10 Simple Summer Porch Decorating Ideas

Design consultant Ellen O'Neill found this wicker chair—for the porch of her Long Island cottage—for $3 at a yard sale. Wet towels and bathing suits get tossed into the vintage barrel.

To provide more sunshine on gray days, designer Tom Scheerer opened up a porch in Maine by installing skylights. All-weather wicker by Whitecraft.

For the porch of a seaside New York home, designer Robin Bell choose fabric that is "lemonade—and sangria—proof." Wicker seating is antique.

Designer Paula Perlin and architect Mark Ferguson created this idyllic blue porch for a Martha's Vineyard home. The sky blue ceiling—Morning Glory by Benjamin Moore—makes for an unexpected, soothing touch. The Walters Wicker Seagrass sofa and armchairs are covered in a Brunschwig & Fils cornflower blue and white plaid.

For a beach house in Southampton, New York, designers Kim Coleman and Michele Green created a cohesive porch by using the same color cushions on different style chairs. The green color blends in with the dune grass and helps create a seamless transition to the outdoors. Cushions in Suncloth from Sonia's Place.

Designer Barbara Westbrook mixed a modern coffee table with traditional wicker sofas on the porch of this South Carolina lake house. The Palm Beach wicker sofas came from Walters Wicker.

Dining chairs don't have to be part of a matching set. To accompany the table of this Napa Valley screened porch, designer Ken Fulk pulled up chairs salvaged from a French park and tractor-seat stools. Chairs through Chelsea Antiques.

Architect Gil Schafer screened in this Connecticut lake cottage's open porch. Color expert Eve Ashcraft chose Narragansett Green for the porch floor from Benjamin Moore. The gleaming shade makes the floor almost look like water. The white-lacquered '50s rattan sofa and armchair are from the homeowner's grandmother.

To provide shade from the sun on hot days, install curtains on your porch. The cream-colored ones that designer Ty Larkins chose for his Louisiana home add an elegant touch.

This mirror makes the porch of a Florida home by designers Courtney Coleman and Bill Brockschmidt feel more like an actual room. An added benefit? "At night it reflects the candlelight so beautifully," Coleman says. Smith & Hawken sofa; Madeline Weinrib carpet.