Jefferey Pouros
The best front porch ideas will not only smarten up the entrance to your home, they'll also give you the perfect sheltered spot to sit and enjoy being outdoors. While many homeowners can often overlook their front porches, it’s one of the first parts of your house to make an impression on guests, not to mention provide you with extra living space.
Whether you’re interested in designing a cozy seating area for watching summer storms roll past or a perfect display for all your plants, we’ve rounded up the best ways you can spice up your front porch to let it shine. Rocking chairs can work well with all sorts of architectural styles, whether your home is a farmhouse, a Craftsman bungalow, or a colonial-type property.
While you can simply take a seat, relax, and soak in the view, you can also use a bench more practically, say, to take off your shoes before entering your home. If you already have another seating area on your porch, you can even use a bench like a display, arranging a vignette of plants, ceramic pieces, or anything else you fancy on top of it.
Another front porch seating classic, a swinging bench is an ideal place to relax all day long, whether you’re snuggling up to a loved one or sprawled out reading a book. While you can keep your swing plain and simple, like the one shown here, we love the idea of peppering in some fun pillows and a throw blanket to make things a little cozier – perfect for when there's an extra chill in the air on cooler evenings.
If you’re into the swinging bench idea but have more flamboyant style, opt for a bohemian-style hanging pod, providing a more unique architectural shape that’s sure to make your home the envy of the neighborhood.
Outdoor seating is always more comfortable when teamed with cushions, so don’t be afraid to load up your front porch’s benches and chairs with them. We love how the same color has been used on the walls and floor in this front porch to create a smart finish. If you have plants that prefer indirect sunlight, a covered front porch is an ideal place to home them.
Set up a number of small-to-medium-sized plants on a tiered shelf, or go big with some fronds in a giant planter. Opt for ferns or flowers like begonias in the shadiest part of your porch, and leave the sunnier spaces for light lovers like petunias or even potted citrus trees. Sure, shutters are practical for keeping wind and rain out, but on a big front porch, they can also be used as decorative elements. Shutters look best on more traditional homes, but savvy designers can certainly find a way to make them work on modern ones, too.
A flat surface for trimming stems and some hooks to hang tools are a great place to start! Don’t forget to jazz your new outdoor sofa up with accessories like the Siempre Lumbar Pillow from The Citizenry (opens in new tab).
If you have limited square footage on your front porch for decorating, take things to the walls – or the open air. Or even if you do have a large porch, save the space for furniture and keep the plants up in the air.
Here, blogger Ashley Mann (opens in new tab) hangs English ivy and a spider plant on her porch.
We’re partial to highly stylized models, like this Fringed Macramé Hammock from Anthropologie (opens in new tab), which oozes bohemian vibes.
