Pimp my Porch!

11 years ago

We are in the final stretch of our build and must finally decide how to trim out the porch. The exterior look of the house evolved over the course of construction so now we're a bit lost when it comes to deciding on how we can get the porch to best compliment the rest of the house.

We plan on building 2' x 2' brick column bases or piers that project out from the foundation as in this pic:

We can't decide how high the brick base should be nor can we decide on whether the columns should be tapered or straight. Opinions? I'm meeting with the mason and trim guy on Wednesday. Also, we originally planned on 12" x 12" columns - too big, too small or just right?

We could eliminate the brick bases altogether and just do straight columns:

Here are a few shots of the exterior. The porch entablature is now painted the same off-white as the rest of the trim and the columns will be this color as well.

Comments (5)

PRO
Window Accents by Vanessa Downs
11 years ago
I love the fat square columns (without a brick base). Have your carpenters hold up a 12" wide piece of lumber and stand way back on your property to see if they are a good size. You have a huge porch so you need yours big!
Beth Parsons
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks downsy! We were originally going with the brick base because the house was going to be all hardie and I wanted the texture. Now that the whole house is brick I'm not sure it's needed or appropriate. I plan on planting extensively along the front of the porch so it's not like anyone's really going to see the piers anyway... Hmmm... Good idea for holding up a 12" x 12" board. Heading back to the house now!
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virgilcarter
11 years ago
Your front elevation is busy enough with all of the real and faux gables and mix of siding materials. If it were me, I'd make the columns simple vertical columns, perhaps 8" to 12" square, similar to the last (white) photo you posted.

I don't think you need brick masonry base (you already have a great deal of masonry), and you certainly don't want the tapered columns from a Craftsman-style house, which yours is not.

Stick with the style of house you already have and just finish it appropriately. The example in the "white" photo would be a good one to follow.

Good luck on your project!
Beth Parsons
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks virgilcarter! After being at the house all day and looking at various pics I believe we've come to the same conclusion. No brick bases and simple columns at least 12" square. Will be so glad to get this build behind us and just enjoy our home...
trudymom
11 years ago
I agree, simple is better. Just make sure that they build them so that water drains away from them so there is no rotting at the base--we had to replace the ones at our last house because of that. Good luck with the final stretch of your build. It is gorgeous!!