One Room Challenge 2023 Introduction
It’s true that I create much better under pressure, as much as I don’t actually love to be under pressure. So I decided to add a little pressure to a big project that we have neglected to put at the forefront: our back porch. I joined the One Room Challenge community for its 2023 spring contest, and I’m so excited to share my big plans with you all today.
One Room Challenge happens twice a year, where participants commit to transforming a room in their homes in eight weeks.
It’s probably way too ambitious, but I decided to sign up our non-existent back porch for the challenge. I probably should’ve actually consulted with the builder aka my husband beforehand. But thankfully, he’s a good sport.
By May 28, our goal is to build and furnish our back porch, a project we’ve been dreaming about for literal years. We’ll be doing this DIY style with no outside help.
Currently the back of our house features peeling paint, a few pieces of rotten siding, and a whole lot of nothing else. We can only go up from here!
The project will really function in several phases:
- Porch Foundation and House Prep
- House Paint/Repair
- Porch Build
- Porch Finishes (paint, etc.)
- Vintage Patio Furniture Restoration
The porch actually will extend toward the edge of our pool. A roof will cover most of the porch as well as screens to keep bugs from ruining the best summer lounging. Within the screened portion, I’ll have a section for lounging and a section for dining. I’ve collected vintage iron patio furniture for years to outfit my eventual porch, so I’m incredibly excited for each piece to have a permanent home versus floating around my yard. These pieces need some sandblasting, fresh paint, and new upholstery, in a few instances.
The portion of the porch just adjacent to the pool will be open and feature some side-of-the-road pool lounges that I plan to spruce up. My oldest son requested this portion to dream up and execute proper pool cannonballs.
Of all of the projects we could possibly still tackle at this old cottage, why a back porch? Simple: Those incredible lake views.
Our cottage sits on a beautiful lake in rural Florida, near an area rapidly being overtaken by development. We want our home to celebrate the beauty of unspoiled nature, to function as an oasis from rapid growth. I want to sip my coffee in the morning and watch the sun rise over the lake, listening to the sandhill cranes and limpkins announce another day. I want to have barefoot dinners with my boys, watching and waiting for dusk and the bats to take flight. I want to read a book in the shade while my boys splash in the sun.
A Southern porch beckons us to slow down and savor it all.
We hope you’ll follow along with us as we update you weekly on our progress, our successes, and inevitable setbacks! You can see real-time updates by following us on Instagram.
