What if...?

My original idea with the porch was something like this, but as I was pricing out materials I had a brainstorm.  I thought perhaps I could do something that would echo the interior trim of my house.

That's a bit dark, so here's a close up of one side of this window.

After thinking about this for a while and pricing out materials, I decided to do a plain panel and then do trim with a combination of 4" board and 2" board.  Since I didn't install the top board with the thought of 1" board being installed under it, I'm going to try to find 1/2" board to use instead, but I don't know if I can find that in 8' sections, which is what I need to do the top and bottom trim, but I will have to see.

In the meantime, I bought the panels for the front and back of the first railing I had framed out.  After fighting with the drill and the wood screws, I was able to attach both panels and I'm pretty pleased.

From the outside - you can see I still have to scrape
and paint the base of the porch.

From the inside.  I like it!  It's going to give us some
privacy, which will be nice.

The next thing I probably should do is go ahead and put a couple coats of paint on at least the outside board to protect it from the elements.  Rain is called for tomorrow and I don't want this to get warped or the fibers to get raised.

I think I'm going to work on the front railing next, even before I get the trim pieces up.  That way, I can get a real feel for what the finished porch is going to feel like.

Once I get that done, I'll do the trim, finish painting and then I will turn my attention to putting in indoor/outdoor carpeting.


 I've picked out a nice neutral carpeting which I think is a real step up from the old astroturf of my youth.

I think this will give this little space some comfort and a feeling of tranquility, plus and this is a huge plus, it will keep the tiny vampires from coming up from underneath the porch and tapping into my veins for a liquid lunch!