Before & After: A Sunroom & Pergola for Entertaining
June 19th, 2020 | by Elizabeth | Posted in Before and Afters, construction, home & garden, outdoors
Well, friends, the temperatures are rising here in Tennessee, but the humidity hasn’t gone up just yet. Which means… we have to enjoy our outdoor spaces while we can!
If you remember a while back, in my post about must-knows for a new build or renovation, I showed you this project in progress…
Well, I am happy to say that this beautiful space is now complete! It has become a beautiful sunroom with a view to a gorgeous outdoor pergola! Now that’s how you take advantage of a good backyard. 😉
Today, I want to share the story behind the space and show you how it turned out. I hope it will inspire you to make the most of your own outdoor spaces for a summer full of memories — the good kind!
The Sunroom & Pergola Project
First, y’all should know… people ask me allllll the time, “Tell me what all you DO…” and I say the shorter list would be what all we DON’T do! Lol. Long story short, this is exactly how this project started!
Our clients, Dr. and Mrs. C had an existing screened-in porch on the back of their home when they purchased it. It was basically a deck with a roof on it, and their goal was to get some extra space to be able to entertain family in (they have lots of extended family that come in quite often) and also to be able to enjoy their backyard during all the seasons.
before
Another important detail… Dr. and Mrs. C have a family friend who is an architect. A while back, he had drawn out plans to convert their screened-in porch, but… they just hadn’t gotten around to doing it yet. So, they had a plan, a dream, and weren’t quite sure what was next.
Well, Mrs. C and I began discussing it one day (you know, when she was asking me what all it is that I do), and I told her we don’t usually design outdoor spaces. But then I told her we could absolutely build out the sunroom, and yeah, we could pour the patio, and then… well, yeah, we can build the pergola. And the next thing you know we had built the whole outdoor space for them!
Funny how these things work, right? And I’m pretty darn glad we said yes, because the final result is beautiful and I know they have SO loved the extra space during quarantine! But I’m getting ahead of myself… let’s look at some photos, y’all!
A Spacious & Bright Sunroom
Quick note… for this space we did the construction, but the only design pieces of the project we did were the interior color and flooring specifications. The furnishings were the family’s. Let’s take a peek…
Before…
…and After!
I always take the exterior view from a space into consideration when designing the interior of a space. I think it’s important to tie a space into its surroundings. You’ll notice the wall color is neutral yet ties right in to the beautiful trees outdoors, and we vaulted the ceiling to make it visually larger as well.
The flooring was selected to appear as beautifully aged wood. I mentioned in the previous post that Dr. C is a veterinarian and they have a couple of dogs and cats. The cats especially enjoy being able to sit in these windows and enjoy the sun streaming in.
The perfect place for a cat nap!
Here’s another before photo…
And after!
Isn’t it just darling? The exposed brick on the interior also ties into the brick on the exterior. Bonus — it adds the perfect touch of warmth and charm.
Here’s the other side of the sofa and living area — a dining area! Mrs. C has the ability to work from home from time to time, so having the sunroom gave her space to add a large table to work on… which doubles as additional dining space for all their guests!
What my clients, nor any of us could foresee, was a pandemic. We finished this sunroom and pergola literally a week or two before our March 2 tornados, which was also right around the time the pandemic was beginning and our city went into quarantine.
Having this additional room gave them more room to enjoy and spread out in the quarantine, and gave Mrs. C a beautiful view of her backyard while having to work from home for an extended time period.
Speaking of the backyard…
A Gorgeous Pergola
And would you look at this pergola?? It’s the crowning jewel of the backyard!
Dr. and Mrs. C have planted Wisteria behind the rear columns of the structure and I simply can’t wait to see it when it grows up and over the ceiling!
Their backyard is fairly large and full of large, mature trees. This pergola fits right in with its beautiful golden tone, wood grain with charming knots, and regal appearance. It’s the perfect place to relax, enjoy dinner with family, or entertain.
As if the tornados of March were not enough (which barely missed this home), we had another storm the first of May with 80+ mile an hour winds. Mrs. C told me they had finished assembling the new furniture hours before the storm, and it took everything out.
What you see is all that is left. Mother Nature sure is a force to be reckoned with, but we are all so grateful that the damage wasn’t any worse.
Now that the weather appears to be a bit better, I foresee some al fresco dining in their future! 😉
So, what about you… Do you have an outdoor living space you’d love to freshen up? Or maybe you have an indoor space that you would love to redesign to make the most of the views?
If so, I’d love to invite you to book a discovery call with me. We’ll get to know each other, chat about your project, and see if we can help design your happiest, most comfortable home.
Yours,
E
P.s. Looking for more Before & Afters? See our roundup of 15 Home Transformations that will Inspire You!
