A portico.
I want a portico.
Seems like something someone might shove in my Christmas Stocking. Alas, a portico would be too darn big.
A portico is a structure- usually made of wood.
I saw one in a House and Home Magazine from a year ago. I bought the magazine last fall but because of our move to this mountain home, I suppose I only briefly glanced through its colourful pages. One of the feature articles was about a Gay couple who had bought at 1795 Georgian home in Chester, Nova Scotia. They called their home "White Cottage" for it is- white. It also has several bars so I would expect "Bar Cottage" would have been suitable as well. I don't suppose they'd mind me mentioning they had several bars since they were featured in the magazine.
From their main living room a covered walkway led the way to this "Portico". A covered portico.
It had a roof- as porticos do- although some may be open like a pergola.
That's another Blog.
The portico had a river-rock, wood-burning fireplace and plenty of seating. Three sides of the portico were open to the elements, so in a stiff winter wind- as I am sure Chester has, it would feel a bit nippy- even with a blazing fire.
A pile of colourful blankets sat on one of the surrounding benches so one could cozy up tight.
It all looks very romantic- being the feature was shot for the Holidays. A nearby gate adjoining a white picket fence, sported a huge, real evergreen wreath tied with a holly berry red bow.
A hot toddy, hearty flames and good conversation would make this portico a grand spot to be- even if it were a bit chilly.
Chester by the by is located on Mahone Bay in Nova Scotia, west of Halifax. Possibly their winters are milder because of the proximity to the ocean and the protected bay.
This is an elegant entrance portico.
The cottage is gorgeous and now I want a portico at the front of Palm Villa. We have an automatic, retractable awning installed there now but a solid, all wood, covered portico would be lovely. Not being a carpenter I believe I can see that it would require two stout pillars on one side and the other would be lashed to the house just above the studio window. I would prefer a covered roof so during inclement, rainy weather one could comfortably sit beneath it, coffee in hand.
Again, not being a professional carpenter, I should think the price of construction would be reasonable- meaning not too intolerably expensive. How much can a couple of pillars, a few brackets and a bit of wood set one back? I'll let you know when I find out. It could quite easily be my next major project after we receive the estimate for wooden shutters on four of our windows.
We had roller blinds installed a year ago when we moved in but they have proved unworthy. The original idea with blinds and not shutters was to allow us to roll the blinds up to reveal our million-dollar view. What we quickly discovered come late spring and throughout the summer, there was no view since we had to keep the blinds pulled down eight hours a day to keep the sun from fading furniture and artwork.
Who knew?
Anyhoo, now we are beginning the expensive process of installing wooden shutters which should have been our initial choice. We've lived with shutters in our previous two homes and we know they look classically traditional and allowed us to move louvers up and down to re-direct sunlight.
We're never too old to learn a valuable lesson in decor- are we?
Maybe one day in the near future- after we are shuttered, I can convince the Mister that a portico is the way to go.
Wish me luck!
