FINISHED FRONT PORCH

Remember this? A while back I pulled together a fresh new look for my front porch and wrote about it here. We did some mild landscaping on our front yard late this summer and it motivated us to spend more time out front. Yesterday I picked up a pretty mum so I thought I would photograph the whole thing for you. It's also nice to see my new drapery panels from the outside. I was able to catch the two planters on sale at West Elm and I already owned the owl and lanterns; so the planters, table, chairs, rug and pillows came to $355. A great investment for a new place to hang out, have some wine and play with the dogs.

FRONT PORCH- ROUND 2

On Monday I wrote a post about decorating my front porch. Yesterday I stopped by Ballard Designs to pick up my fabulous new rug but I was disappointed when I saw it in person. The Suzanne Kasler Indoor/Outdoor Ikat Rug is unlike the rest of Ballard's indoor/outdoor rugs; it's a thick loop pile as appose to flat woven so it looks and feels like an indoor rug. This rug would be a great fit for someone who's needs a durable, easy to clean rug for inside their home- a pet owners or someone with children. Even though it's 100% poly-acrylic, the rug didn't look like it would hold up very well outside. Our front porch is uncovered and unprotected from the elements. I also wasn't feeling the thick texture, it just wasn't what I had in mind. So I left the store empty handed and went back to the drawing board. 

original concept

I already got the white Ikea chairs, the teal metal table from Cost Plus World Market and the planters from West Elm. It was tempting to grab the West Elm lumbar pillows because the price is so great and they only had a couple left but I knew I would have more rug options available if I wasn't committed to the tan pillows. Below are a few alternatives I came up with that include the white and teal pieces I already have. 

The first look is the most exciting to me; the golden and rusty colors combine very well with the teal and the mix of patterns would add a lot of interest to such a small space. My biggest concern with this option is that the color palette might get old fast, I don't typically lean towards Earthy colors like these. 

Vinhais Garden Pot from Anthropologie, Lumbar Pillow in Raffia Gate Tuscan from Frontgate, Leanne Ikat Rug from Horchow

Our house is painted a light sage green, so when I came across this outdoor rug I thought that the range of blues and greens could tie the porch decor into the exterior of the house. Also, I've always liked the way green pillows and cushions look outdoors against natural greenery.

Beacon Birdhouse from Anthropologie, Trimaran Stripe Pillow from Dash & Albert Company, Pond Stripe Rug from Dash & Albert Company

The final look I pulled together is bold black and white with a pop of teal. This look is similar to the interior of our house. The porch is painted white so I like the idea of a high contrast rug and a simple palette. Also, our back porch furniture is black metal with khaki cushions and aqua blue and khaki pillows, if I wanted to mix things up back there I could switch these pillows out for a new look. I think the thick black stripes and dark pots would catch people's eyes from the street and from the inside of our living room. 

ANGENAM Vase from Ikea, Throw Pillow from Land of Pillows, Diamond Rug from Dash & Albert Rug Company

Now I just need to make a choice...

A PORCH WORTH SITTING ON

David and I have been doing a lot of yard work this summer. We've lived in the same rental house for a couple years now and in the past we haven't had the interest in landscaping considering that the house isn't ours. This spring we made the decision to stick around for a while and with that choice came a whole new list of projects. Luckily, my mom moved to Atlanta in June so we have a professional home owner to teach us some Gardening 101. After a few laborious weekends we have a nicely improved yard with the groundwork laid for more plants next year. Now that our front yard is no longer an eye sore we've been migrating toward the front of our house, peaking out the windows at our labor of love. This inspired the bonus project- a front porch worth sitting on! Now is a great time to buy outdoor furniture and accessories, I always recommend that my clients wait until summer is here or on the way out to buy outdoor products because the seasonal sales are well worth the wait. A couple years ago I got outdoor pillows for our back porch from Restoration Hardware, $70.00 marked down to $17.00! Below is the shopping list for my $400.00 front porch update! 

Clockwise from top left: 
AKERBAR from Ikea- This glazed Terracotta dish is perfect for serving summer snacks.


Pagoda Blue Metal Table from Cost Plus World Market- This table was marked down from $49.99 to $16.99 and inspired the color pallet for the porch.


Claude Planters from West Elm- West Elm is having a great outdoor sale right now these Earthware planters went from $16.99, $34.00 and $69.00 to sale prices $9.99, $12.99 and $24.99


HOGSTEN from Ikea- I got two of these outdoor chairs along with the wire table as an early Birthday present (thanks Mom). I am very impressed with Ikea's newest outdoor furniture, it took me a long time to finalize my choice there. I went with this steel and Ployethylene chair because of the mix between contemporary Scandinavian design and kitschy rattan, it was also the most comfortable.


Outdoor Mosaic Texture Pillow from West Elm- These pillows are marked down from $34.00 and they will be a great color tie in for my new porch look!


Suzanne Kasler Ikat Rug from Ballard Designs- This indoor/outdoor runner is defiantly my big splurge item. While Ballard does have some great markdowns on outdoor rugs right now, I have to have this brand new runner (that was clearly made for my new front porch).