Monday, August 5, 2013

Black and White Porch

Today I'm sharing the update of our back porch, 
which runs the length of our house with access
from the dining room and the master bedroom.
 Here it is "before" in desperate need of painting
and new flooring.  
The existing floor was tan indoor/outdoor carpet.
We talked about wrapping it with siding, but decided
to have it painted along with
the rest of the outside of the house last summer.

 The flooring was a difficult decision.
No carpet for sure!  Tile? Wood? 
 I love the black and white check floors, and thought the outdoor "room" 
could support such a bold floor, plus it was a good 
place to experiment without having to look at it everyday
if it was a terrible decision (believe me I've made some of those!)
 Here's the process we (meaning my husband) followed:
After the porch was painted we laid new plywood flooring
Then we painted the entire floor white
Next we taped off squares (you can see above) with Frog tape
Filled in the squares with black enamel paint
And let it all dry really well.
 Here's the finished product. You can see Miss Madison was the
first one out on the porch LOL!
 Here it is furnished again with our rockers and table.
 Down by the master bedroom we have the rockers 
where we sit and visit lots of evenings.
 Here is the floor by the wicker rockers, which I repainted black
from the white they were to match the floor.
 I hung a battery operated chandelier over the dining table.
 We repainted the rod iron table and chairs white
and my sweet mother in law made the cushions for 
both the dining and wicker chairs.
I used Waverly outdoor fabric.
This picture is from this past week.  The others are from one year ago.
I wanted you to be able to see how it's "wearing".
Sometimes I see projects and think "that looks great now, 
wonder how it will look in a few months"
Since it is an outdoor porch, even though it is protected by the overhang,
it gets wet when it storms, dirty from bugs, etc.
The floor does look less crisp than when we first finished it,
but I like that look of a little worn, so I am happy.
If you wanted perfection forever, you could put a coat of poly to seal
but I didn't want my white squares to tinge yellow, so we skipped that step.
*Don't forget to visit Bee Breakfast at
http://beeutifulbydesign.blogspot.com/2013/07/bee-breakfast-on-porch.html
for a chance to enter my giveaways!*

I'm joining:
Inspire me Tuesday at http://www.astrollthrulife.net/
Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at http://www.stonegableblog.com/


15 comments:

  1. Oh my word, I think it is stunning. I love the look and you have it furnished so beautifully. Looks like a ton of work, but great job. Thanks for joining Inspire Me. Hugs, Marty

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  2. Wow, that is some project...the results are just gorgeous! What a transformation! I think it's just such a beautiful space.

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  3. So classic! I also love how you painted the wicker black. Will you add any pop of accent color? And what time will you be serving tea/wine/drinks? :)

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  4. What a gorgeous porch - how lucky that you have one - I've always wanted one !!!!
    And the black and white checkered floor is just fabulous!
    Most definitely your newest follwer!
    Hugs from Montreal,
    XOXO

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  5. I LOVE LOVE this porch - I think I could sit there for hours and just admire this floor - I am a fan on B&W!

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  6. I love your porch, such a pretty flooring. Thanks for visiting my college friends blog, Forever Spooks....Christine

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  7. Oh just beautiful! I love your choice of the white and black.

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  8. How gorgeous! What a beautiful idea and the way you have decorated has just added to the elegance. Thankyou for sharing!
    Jennelise

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  9. I just love your porch! Bold and beautiful..the fabrics you chose are just perfect! Very pretty.
    Miss Bloomers

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  10. That looks amazing! Thanks for Sharing!

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  11. I'm suffering from porch fever right now--can't get enough of my front porch and back screened porch, so your post was perfect in terms of timing, and in terms of great ideas. It's a WOW for sure! We just had our screened porch floor painted a neutral color and I'm thinking of doing something more with it...this is great inspiration!
    Thank you for your sweet comment about my baptism table post. ~Zuni

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  12. I'm trying really hard not to be envious, because envy isn't nice :) Ha ha! It's just gorgeous! It's a fantastic porch to begin with, but then y'all made it spectacular with that floor and the furnishings. That's the kind of floor I think we'll put in the sunroom I dream of building, and the exact kind of table and chairs I want, too. So glad I got to see this. Take care - Dawn @ We Call It Junkin.com

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  13. I'm trying really hard not to be envious, because envy isn't nice :) Ha ha! It's just gorgeous! It's a fantastic porch to begin with, but then y'all made it spectacular with that floor and the furnishings. That's the kind of floor I think we'll put in the sunroom I dream of building, and the exact kind of table and chairs I want, too. So glad I got to see this. Take care - Dawn @ We Call It Junkin.com

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