Cushy, deep seating with clean lines makes for a comfortable place for hanging out, while sheers suspended from supports create the ultimate chill zone
Patchwork Quilt Patio
This patio was created from recycled materials. Just as a quilter sews together fabric pieces, these homeowners married stone, brick, and cobble to create a charming space.
Covered Personal Patio
A portable cabana provides a place for reading and visiting on this patio.
Game Inspired Patio
Chess pieces the size of children await visitors’ opening move on this game board patio.
Photo: Laurey W. Glenn; Styling: Matthew Gleason
Patio Living Room
This unique patio includes a pergola with a retractable canopy of outdoor fabric that is great for protection from sun and rain. Comfy seating is centered around a fireplace and creates an outdoor living area that is great for parties and entertaining.
Arbor Covered Patio
Four 6 by 6 posts across the front of this patio arbor give the structure a substantial feel. Two lattice panels, which support Armand clematis vines (Clematis armandii), provide a sense of enclosure.
Laurey W. Glenn / Styling: Leslie Byars Simpson
Dining Patio
Classic hydrangea blooms take center stage around this neutral-toned patio dining space.
Outdoor rooms change over time. The homeowners built this arbor the first year they were in the home. When the wisteria covered the top, they realized it was a great room. The garden's structured design plays off of the free-form look of the wisteria.
Planed Patio Perfection
Outdoor rooms change over time. The homeowners built this arbor the first year they were in the home. When the wisteria covered the top, they realized it was a great room. The garden's structured design plays off of the free-form look of the wisteria.
Polished Outdoor Room
Thoughtfully chosen fabrics for the upholstered outdoor furniture give this porch polished appeal. Touches of burnt orange play off of the undertones in wood details.
Photography Van Chaplin, Laurey W. Glenn, John O'Hagan
Porch With Privacy
These shutters not only add interest and texture to this house, but they also offer privacy and protection from the elements. They can close off the porch or be opened to let in the Gulf breeze.
Pretty Back Porch
This covered porch is large enough for a pair of chairs and is framed by outdoor draperies that pull closed for shade. This welcoming spot is the perfect place for morning coffee. Adirondack chairs with cutouts of the South Carolina state logo―a palm tree and quarter moon―give this Lowcountry cottage even more sense of place.
Private Porch
Louvered shutters add a little privacy to this porch space and fresh apple green accents punch up the color scheme.
Raised Patio
The vaulted pitch of the arbor mimics the lines of the garage roof behind it and makes the garage more background than feature. The brick chimney helps to draw the eye up, creating height and keeping the attention on the fireplace, which features a mix of fieldstone and brick for added interest. The entire seating area is elevated, improving views of the surrounding property. A ceiling fan under the arbor assures year-round comfort.
Reclaimed Porch Doors
Mix reclaimed materials to get the look you want. This homeowner combined cypress siding from an early-1900s Sears Craftsman painted green, wood from a 100-year-old barn, and wrought iron fencing to create the porch’s sliding doors. The doors slide on a new track, but the rollers are antique meat-hook wheels from a meatpacking plant.
Screened Family Porch
Comfortable lounge seating makes this screened porch a perfect place to relax and take advantage of the summer breeze.
Screened Porch With Style
Decorate your porch as if it’s a room in the house. This porch is decorated with pieces that flow with the rest of the furniture in the house, aiming for a collected-over-time look. A stone-and-iron table pairs with wooden chairs. Rattan wicker chairs sit underneath copper lanterns.
Screened-In Comfort
Cozy seating areas all around this porch keep the conversation flowing. A porch swing turns into a favorite reading nook with a warm throw and cushy pillows.
Laurey W. Glenn, Robbie Caponetto / Styling: Matthew Gleason
Second Floor Porch
This second-floor porch has a sense of privacy, with solid railings and overhanging eaves. The designer chose dark woven furniture to create casual seating areas on the house’s porches. The cushions, in aqua, green, and white stripes, are a nice compliment to the colors of the sea. The woven frames are made from durable resin to stand up to the corrosive salt air.
Photo: Howard Lee Puckett
Simple & Chic Porch
This porch is furnished with stylish, weather-resistant pieces. This long trestle table’s crisscross base mimics the diamond floor pattern, and the white finish maintains a minimal look. The chairs, made of clear-sealed metal, add a touch of industrial chic, and they stack for easy storage. A hanging lantern add a touch of elegance.
Simple Porch
This second-floor Gulf-front porch with two Adirondack chairs facing the water is an ideal spot from which to watch the sun rise and set. The horizontal rail, rather than conventional vertical pickets, provides a seamless view.
Photography Van Chaplin / Styling Cari South / Assistant Stylist: Katherine Eckert
Sleeping Porch
Wooden daybeds, treated to withstand outdoor use and outfitted with pillows, let this open-air area function as a sleeping porch. Fabric shades sewn from a weather-resistant fabric can be raised or lowered between the porch posts.
And to make activities mosquito free, this porch and all outdoor entertaining areas are equipped with tiny spray heads mounted in the ceiling. The system dispenses a mist of nontoxic chemicals that repels insects.
Small Side Patio
The pebbled border adds texture in this cozy side-yard path and patio. A pair of planters and a bench half-way down the path breaks up the space.
Stone Porch
Randomly placed stepping-stones crafted from local granite lead to this front porch’s wide steps. Hand-hewn posts and railings, along with graceful brackets, are crafted from regionally harvested locust wood to further enhance this cottage’s connection to the land. Local fieldstone clads the porch walls.
Stylish Porch Foyer
This front porch doubles as the foyer for this coastal-style home. It is decorated with lamps that look like sea-weathered wood, sisal rugs, and throw pillows with wavy and coral-like patterns inspired by the Atlantic Ocean.
Laurey W. Glenn / Styling: Anne Turner Carroll, Scott Martin
Sunny Screened Porch
The textures and colors of the furniture and flooring in this porch were chosen to complement the Spanish moss-draped live oaks outside. Its roof, consisting of translucent plastic panels attached to wood framing, mimics the hut’s roof and provides both natural sunlight and views of the area’s marshlands.
Photo: Laurey W. Glenn; Styling: Matthew Gleason
Sunset Porch
This second-story porch is an extension of the master suite and offers a great view of the sunrise. A copper light fixture complements the warm wood accents.
Laurey W. Glenn / Styling Leigh Anne Montgomery
Tranquil Stucco Porch
This porch wall contains the fireplace, cabinets, and a wood storage cubby. This gives the porch a main focal point, and it screens it from neighbors and the harsh sun. Fresh-cut firewood is stacked high to add texture and contrast to the white stucco wall. There’s no worry about running out of wood before the end of the night.
Vintage Brick Patio
The brick in this patio came from buildings that were torn down in the area. The biggest problem with using antique brick is that the sizes aren’t uniform. That can make it tough to lay out a patio, so set the brick in sand, rather than concrete, to give a relaxed and aged look. The sand also helps level odd-size bricks.
Front Porch Outdoor Dining
Outdoor furniture sets the scene for front porch dining. Transitional styling—simple lines and natural teak—make the dining set at home anywhere, including the primitive exterior of this Cottage.
Photo: Ralph Anderson
Texas Zen
Inspiration for this deck was drawn from a trip couple Michael and Patti Rogers had taken to Bali. “We fell in love with the architecture there and wanted to find a way to re-create it here while still being true to this region,” Patti says. The couple calls the resulting East-West fusion “Texas Zen.”
I hope you this gave you some inspiration.
Sometimes just seeing a a photos can get your ideas flowing.
If you are thinking about buying or selling a home this year, give me a call.
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