Tag: front porch

Painting the Porch Rug

Here’s how I spent my Saturday afternoon…

There’s me, the round little roly-poly VERY pregnant lady, painting the porch. Aye, my back hurts! And please note that the Chicago weather is NOT cooperating with us. I’m wearing a shirt, a hoodie, and a big bulky sweater — it was only 45 degrees out.

To be fair, I must let you know that Brandon, his sister Jessica, and several other people have offered to help me paint. It had to be me though because I was painting the pattern freehand. I couldn’t just pick stripes or a checkerboard pattern that someone else could work on for me, now could I? No, that would have been too easy, and of course I’m all about making things difficult as can be. ;) The pattern was inspired by a rug from Urban Outfitters, and also the flower petal patterns my grandmother used to draw.

Brandon made some excellent progress today as well. Our table and chair set has been painted!

We still have a few things to do for the front porch, but they should go fairly quickly. And as I told my mom, we still have time because the baby isn’t due until Tuesday and I’ve instructed her to stay put until then. We have too much to do before she arrives, and our doctor will be out of town until Monday night. I’m sure the baby will listen, right?

April 11, 2009
Up for the Challenge: Part Two

My second post for the 48-Hour Challenge is up! This week I described the planning process and talked a bit about what we’re going to do on the front porch.

Check it out!

April 10, 2009
Up for the Challenge

And what a challenge it will be… I can barely waddle down the stairs these days. Still, even with a baby that’s due in nine days (yikes!), Brandon and I are always up for a good project. That’s why we’re thrilled to be participating in the Better Homes & Gardens’ 48-Hour Challenge!

We asked five of our favorite home and garden bloggers to create clever weekend projects for outdoor living, using $500 in materials from The Home Depot. Throughout April, they’ll be blogging about the process, from inspiration and design to shopping and building. In May, we’ll post the finished projects, and you’ll vote for the most creative. The person who created your favorite will receive a $5,000 bonus!

Is that exciting or what? I’ve been thinking a lot about what to do with the front porch, so we’re going to work on it for the challenge! We’re going to create a little dining area and a separate lounging/relaxing area. We’ll be using plenty of green (since I’ve been obsessed with it lately), and of course I’ll have to bring in at least a little pink.

You can head on over to Better Homes and Gardens to check out the other four bloggers that are taking part. I was excited to see that John and Sherry from This Young House will also be working on their front porch — how awesome to be participating in this challenge with friends! I’m really looking forward to seeing all of the finished projects.

Of course I can’t wait to share more with you, but for now you’ll just have to wait and see… And wish us luck!

April 5, 2009
Porch and Patio Seating?

Yesterday it was 65 degrees. Today: 27. Still, I keep thinking ahead to spring and all of the things I’d like to do outside.

As cute as our front porch is (and it is pretty cute), I’m wondering if maybe it should be more of a lounge area.

Right now those chairs are on the patio in the backyard, mixed in with some other wooden folding chairs. The white ones are much more comfortable, so I’m thinking about picking up four more so that we can have a matching set. It bugs me that the chairs are all mixed up! I don’t think I could ever go for the artfully mismatched look, even though I think it looks great when other people do it.

But… I can’t decide.

Option 1: Put the four white chairs we already have back on the front porch and keep it as a little dining area (it’s nice to sit there when it’s raining). Store the uncomfortable wooden chairs (we have 6) for extra party seating. Find 8 new matching (and inexpensive) chairs to go around the table in the backyard.

Option 2: Keep the four white chairs on the patio and pick up four more (they’re only $30 each). Store the 6 uncomfortable wooden chairs for extra party seating. Find lounge furniture for the front porch. Maybe two comfy chairs and a little side table? Maybe a porch swing or a gliding bench?

Any ideas?

March 11, 2009
The Front Porch

I’ve never had an outdoor space before, and of course that means I didnt have any outdoor furniture either. Well, except for this wicker chair which I bought years ago for some reason:

I love that this house has a front porch because I love the idea of sitting out there for lunch, or sipping lemonade and reading magazines… it seems like such a lovely thing to do. First we would need a table and some chairs though.

I went to IKEA (one of many, many excursions by now) to look for a table. I picked up two of the drop-leaf Muddus tables. They’re nice because they’re: a.) red b.) cute c.) flexible d.) did I mention they were red and cute?

I waited for chairs because I buy way too many things at IKEA and I thought that maybe I could find some cute vintage wire chairs. Yeah. Except in the summer, everyone else is looking for cute vintage wire chairs, and the prices are adjusted accordingly. Back to IKEA I went, and I bought four white folding chairs (they were with the outdoor stuff, so they should be OK outside).

The two tables seemed kind of like they were just slapped together (um, not that they were or anything…), so I picked up a little table runner to unify them. Then I got a little kooky.

You know those big tissue paper fluff balls everyone’s been making? I kept seeing them in people’s flickr photos, so I picked up a kit (they’re by Martha Stewart for Michael’s). I thought I’d hang them over the bed, but then I thought they’d look sooo good outside. Maybe my neighbors will not agree. I may take them down.

I hung a few paper lanterns out there too, and the space is so pretty at night.

And you know what? It IS nice to sit out there for lunch, or to read magazines… or sometimes both! I know – CRAZY, right? I’m living la vida loca, for sure.

June 14, 2007