All Hands on Deck

Porches and decks enjoy new life with crown molding and storage options

By Danielle Robinson
CTW Features

Image courtesy of Paula Wallace; "Perfect Porches" (Clarkson Potter, 2010)

An immediate extension of your home, porches and decks bridge the gap between the inside and the great outdoors, providing indoor comfort while making the most of nature's benefits. The recession has pulled Americans back toward the simpler pleasures in life, which appear to include a greater focus on outdoor living. All the more reason, then, to get on board with the new wave of deck and porch design: creating a seamless transition between the inside of the home and its outdoor counterparts. "Americans are turning off the television. They're gathering outside again," says Paula Wallace, president and cofounder of the Savannah College of Art and Design and author of "Perfect Porches" (Clarkson Potter, 2010). "We're in the midst of the great porch renaissance, and clients want interior designers and architects to create intentional outdoor spaces."

Wallace says a porch is no different from a living room, with one big difference. "It generally doesn't rain in the living room! Designers have to make porches a little hardier."

Weather-wise accommodations include cabinets and other storage devices to stow pillows or artwork during a storm and ensuring the porch is deep enough to allow guests to sit outside and not get wet on a windy, rainy day, she says.

As for decks, Bobby Parks, DeckExpo advisory council member and owner of Peachtree Decks and Porches, Alpharetta, Ga., says that while homeowners still ask for specific design elements like diagonal decking, rounded decks and square and bayed corners, their greatest concern is creating cohesion.

People want a porch "that looks like it belongs with the house," he says. That calls for building in more hidden fasteners and decorative lighting. "In an effort to make something look more like it belongs, we're doing more crown molding, more PVC-wrapped columns," he says. Often, homeowners even request tiled floors and fireplaces in their porch designs, Parks says.

When it comes time to decorate a porch, bring your personal design aesthetic out with you, and don't be afraid to rearrange. "My porches evolve, transform and transfigure all the time! We redesign the porch to suit the occasion," Wallace says.

If guests are coming to call, arrange outdoor furniture in a way that will inspire interaction. Wallace likes to skew outdoor sofas and chairs at odd angles to "create energy and an artful imbalance."

The true key to designing a successful outdoor space is to make it a reflection of you and your family.

"All great porch design starts with people," Wallace says. "The colors, the décor, the art - everything should reflect the porchers' values, ideals and spirit."

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