Fall has quickly turned to winter here in Virginia. And while I am currently decorating my house for Christmas, I am finally getting around to sharing our backyard porch I decorated last spring!
After about a year and a half of living here, I finally figured out how I wanted to use this small backyard porch space. We tried a variety of things but with the small space and direct sun it gets all afternoon, we found we weren't really using it much.
Our son was old enough to be mobile so I wanted to create a space that was fairly childproof while still pretty enough to enjoy. The door to the porch opens up from the kitchen so this is also a space that I often see out the window. It also connects our house to our backyard so when we have hosted backyard gatherings, people do come through here to get to the bathroom or into the house.
We did not want to change the wire fencing for the sake of the view but wanted to create a sort of barricade to at least try to deter our son from getting too close to the edge. Obviously when our son was out here he was being supervised the whole time! But it made it easier for me to sit and relax and not hover over him the whole time. Over six months later it has turned out to work perfectly.
We come out here for picnic lunches, to get outside for a little bit, and often with a cup of coffee or tea in hand. I leave a small galvanized bin of outdoor cars we bought at the thrift store for our son to play with. That way I don't worry if they sit out in the rain or get lost.
The outdoor rug is from Target and it was my first ever outdoor rug purchase. By the time I brought it in early fall it was shedding quite a bit. We get a lot of rain all spring and summer so it got some pretty heavy wear.
I went ahead and tried to clean it and stored it away but I am not sure how well it will hold up for another season. It was fairly inexpensive so I suppose I shouldn't be surprised but I was pretty disappointed that it won't be lasting me years to come. When I look at these photos I feel like it totally makes the space. Unfortunately I may keep the porch rug-less next year.
I haven't bought many annuals or even potted plants in years. But having this little space for a few flowers has been fun. Pretty much every time we have guests over, I will go ahead and buy some inexpensive plants to revive my pots. The larger pots on the ground are filled with perennials.
To get the look I wanted I had to do some heavy Pinterest work. My usual tendencies are to go all white but I purchased a bunch of white pots and it didn't look right. I realized I wanted it to look more farmhouse-y so after some studying up online I realized I needed more galvanized and wine barrel style pots. I then used a few blue and white pots I already had to add a little color.
I shared this before but our striped umbrellas are from Walmart. I believe the umbrellas (without the stand) are under $40 each which has been one of the best prices I have seen. We just finished year two with these and they are holding up well. They really help with the direct afternoon sun making it actually bearable to come out here during the summer.
So thanks for humoring me as I share some spring inspiration as we are knee deep into the holidays! But this little space brings a lot of joy and I look forward to enjoying it again come next spring!
