So, Thanksgiving is a week away, and all I can think about are screened porches & fireplaces.
Our new house has a lovely little screened porch which is one of the things that attracted me to my home in the first place. However, after spending some time on it this summer we realized we would like it to be a bit larger to accommodate more friends & family at one time. Currently it's about 11' x 12', and our plan is to rebuild it to 18' x 20' and some odd inches. Needless to say, I've been doing lots of research trying to figure out how I want it to look ultimately. One thing is for certain though & that is a fireplace. I love the look & I'm looking forward to being able to use the porch well beyond summer.
The photo above is pretty much what I'm going for, isn't it gorgeous. It's really amazing how expensive all the little details are. Right now I'm trying to decide just how worth it the details are to me. Currently I'm trying to pick out the stone or brick for the fireplace and some sort of flooring either cypress like the image above or a herringbone brick.
So, what are your thoughts? Pull out all the detail stops, or keep it simple & cost effective?
This is my first time with any kind of construction or home additions so any advice on the subject would be greatly appreciated.
Below are a few more of my inspiration images, they can all be found on my pinterest board here
loving the look of this painted brick fireplace.
The stone and the arched opening are quite nice though I do want a mantle.
Which look do you prefer.... Stone or Brick?
Decisions....Decisions.....Decisions....
Goodness, it may be next year before we get this done if I have to decide.
{peace, love & hugs}
Carrie
Carrie, I was just typing a message to you and it disappeared. Please excuse me if you see this twice.
ReplyDeleteWhich do you like better? I love brick and stone...it's a hard choice. We do have a brick fireplace on our patio. I love it!
Ha Ha, I love both...but honestly I'm leaning to the painted brick...I really like the lightness of it. I love a fireplace on the patio, do you feel plenty of people can get around it for warmth? I was thinking of that option for our patio as well, however since we're doing the fireplace on the porch I will do a fire pit instead to add some variety. I can see the ladies lingering around on the warm porch while the men folk hang out by the fire pit & grill...that's the vision anyway ha ha.
DeleteWe're building a screened porch onto our house this winter - we've never had one before. I would love to do a fireplace but that's beyond our budget. I've been trying to research other options for heat because we love winter & will probably use it more from fall through spring than from spring through fall.
ReplyDeleteHow exciting for you too, I totally understand about the budget thing...it's driving me crazy & kills me especially since I already have a screened porch. I guess I figure I'm only gonna live once and I know I'll really enjoy it. I wonder if a cute little wood stove would be more affordable, I've seen plenty of them on porches as well, little to no cost for materials & you could probably find one on Craigslist. My parents have one in their home & mountain cabin & I love them, they keep everything super warm & toasty you can even leave it open to view the fire. Just a thought, I know they have outdoor heaters too that you may be able to use out there. My screened porch is my favorite place, so if I can get a few more months out there it will be worth it in the end.
DeleteI tried to enter a comment last night on my ipad, it clearly didn't work!
ReplyDeleteI think it's nice when the outdoor room has elements of the architecture. If you have a brick house, brick fireplace would be nice. If you have siding and maybe a more streamlined architectural style, adding an interesting texture with stone would be nice.
We were never really outdoor room people in our old house, even though the entire back of our house had two decks and a screened in porch. The porch was too small and divided up the spaces, and the back of our house faced north, so there was never any light. In our new house, we use our ourdoor room all of the time! It is created with the same materials as the house - painted brick, a limestone bolection mold around the fireplace. It is simply decorated, but we love using it.
My new screened porch is my favorite room, I always wanted one on my old house but never got around to making it happen...luckily we didn't really have a mosquito issue there (now we do) so I'm really glad I have it. Our new home is a Saussy Burbank ( very Charlestonesque, with siding ) so I feel I could really go either way stone or brick, maybe it will depend on the flooring. If we do brick, I'm thinking stone, and if it's wood...either. Ha ha I didn't really help myself there, I really appreciate your suggestion it makes perfect sense.
Delete