just feels like a space set apart from the rest of the house that we can all enjoy in different ways. If it were better insulated I'd want to turn it into a studio but it gets too hot/cold during extreme weather.
I'm a big fan of our porch. It's a great place for taking a nap, stealing a moment or two to myself with a hot cup of coffee, or enjoying (small parts of) a book while Ruby colors me pictures.
What does your dream porch look like?
-Rachel
See more of our house: Living Room Arrangement #1, #2, Dining Room, Kids' Shared Room.
