If you want to elevate your summer barbecues or use your back porch to extend your living space, read on!
Creative Ideas for Your Back Porch
Since your back porch is likely to be private, you can get a little more creative with how you design it. In other words, your goal should be to create an area where you can place your stamp on.
Customize the Ceiling
Experimenting with paint colors isn’t limited to interior walls. You can also experiment with bold hues on your back porch. As the back porch is usually used for relaxing or entertaining, adding some color can help set the right mood. And painting the ceiling a fun and funky color can be a fun surprise that’s completely different from the rest of your exterior.
Take Cues From Nature
Look beyond your porch steps. Mother nature is an excellent source of inspiration. Your landscape can provide you with color, materials, and even furniture orientation cues. If you live on a lake or a pond (like I do), throw pillows can be used to complement the sky and water views, while a live-edge cocktail table ties in with the trees.
Porch Swing: It’s Not Just for the Front Porch Anymore
Although porch swings are typically associated with front porches, there’s no reason you can’t use one on your back porch as well. Back porch swings add both practical seating and a nostalgic feel, and a fun, unexpected bit of charm.
Create Magic with Paper Lanterns
There are a lot of ways to add ambiance to your back porch, and combining decorative lighting styles with task-oriented options can help you create an inviting outdoor space. I love entertaining guests on our back porch, especially under our shaded pergola, the perfect spot for an evening BBQ. I like to bring the space to life and add some ambiance by tying various outdoor lanterns to branches of a nearby tree or hanging them from the top of the pergola. In particular, I like rattan or bamboo ones, which are great for outside areas, and some even have battery-operated candles.
Create Zones
Whenever possible, design your back porch with multiple zones to serve different functions and break up the back of your house visually.
A covered porch can be an excellent spot for entertaining and housing a grill station and dining table. If possible, add an open-air area for soaking up the early morning sunlight and enjoying a cup of coffee.
Provide a Variety of Seating Options
Set up your porch to accommodate as many occasions as possible by incorporating a variety of furnishings.
Conversation sets featuring a cushioned love seat and a chair create a relaxing atmosphere for friends to catch up or have a glass of wine. A dining table or bistro set can offer a place to dine al fresco every day, enjoy your morning coffee, or host an outdoor dinner party.
Feature Some Functional Elements
In the event that your back porch is a central exit point for your home, for instance, your children are constantly running in and out of the back door, build an outdoor mudroom to catch dirt (and clutter) before it enters your house.
Set up a drop zone for outdoor gear with a hall tree (or a row of wall hooks and a shoe shelf) and a doormat. This option works best on a covered porch to protect your belongings from the elements.
Turn the Back Porch Into an Extension of Your Interior
Back porch decor can go beyond basic outdoor furnishings. You can create the illusion of an open-air room by including textiles, outdoor rugs, and accent pieces.
I usually find reasonably priced 8’x10′ indoor/outdoor rugs at stores like HomeGoods with fun, colorful patterns. For the perfect outdoor ‘living room,’ place it under a sectional and top it with some water-resistant, tasseled pillows. Place a seagrass tray on an outdoor coffee table. And vases of fresh flowers picked from the garden.
Enjoy the View
You should arrange seating areas to maximize the view. Set up tables and chairs, so they face away from the home and towards an area of your yard that you want to be the focal point.
Do you have any creative back porch decor ideas? Please share them in the comments section below!