Issue Date: Sept. 7, 2003

In this section: Design essentials for homes Five fab plants for fall

Home & Garden

Living inside out
Treating your porch as an outdoor "room" is the cheapest way to expand your home.

By Vyvyan Lynn

Porches are more than a place to spend a tranquil autumn evening. Today's active lifestyles are blurring the lines between indoor and outdoor living. No longer is outdoor furniture limited to rain-proof wrought iron or low-cost wicker; now thick carpets, sofas and other indoor accents are being relocated to the great outdoors. Furniture chains such as Pottery Barn and Restoration Hardware are showing porch-ready arrangements, complete with lamps, shelving and pictures. What's behind the new view of porches? Home base is becoming more important to our lives' social structure. Add to that: nostalgia and practicality (the simplest, least expensive way to expand a home is to use outdoor space).

"The porch connects our family to nature and neighbors," says Joan Huyser-Honig of Grand Rapids, Mich. And her family is not alone. More people are treating their properties' outdoor spaces as true extensions of their homes, serving the same functions as indoor rooms. From an economic standpoint, porches can increase property values, which is one reason they're seeing a renaissance among homebuilders.

Several new books sing the praises of outdoor living. In "Porch Style" (Rizzoli, $14.98), co-authors Barbara Buchholz and Lisa Skolnik offer advice on how to make a porch reflect the style of not only the home, but also the homeowner. The most important consideration: "Make sure the furniture is arranged to take advantage of the environment," Skolnik says. "If there's a view, play to it. If not, arrange furniture in intimate groupings."

The easiest way to cozy up your porch? Carry interior color schemes outside by using pillows, cushions, tablecloths and curtains in mildew-resistant fabrics, says Kathy Peterson, host of cable TV's "Town & Country Crafts".

From her porch, Huyser-Honig, a gardening buff, enjoys watching the fruits of her labor: "Before school starts, the fragrant night-blooming moonflowers will have matured."

Enjoying nature at home isn't just for suburbanites. New Yorker Toni Kamins lives on the 22nd floor of a co-op. "[It] has a roof garden with flowers, plants and lounge chairs. It makes me feel like part of the city without being in the middle of it," Kamins says.

Unlike indoor living spaces, some concessions must be made outdoors, Skolnik says: All furniture should be weatherproof and sturdy -- weighted properly to withstand wind. It also helps to have furniture that can be rearranged easily to accommodate a variety of activities.

To raise the porch's comfort quotient, keep necessary supplies handy. Store bug spray, citronella candles, blankets and cushions in hidden spots, such as in a bench with storage underneath, Skolnik says. Keep sweatshirts folded up in a pretty bushel basket in case it gets chilly. Consider a mini-fridge to hold cold drinks.

Even the porchless are buying into the trend. Claxton, Ga., resident Joyce Dixon started a group of "cyber-porchers" who "share life stories, jokes, canning tips and the issues of the day," she says. Like real porches, the online community offers "a place to gather."