DIY Exotic Sunroom Back Porch Makeover

I don't do a lot of home makeover type posts, even though I love seeing them.  Full room DIY has never been my strong suit.  This summer I'm happy to say I've transformed a full room and done it myself.  It's my Sunroom Porch Makeover!

A bit of new furniture, some slipcover action and some DIY pillows & wall art have renovated it from ugly drab to Moroccan-style fab!  Now, it's got chic details and a matching look.  Oh, to have a room that looks put together!!

Room backstory: Our house has a enclosed back porch aka sunroom just outside our family room.  It's a 3 season room that's a combo of brick and lots of screened windows. Sadly, it tends to be treated like a shed most of the time.  These pics were taken on a really clean day too.

We have literally stored stuff in it more than used it over the years.  Patio chairs, tools, outdoor kid junk, it's usually been out there.  Besides the mess, it also looked totally mismatched and faded, which made me cringe every time I looked at it.  Definitely not a room to entertain in.

I hoped to transform it a few years ago when we got some free used rattan furniture.  The faded red floral print was awful, but I had these big ideas about re-upholstering it and making it fab.  Then reality set it when I calculated the yardage needed and the tricky areas involved. Too much hassle for what would cost almost as much as new furniture!  So I left it and the room continued looking ugh.

Much better now though!

This year I'd had enough, but I also had to be reasonable with a budget, so with some planning, a couple of hundred dollars and some elbow grease, I made it happen.

The first reality was cleaning.  I had to clear out our little backyard shed, then organize it better, to find some extra space to put our patio chairs and some of the kid stuff when not in use.  



Now it's at least manageable looking.

Next the rattan furniture had to go, but I was shocked at the prices for most outdoor couches and cushioned chairs.  Even the cheapest stuff was crazy $$$.  Then I saw this eucalyptus wood bench on another blog's patio makeover.  It wasn't even mentioned in that post, so I asked where she got it (at World Market btw) & lo and behold there was a matching chair and deep couch available there too!

Buying them all was still a bit out of my budget until about a week later when all outdoor stuff became 50% off.  I grabbed 'em along with an outdoor rug, a few solid outdoor pillows and these ultra cool lanterns.

The catch was the furniture only came with seat cushions and of course they're off white. So practical with 3 kids, right?  Not.  I scotch guarded them and plan to cover them, if needed, down the road.  The basic shape will be a lot easier than dealing with the rattan ridiculousness.  

I needed to make some extra large pillows to make the backs softer, but giant cushions can get pretty pricey.  So can a bunch of pillow forms that big.  I needed 18"x18" and 26"x26".  I bargain hunted and found some down filled forms at Ikea for under $10 each.  That, plus some home decor fabric I scored at Hobby Lobby with a 40% off coupon, allowed me to make some for between $12-15 each.  I got a pair of matching striped throw pillows at Home Goods for the same price.  
  

And since I made them zippered, I can swap the covers out as needed.  

I decided to keep the rattan coffee table and revamp it by making a slipcover out of some outdoor fabric and then setting the glass top over it.  Added bonus: it also acts as some extra hidden storage now.  

I wanted to tie my nice iron tables & bar cart in better, so I found a great little iron side table (at Kirkland's) that had a glass tile mosaic top in my new colors.   

I also bought a cheap, basic, storage cube at Ikea that I slipcovered with a cute print,

as well as finding an inexpensive new shade for my lamp and some super cheap net window panels to add an airy look.  Those were only $5 a pair!  

This beautiful seashell planter had been my grandmother's and had been hidden behind the old chair, covered with spiderwebs.  I cleaned it up and got some faux reeds to give it a new purpose.  I really love it now. 

Lastly, I needed some new wall art, but was hard pressed to find anything in the size, style or color I wanted.  Time to DIY it folks.  

I bought some cheap canvases, cool wood shapes (clearance section at JoAnn Stores), glass marbles and spray paint.

I used outdoor spray paint that has UV protection since this room gets lots of sun on the wall). 

I glued the shapes and marbles to the canvases with E6000 so they'd really stay on. 

Now I've got some great wall decor that's a perfect fit with my theme.

Adding all 3 kicked the exotic feel up a notch:



When I stand in there now I can't believe it's the same room. I'm really loving the exotic vibe, but I could easily swap out the covers on the tables & pillows and switch the wall art to do a different look without changing anything big.  Not that I'm going to want to any time soon;)  Definitely happy this got on my to-do list!