this is west-facing as you come in the main door and entrance to our house. keepin it real...that's what it looks like! on the left closest to you in the door to the garage. then there's a garbage can for burnables (we burn our paper trash out here in the sticks) and a metal trash can for recyclable metal (not in the pic). that round container with the metal ring is the goodwill bound stuff. next is a couch that we moved out of our motorhome. it has all sorts of assorted junk on it that really just needs to be put away. there is a crib mattress standing next to it that i can't seem to find anywhere to get rid of. and finally in the back corner is a freezer. on the right side of the picture is a giant closet sort of piece of furniture that is home to gawd-knows-what. i am not attached to it at all, tho i think painting it and cleaning it out and using it for storage might be a wise idea. behind that is the door to our home that is most used. there is a homemade shelf thingy that holds all our boots and mucking in the yard shoes. next is a loveseat that the hubs brought home from a garage sale. functional, but ugly. there is a window behind it, but it is planned to be removed. past the loveseat is the dehydrator. i would love to get rid of it, but know that the hubs would knix that idea. painting it might be an option.
this is the same view only the other direction. those nasty screen doors are going to be swapped out asap with nice storm doors. that's on the summer to-do list, depending on the hubs' health. forgot to mention the coat tree on the left of this pic. the garbage cans straight ahead contain dog food, glass and aluminum recycling (we don't have trash or recycling pick up so we need ample room to store it (you can see the trash cans in the distance--also on the to do list is a corral for them)).
the porch is actually a backwards L shape...this is the skinny bottom. the french doors lead into the kitchen. they are never opened and we plan to remove them. there is, in fact, a bookcase in front of them in the kitchen. i am a little attached to the glider, but not hugely so. it needs to be a different color, for sure. the window on the right is from the dining room and we never open the curtains. we never use the dining room either! the folding chairs are from the motorhome and i didn't even know they were here until i took this picture. the stuff in the foreground is chicken stuff that will find a new home soon, i hope.
let's see what else do you need to know...
we are trying to do this on the way super cheap. using what we have and mostly just cleaning it up and reorganizing. this is an outdoor space and i have trouble putting new furnishings out here that isn't designed for outdoors. and we really are outdoor people so there is a lot of traffic passing thru here with muddy boots and what-not.
i think my biggest hurdle and what can make the biggest difference is color. because the walls are actually the exterior of my home and garage, and are siding, they are the color of my house (martha stewart's "bay colt" with her "ganache" on the ceiling). which makes this space pretty dark. i think i need permission to paint them another color. i have some leftover paint from my kitchen that is sherwin williams "independent gold". it's really sort of a light olive greenish color that i love. i'm not opposed to another color either, i just can't seem to pick one or get started at all.
the carpet is a darkish kelly green (think astroturf) and it stays. i am not opposed to an area rug covering part of it, but don't really want to spend the money.
lighting. there are 3 standard outdoor ceiling fixtures. they aren't lovely, but i don't hate them. there is also a ceiling fan that is nice to have in the summer. all the west-facing windows let in a lot of evening sun/heat.
the finished product has to have storage for coats, boots and shoes. somewhere for the glass, aluminum, and other metal recycling to go (wonder if i can find a home in the garage for them??).
tomorrow i will begin cleaning out stuff and putting some of the junk away! yay for a weekend project!!
help me julia!!!
~michelle
