IN T H E G A R D EN
outdoors
TROPICAL PUNCH
Potted citrus trees
encircle a small gravel
seating area w
ith
tropical greenery,
left.
Chunks of recycled
concrete are stacked
to form a wall around
the informal niche.
SUMMER BREEZE
Bright outdoor fabrics
add color to the
otherwise neutral
palette,
below.
“We
love the blue because it
echoes the pool color,”
says Pete. Ceiling fans
stir a cooling breeze.
“T h e re ’s n o real d iv isio n b e tw e e n in sid e a n d o u t. T h e
p o rc h gives u s th e sen se th a t o u r h o u se is alive.”
M A R K D A V IS
porch to feel as spacious as it was gracious,
so he opened it right to the garden, with no
railings or screens to enclose it.
When the French doors along the back
of the house are open, the porch seems
even roomier. “We keep the doors open all
year, except for winter,” says Mark.
“Neighbors come through the front door
and head right on out through the open
back ones. They know they can usually find
us out here.”
That the porch, with its lack of barriers,
fosters such gregariousness is a pleasant,
but unsurprising, result for the one who
designed it. “That’s what a porch is
supposed to do,” says Pete. tfS
i
For buying information seepage 253.
116
JUNE 2009 BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS
