Our home, a 1978 island bungalow (on Sanibel, Island, Florida) was an absolutely beautiful house when we purchased it in October 2020.
But, it was just that. A beautiful house.
And, in come the Braden’s, ready to turn the HOUSE into a HOME!
It needed some TLC for sure, and our purchase price reflected that. We would never have been able to afford it if it had been in perfect condition.
We are quickly making improvements to many of the spaces in the house, starting with the kitchen, foyer and of course, the porches!
Like many homes in the state of Florida (United States), it has many porches. These spaces are perfect for hanging out during the warm fall and winter months and also during cooler summer and spring evenings.
Our first floor porch is like an extension of our living room because it has a sliding door that opens (all the way up) right into the screened in area. So, we started our porch makeover quest with this one.
There are still some things I want to do with this space (like one end of the porch that overlooks a creek, which isn’t pictured, is in need of a hanging chair to make it a perfect zen-like reading corner), but our love of Amazon shopping helped us get off to a good start.
By the way, this is not a sponsored post. I am not paid by Amazon to write this article. I chose all decor items based on my true love of their awesome shopping platform. If you buy any of the items I list on my site via my links, I will earn a small percentage of sales via their affiliate program (which, as of 2020, I have earned $0.00 from this program) BUT they did not pay me nor give me any discounts through my writing of this post. I just want to be transparent about this. :)
I love a good deal as well, which Amazon usually has lots of these. And, when you do it all yourself instead of hiring a designer, you can save even more money. See other cool porch budget friendly DIY’s that we’ve done ourselves like this porch column makeover.
Here’s what we have done so far.
The Space Before…
We liked the fans, so we kept those and I built the decor to reflect their style and color. I also chose all decor to coordinate with our living room area, since this porch space is basically an extension of our living room.
Home design, execution and photography by Carolyn J. Braden and Thomas Braden
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More Before….
My dogs, Minnie Pearl and Johnny Cash, were especially excited for our porch to be more functional. They love running up and down the porch, chasing a ball. They also love lounging in the space, as well as our cats, Ross and Monica.
Home design, execution and photography by Carolyn J. Braden and Thomas Braden
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After-Shopping List…
Most of our decor came from Amazon.
Here’s a list of all our finds:
The patio chairs and table set, yellow printed waterproof pillow cases (I already had the inserts), foldable picnic table, and outdoor rug/mat all were purchased via Amazon.
The decor, like the fern wreath and “Home Sweet Home” mat are from Target.
I found the topiary balls at Hobby Lobby and hung them using black chains I found at Home Depot. They add the perfect pop of green to the space and coordinate with the wreath.
Home design, execution and photography by Carolyn J. Braden and Thomas Braden
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After-Helpful tips…
I love how it all turned out. A very helpful tip for putting together any space is ALWAYS TAKE MEASUREMENTS before buying. I saw photos of the home before we bought it and there were many oversized items in this space, which made it look much smaller than it was. I really think the size of your furniture can help a small space look larger.
Before I made any purchases, I used a measuring tape to measure out each space and then looked at all measurements for each item. Making online purchases can be deceiving because something may look like it will fit your space based on the online photo, but if you don’t measure first, the item may actually be a lot bigger or smaller than it looks.
I also read lots of reviews. If there are reviews with pictures, this is even more helpful. Even if I am shopping in an actual store, I will often look up an item I want to buy to read reviews (and to see if I can find it cheaper somewhere else).
Home design, execution and photography by Carolyn J. Braden and Thomas Braden
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The products I purchased on Amazon:
After-Prices…
I scoured the online stores of Wayfair, Target, Walmart, City Furniture and Amazon before making any decisions. I also checked out T.J. Maxx and Home Goods. I initially ordered the picnic table from Wayfair (as I found a super cheap “returned” item on their site), but several days after placing my order, they cancelled it, saying the returned item was no longer available. I guess it wasn’t meant to be.
So, I found it and everything else I wanted on Amazon’s site for great prices (and they all had free shipping with my Prime membership).
Home design, execution and photography by Carolyn J. Braden and Thomas Braden
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After-Waterproof Decor
Everything we purchased was water-resistant or waterproof since some rain does make its way to this furniture.
Home design, execution and photography by Carolyn J. Braden and Thomas Braden
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After-The Rug…
The rug/mat is made out of a plastic material, but it’s easy to walk on. We have one in our pool area too since it wipes clean and is 100% waterproof.
Home design, execution and photography by Carolyn J. Braden and Thomas Braden
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After-Love It…
I’m so happy with how it turned out! This picnic table is made out of wood and metal and folds up completely, making it travel friendly (which would be great if we ever get the RV that we have on our bucket list). The wood does have a water resistant finish, which we don’t expect to last forever BUT we know we can sand it down ourselves over time and put some new water resistant finish on it as needed. The metal had a few chips on it, but it didn’t bother us considering the entire set was already assembled and only $135.00. It could be sanded and resprayed if needed as well.
I don’t expect everything to last forever since no outdoor furniture does, but it is all really nice looking, comfortable and perfect for the space.
Home design, execution and photography by Carolyn J. Braden and Thomas Braden
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After-More Picnic Table…
I love this table. It’s definitely sturdy AND fits the space PERFECTLY!
Home design, execution and photography by Carolyn J. Braden and Thomas Braden
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After-The Dogs
Minnie Pearl and Johnny Cash, our Miniature American Eskimos love playing in this space.
Home design, execution and photography by Carolyn J. Braden and Thomas Braden
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