Ok, so most of you probably already know that we live in Florida, and in Florida that means rain....and bugs. We have a really nice back deck, but it tends to not get used as much as it could because it's not covered. I dream of the day we can put a roof over it and screen it in to keep out those pesky mosquitoes. I dream of a cozy but practical space where we could eat dinner on nice evenings without the added insect guests, where I could sip my morning coffee without sitting on a dew covered chair, and where we could sit on a porch swing and enjoy a good Florida thunderstorm.
So, I said all of that to lead up to this. I was contacted about participating in a Florida Room style board challenge and I agreed. The challenge was to create my dream room, but still keep some of the beachy feel of a typical Florida room. I get a couple of these types of request every month and I usually turn them down, but this one sounded like fun. Partly because A) again, I live in Florida, and B) as I stated, I would LOVE to have a Florida room (a.k.a. the screened in porch), and C) it seemed like a fun challenge to take what is typically a coastal/beach themed room and put my own rustic farmhouse spin on it but without completely doing away with the Florida room style.
So, I said all of that to lead up to this. I was contacted about participating in a Florida Room style board challenge and I agreed. The challenge was to create my dream room, but still keep some of the beachy feel of a typical Florida room. I get a couple of these types of request every month and I usually turn them down, but this one sounded like fun. Partly because A) again, I live in Florida, and B) as I stated, I would LOVE to have a Florida room (a.k.a. the screened in porch), and C) it seemed like a fun challenge to take what is typically a coastal/beach themed room and put my own rustic farmhouse spin on it but without completely doing away with the Florida room style.
I didn't want to create an outdoor living room like you see a lot of times because, honestly, that's just not practical in Florida. I guess if you had an actual room that was temperature controlled it could work, but with a screened in porch type of a room the furniture would get mildewed faster than chocolate melting in the hot Florida sun. So I chose to keep it outdoor friendly and practical, yet cozy and comfy.
Here's what I came up with.
Every great porch has to have a porch swing, am I right?!? And this basic white one is a great crossover piece for the two styles. Plants are a great way to add a beachy casual feel to a room, but why not tuck them down into a galvanized wash bin stand to make them more rustic styled? The chippy aqua table with white lanterns add a great coastal touch, but the red plaid rug underneath lends the cozy farmhouse feel. Nothing says "beach" like wicker and chairs like this would be the perfect cozy addition to a casual porch made for relaxing. A cute little grain sack striped pillow keeps it from feeling TOO beachy. A chippy antique door leaned up in the corner is a great farmhouse style piece, and the soft green sign hanging on it is a great coastal color. The rustic wooden crates make a great little storage area for books, games, shoes when you come in from the yard, and are also a great place to set down your Mason jar drink or morning cup of coffee. (And by the way, those red Chucks? Chucks are my very favorite type of shoe! I have at least 6 pairs in various colors, lol!) Another little plant tucked inside brings a touch of the outdoor beach feel to it. And of course, last but not least, lighting. I LOVE LOVE LOVE string lights and I would SO hang them all around the room for the perfect evening mood lighting.
So there's my take on how to combine a coastal/beach style with rustic farmhouse style and turn it into a cozy place where your family and friends would love to relax.
If you would like the link to any of these items I've included in my style board you can find them {here}, or here are some great Flordia properties for continued inspiration if this sparked your interest.
So there's my take on how to combine a coastal/beach style with rustic farmhouse style and turn it into a cozy place where your family and friends would love to relax.
If you would like the link to any of these items I've included in my style board you can find them {here}, or here are some great Flordia properties for continued inspiration if this sparked your interest.
