This time of year, I totally dream about outdoor spaces. To me, there’s nothing better than enjoying the outdoors, with a breeze in the air (well, we can pray for a breeze here!), a cold drink to sip and a magazine to browse. Here in the South, a day with low humidity is extra special.
Something like this would work.
I really thought I might have my hubby talked into finally building a screened porch where our current open deck is, but it isn’t happening….at least this year and maybe never. The neighbors behind us just had their deck rebuilt into a screened porch, so that further added to my own desire to have one. I watched longingly and listened to the sounds of hammers nailing and saws buzzing for days. We actually got 3 estimates too, just to see the cost breakdown. FYI, around here the estimates ranged from $10,500 to over $14,000 for a screened porch with shingled roof and all the things that go with it. Could we do it? Yep, we could and if it was up to me, we would. I know it’s a space we would enjoy, but my hubby is not convinced. And when it comes to big projects like that, he has the final say.
So, after much discussion lots of whining from mostly me to the hubs, it’s too much money, he thinks and not something he wants to spend $$ on. So, my dreams of a covered porch will just have to continue being a dream for the moment. And these photos will be my inspiration. 
Wouldn’t you love to enjoy this space? (from Coastal Living)
Or this one? (from Coastal Living)
How quaint and cute this little porch is. (from Coastal Living)
And oh my goodness, look at this dreamy porch, with that pretty graphic green fabric, white furniture with splashes of sunshine yellow. Now this is a heavenly porch. (from DecorPad)
More yellow and white wicker, a winning combination. (from My Home Ideas)
(from Southern Accents)
This looks to be a stately old Southern home with a sprawling porch across the front. This would be heaven, sitting in the rocking chairs and rocking the day away out of the weather. 
(from This Old House)
To me, there’s nothing better than taking a nap outside and I can get my snooze on outdoors in the best possible way. I’ve always loved that.
(Country Living, June 2010, Barbara Baekgaard’s house in Seaside, FL, the Vera Bradley lady)
Now, this is one beautiful porch, don’t you agree?! Those tall shutters flanking the very tall French windows (or doors), are just breathtaking and really make this look. And the soaring white beamed ceiling gives such a feeling of spaciousness. Another porch I totally love. 
(from Southern Living, June 2010)
The new Southern Living featured this fantastic porch and I love Every. Single. Thing. About. IT!
I must take after my Dad. His favorite spot at their house is his outdoor swing, which he built under a little canopy, so it shields him from the sun and he takes some major naps out there in that sweet swing.
So, back to reality. I do TOTALLY realize that I’ve got SO MUCH to be thankful for and having a screened porch is a luxury and certainly not a necessity. So, I’m putting on my big girl panties 
and making the best of what we have. Come back tomorrow for another discussion on that and I’ll show you what I’ve got up my sleeve to make our current deck and under deck patio even more liveable and useful.
Whining is over, time to make it happen!
So, tell me about YOUR outdoor space. Do you have a lovely space like these pics or are you still dreaming too?
Just for good measure, I’m entering the Traditional Home $26,000 Outdoor Room giveaway and the Trex Decking new deck giveaway for 3 lucky people. I figure that can’t hurt either, so feel free to join me if you are yearning for a new outdoor space. I am not getting anything from posting these links, just passing along some fun contests for you. Would I love to win? Heck yeah!!
{ 51 comments… read them below or add one }
Rhoda, I would love to have a screened in porch too, I know it would be my favorite room in the house. Beautiful inspiration photos, I can’t wait to see your deck transformation.
I didn’t know you were going to Ree’s! I’m so happy for you and can’t wait to hear all about your trip. Mary
Rhoda:
I so enjoyed your recent BLOG about your “dream” porch. The pictures were awesome. My favorite part of a home is the porch, it just warms the soul I think. We are in the process of building a new home (hopefully our final one!) and will have a 10 x 10 covered space that I hope to make into an all weather porch in the future. Small but cozy. A relative of mine enclosed their small patio a few years ago by using glass sliding doors on the two sides that didn’t have walls ~ one opened, one didn’t. I wish I had made photographs of it as it was decorated in pink and blue Toile that was to die for. Not near as frilly and feminine as it sounds. Her husband (my Uncle) lived on that porch, reading his paper and drinking his coffee each and every morning. In addition, they had a lovely view of the creekbed behind their home. Each visit I would go directly to the porch. The beauty of having it glassed in was they could use it year round! They recently built a new home and don’t have an enclosed porch yet but I’m sure they will in the near future! Sorry to rattle on but I too have a thing with porches…must be my southern roots.
We were going to have our porch screened in and even with some windows…the whole package. But then we noticed a tree next to the house dying…it had beetles. So we had to pay to have it cut down and removed instead of doing the porch. *sadness* We have never saved enough money to try the porch idea again, but I am with you…I’d LOVE to turn it into a space we’d use more.
Love your pics! I never realized how much I liked having an outdoor space until we moved down to TN last year and we had this fantastic balcony in our apartment. Which I why I had to make over our lil patio at our new place. I head out there every day after work to read and unwind! It is so wonderful – even though it is the tiniest space ever!
I’d never had a porch until a few years ago and while it’s small, I even found a porch swing that is sized to fit. We love the space and the funny thing is, my husbands spends more time on the porch than me. I call it his office!
I am sure that your outdoor space redo will be beautiful and while it might not be what your dreaming of,, it will be dreamy!! Can’t wait to see your finished project.
I love all these inspiration pictures, Rhoda. As you know, our back porch was an afterthought.
The plan showed a terrace between the hearth room and bedroom doors. There was no fireplace and no roof. When we thought about it… about half a second… we asked the builder to extend the roof over the little terrace and add a woodburning fireplace. Of course, we had to give up something in return for this little outdoor space. Our living room has a 17 foot ceiling. The triple living room window had windows above. When the porch roof was added we lost the upper windows. But, I can tell you, we would do it again, because, as it turns out, we spend more time on that little porch than we do the living room, for one thing and the other is, when people walk in our front door, they are taken with the view through those three living room windows, of the back porch and the trees beyond. I don’t think they notice there are no windows high up.
When we sold the farm, we had the opportunity to have the home of our dreams and the little extras, which included the back porch. We are very thankful for that opportunity.
We’ve debated screening the deck at the lake, but I like taking pictures from there, so up to now, we’ve decided against screening.
Good luck with your project. I’m looking forward to seeing photos and updates.
PS: Back again to tell you, our porch measures about 10x1o, the actual floor space is about 7×10, so not huge, by any means, but it is fun to decorate and oh so cozy. An outdoor space doesn’t have to be big. A place carved out of a tiny spot can be wonderful, too.
Great post and pictures! Hard to decide which is my favorite. I don’t have a porch, but I am blessed with a beautiful backyard with special niches to sip vino and scan magazines or get lost in a book or just drink in the view. Will have to post some to share!
These porch pics are beautiful! I favor that next-to-last one from Coastal Living. Looks like you could stretch out for a nice Sunday afternoon on that sofa. My porch is not so grand, but we recently enclosed our deck and screened it, and we really enjoy it. I posted about it here: http://lalaladyslovelies.blogspot.com/2010/05/our-new-porch.html
I have a nice size screened porch that is in desperate need of a design plan. I know what I want, but can’t seem to find the furniture in my price range! The color scheme has also been hard for me. I love it all.
Hopefully, I will settle on something soon and be able to share a beautiful space with you all!
Oh, Rhoda, those are beautiful porches. I have a large covered porch that spans almost the whole length of my house. I too would love to have a portion of it fenced in. It’s way down the list so it will be a while.
Rhoda, I feel your pain. I would love to have some form of shade added to our deck. I cannot use it in the middle of the afternoon because it is way too hot. My husband has the last say so, too. Bummer. Those porches are beautiful. I guess for this year I will settle for just an umbrella. That will help I am sure. Thanks for sharing the Trex contest.
Oh, Rhoda, I so hear you! I’ve been begging and pleading with The Big Guy for years to convert our brick patio into a screened room…same issue here, he doesn’t feel its worth the $$! Grrrr.
I even posted (link below) all the pretty porches here to inspire him…nothing!
My porch post: http://www.rubysupcycledesigns.com/2010/03/country-porches-southern-styleoh-how-i.html
We can dream together!!! xoxo Beth
Rhoda,
We are so fortunate in that we have just completed an addition to our home. We added a large sunroom, screened porch, powder room and pantry/laundry room. Of course, the sunroom is our favorite and we enjoy it a great deal, but the screened porch is so much fun! I do my Bible study out there and go out and enjoy my morning cup of tea there. I live in the South, too, and it’s so nice to have the screen to keep the bugs away! I admire you for giving up your dream for now and instead, using what you have and making it more beautiful. Sounds like I hear more yard sales in your future! HA!
These pictures are breathtaking! I join you in wanting a screen porch. I too am still in the dreaming stage… maybe someday. Being born and raised in MN I have often told my husband that I’m a Southern gal accidently born in a Northern state. MN does not do porches like the South.
We actually just re-did our outdoor space this weekend. We spend less than $500 total and we LOVE it. You can see it here, if you’re interested:
http://www.noonewatching.com/archives/2010/06/100_days_to_a_happy_housewife_27.html
I would love a porch {I’d be fine with an open one}! I have an open patio in the back yard and a screened gazebo. The gazebo is not as big as these porches in the pictures, but it’s big enough for a table and four chairs and two wicker chairs. I like to sit out there and read; it is cooler because I actually have shade in that part of the yard. I’ll bet you could rig something up with your under deck area, Rhoda.
I have to be honest we have a small (very small) screened porch and we NEVER use it. Its screened in on two side and the other two sides are the house so it is impossible to get any cross breeze. So its stuffy, humid and damp, mold growth is a constant problem. And it is soo hot here in TX that sitting out there in the summer is just not appealing I have tried to make it cozy but it never works. I am quite frustrated and tried and talk the hubs into tearing it down, but he like your husband, refuses! Lol! We both have a dilemma, how bout I tear mine down and give it to you! Lol! Think they would go for that?
Rhoda, I think you need to get your neighbors to invite you and your hubby over for a cool drink in their sun porch….and just let the rest happen. My husband and I share big decisions in this family, so I would be very frustrated. ‘Hope you get your dream porch someday!
Great photos. Porches like those just beg for someone to sit on them with sweet tea and big dreams in hand. And a fly swat!
Rhoda,
While ours is not screened, it is covered. We too went round and round a few years back…do it or not. EVERYONE was around these parts. Well, after realized we’d had to replace decking boards twice due to the severe sun (we’re in Atlanta), the abuse our french doors were taking on said deck from the sun and not to mention it BEATING thru our windows onto EVERYTHING in it’s path…we did it. We are so glad we did. We replaced the decking and railings with a version of Trex…so no more painting/splitting/rotting wood…just a quick was each spring! And, it has helped cut down on A/C costs believe it or not, because our kitchen stays sooo much cooler. No more faded furniture/curtains either. I’d say we got our money back!!! Just thought it might help convince the hubby. ; )
I’m dreaming of a screened in patio too. We had a nice big covered patio built last year, and it would be so great if it was screened in. It’s a BIG dream though.
Go for it decor chick…we did our covered porch and it was not all that expensive. No regrets!!
I have an open deck and I hate it…I want a full covered porch and am working on getting some other needed things out of the way…so, hopefully in a year or two.
Good luck with that! I love porches – beach porches, glass enclosed porches, decks, patios, victorian porches – I’ve always wanted one! At this stage of game I was happy my husband changed burned out lightbulbs this weekend! Lol! Jennifer jennsthreegraces
Oh Rhoda, I feel your pain. I know you will freshen up your back deck and it will look amazing and now that hubby said no to the covered porch maybe you can pull the I didn’t get my way card and do even more decorating on the deck,hehe,Just thinking?!!! I noticed you had post on your deck, I think some curtains are in order!!! My front porch is only 3ft by 16ft but I made it look cozy and inviting. you have a wonderfully creative mind, I can’t wait to see what all you come up with!! Hugs Kathysue
I am IN LOVE with all of these porches! I’m still dreamin’. I want a big ole’ wrap around porch with rocking chairs, a swing and a fan
We have lived with cement slab for almost 11 years and have been talking about adding a screened in porch for the past 10. It may happen within the next couple of years – hopefully. Unfortunately, we just really don’t use the space much now as it is, since there is no protection from the Alabama sun and the bugs.
I love this post and would love to have any of these beautiful outdoor spaces. I live in Arizona and homes here don’t usually have porches. I am lucky to have a very large covered entry that I can decorate. I have been wanting to give this area a face lift and this post has been very inspiring!
I have many different ‘outdoor spaces’ but nothing as nice as the photos you have posted! My deck overlooks a great yard with a ‘creek’ below.. my own creek.. the name of it is “Alligator Creek” and yes, it does have Alligators in there!!
I may be able to screen in the deck but I have two very large Hickory trees (4 stories tall) and it’s impossible to screen around them…so I deal with the bugs and nuts falling.. Not to mention all the critters that live in my habitat. It’s registered with National Wildlife …
But to have a real porch, that is in my dreams!
Nice post..
Sandy
http://thewondersofdoing.blogspot.com/
Oh I think I might give up food if I could have one of these porches. Maybe someday
sadly still dreaming, but the lights I just bought are starting to push it in the right direction.
Hey Rhoda….I have a screened in porch but it doesn’t look anything like these pics! If you just want some fun, I could loan you my porch to spruce up:)….could even let you take a nap or two on it as well:)……
I have a full length (front of house) screened in porch which I absolutely love. It is so nice not having to fight the mosquitos and flies.
Love the pictures!! My husband is from down South and when we go down to visit, I love all the front porches with rocking chairs and the relaxing lifestyle down there. Wish we all had a little more of that southern relaxing way of life!! Thanks.
A screened in porch is on my wish list. I think it is about to come to reality. We have spent 2 nights eating dinner at my sister’s (on her screened porch) and hubby really enjoyed it. I grew up with a screened porch at my parents’ lake house. I really miss being able to unwind after the TN temps have cooled in the evenings. I am sensitive to mosquito bites, so I don’t sit outside in the open!
Your pictures only make my choice of design a bit harder! Wonderful.
I don’t understand why all builders don’t include a screened in porch when they build a home. It only makes sense. We screened in our covered patio off the kitchen and are thinking of screening in the porch off our bedroom. I want to put a daybed out there for naps. Our other porch isn’t big enough. Like you said, naps outside are the best. You can’t beat it when mosquitos are biting and it wasn’t that expensive either. Thanks for sharing those great porches and maybe in time you can have yours screened in.
Try adding curtains to your porch! It looks so good, gives privacy, and it can shield you from that hot southern sun. Especially on these 90 degree days we’ve been having, at least in NC! All while making your porch a cozy spot. Can’t wait to see it done!
Hey Rhoda, My dream of a screened porch is on hold, too, but I recently saw a mosquito net in a catalog that fits over a deck umbrella and makes a miniature “screened porch!”
Seriously, though, I can’t wait to see what you come up with. I enjoy your blog.
Blessings, Marilyn
I LOVED the first one…I was drooling….it’s amazing!!!
Rhoda,
I am dreaming right with you!
Completely and utterly gorgeous ! Whenever we visit family back east, I sit for hours on those screened or wrap around porches. LOVE them – pure bliss. Out here, we sure enjoy the outdoors but it gets so HOT in the afternoon – would LOVE an arbor or something to cover our courtyard.
Thanks for the inspiration !
Big hugs
Kate
How about an awning… they make retractable ones that are electric. It will be covered… just not screened in. nancy from OHIO
As my daddy taught me to say, Lord willing, I will one day have that big old porch I’ve wanted all of my adult life. And if it doesn’t happen, well, that’ll be okay too. In the meantime, we’ve turned our backyard into a little oasis with a water feature and a fabric gazebo thingie. It’s still a far cry from luxury, and isn’t near what I really want, but no whining. Big girl panties.
I’ve been dreaming about a screened porch ever since we moved into our house 6+ years ago, and we’re finally getting some bids on having one built. I know it’ll cost us an arm and a leg, but I’m desperate for one. We have a wooded backyard that is beautiful, but far too buggy to spend much time sitting outside in! Cross your fingers for me…
Having a screened in porch was always my dream too. I didn’t think my hubby would ever go for it either because of the cost but the year before we retired he said let’s get some estimates and we had our old wooden deck replaced with a beautiful new screened in porch and deck. I’ve blogged about it too so come over to see it. Keep after your hubby and don’t let him make the decision. You won’t regret it. We have kept ours simple with just a table/chairs and two lounging chairs. We get a lot of pollen during some months and for ease of cleaning it’s better for me to keep it simple. It’s our pride and joy.
I love reading your blog and these porch pictures are so beautiful. How do you get all the images the same size to make such a nice presentation here?
I just wrote a blog post before catching up on some blog reading about how I love my porch. It looks nothing like the ones you’ve posted here, but it’s my haven.
Just wanted to let you know I’m linking to this in my weekend round-up, Rhoda. Thanks!
I just discovered your blog, and I am so happy! I would love to have raparound porch someday. Thank you for the inspirations and beautiful photos!
Hi,
I came thru Hooked on Houses. What perfect timing on your post regarding front porches. I needed some inspiration as I’m trying to refresh my own. Thanks so much these are wonderful!