Springtime is here, and if you’re like many people, you’re itching to do a bit of home renovating in order to update and improve the value and livability of your home. What’s the best way to do this? Should you invest in a bigger kitchen? Finish your basement and turn it into a theater room or man cave? A home addition to expand your space?
As you stand outside and look at your home, envisioning the possibilities, you may want to consider a home remodeling project that will take place right where you’re gazing at the moment: the front of your house. A front porch is an often-overlooked area that not only expands your living space outward; it also opens your home up and makes it look more inviting to guests when they drive or walk up. If you’re going to build a porch, however, don’t build just any porch — have your contractor design a farmer’s porch.
What’s a Farmer’s Porch?
Porches can range in size from ones that are hardly bigger than your front steps to ones that are truly expansive. If you’ll imagine a beautiful farmhouse sitting way out in the country, the kind of porch that you likely have in your mind’s eye is a farmer’s porch. They’re big, deep, and capable of accommodating benches and rocking chairs enough for the entire family to come outside and sit, talk, sing, eat, or relax.
A farmer’s porch hearkens back to the days when streaming TV shows and smartphones were decades from being invented and if people wanted to be entertained, they sat out on the porch with one another. They’d exchange stories, make up songs, tell jokes, and talk about the events of the day. This makes a farmer’s porch an excellent renovation project that will help you reconnect with your family, friends, or perhaps neighbors you’ve never properly met before.
Types of Farmer’s Porches
Farmer’s porches aren’t one-size-fits-all, so there’s sure to be one that’s perfect for your house and the size of your property. Many farmer’s porches are elevated and have some sort of a staircase leading up to the porch. This works well if you’re replacing an existing deck or stairs that lead up into an elevated entrance to your house.
If your front door is ground-level, no problem — you can still have the farmer’s porch of your dreams! Ground-level farmer’s porches are just as beautiful. They can be flush with the ground or have just a single step if you need the porch to be boosted just a bit to allow easy entrance into the house. Either way, they provide a wonderful place for everyone to gather on the weekends or at the end of a beautiful summertime day.
If you have the room, consider maximizing your porch space by making it a wraparound design. Here’s a historic tidbit for you: farmer’s porches were originally built so that the womenfolk could go outside and take a walk without getting the hems of their dresses dirty. This is why the porch would typically run the entire length of the front of the farmhouse. If the farmer was wealthy, he could build his wife a wraparound porch so she could take a walk around the entire outside of the house.
Whether your farmer’s porch is elevated, ground-level, or wraparound, you’ll find that it provides your family and friends with a shady, wonderful place to spend happy hours when the weather is nice. If you’re uncertain about what design will look or work best, talk to your contractor. They’ll have the experience and understanding to create a farmer’s porch that will perfectly suit your needs. Get that lemonade and iced tea brewing; it’s time to hit the porch!
