{vintage tropical}

aruba blue + flamingo pink + beach sand white loungers.
such a dream for a pool & patio.
especially vintage styled umbrella.

add rattan bamboo furniture under breezy portico.

getting my sun hat & i'll join you under the palms.
just thrilled for beach weather!

{tropical dream via coastal living}

{a white wine afternoon}

come over, friend, i've poured a glass for you.
now take a comfortable seat, and tell me about your life's latest plans...

my, how i've missed you.

{images via :: desire to inspire, dwellings and decor (2&3), habitually chic, scribble scribble}

{creamsicle sky}

{images via :: sweet space, style files, scribble-scribbles, first home, country living}

{dining on the rooftop}

since the start of s & b's project dream-cottage, hgtv has been on our television nonstop. and today i ventured onto the hgtv website where i found tons of photos of their latest project: hgtv green home. this home certainly employs the latest green technology to be as environmentally friendly as possible, but what really caught my eye was the green home's rooftop deck.

since deciding the dream-cottage is more accurately described as the dream-bungalow, a spiral staircase has appeared on and has continued to inch up our list of priorities. at first we were thinking to have one inside to save space, but looking at photos of a spiral staircase to a rooftop deck is really making a case for having one outside.

love the rooftop garden space & rain barrel. but for the green home, i'm a little surprised by the lack of natural green on the rooftop. i would add varying-sized pots and containers of colorful annuals and potato vines spilling onto the deck and a few shady palm trees. but either way, think of the views of the marsh from a deck like this! i could really go for a glass of red wine on a breezy summer night.

annnnnd i couldn't help myself, the green home prompted multiple google searches of rooftop decks and spiral stairs.

the above house is just a little more comparable to our real-life potential bungalows than the hgtv green {dream} home.

i also like the idea of having a double-decker porch/patio. though i'm thinking we'll want the bottom space to be screened-in to keep out unwanted savannah sand gnats (which i'm apparently very allergic to). that would be the best of both worlds.

see, more like this, though ours will have a more cottage feel to it. (and i think that door is kind of ugly, but you get the idea.)

i really like how this spiral staircase is more incorporated into the porch rather than attached randomly to the outside. it could definitely go inside of the screened porch area, though i suppose the trade-off is losing porch space.

check out the varying levels on this rooftop deck. it seems to really work with the roof line rather than just carving out a flat space. i also love the idea of having french doors from an upstairs master open up onto the deck.

more varying levels above. good for a party.

if this house wasn't on stilts it would be about what i picture for the dream-bungalow. just need a few cold drinks and good friends. perfect.

{images from hgtv, davenport-construction, chateau-animaux, parkwaymfg, decksouth, hawthorn villa, harbor island beach houses }

{lazy afternoon}

i'm really hating my job today and hope that in our dream-cottage b & i can have a nook like this where i can go curl up with a book or really anything more interesting than the nonsense i have been looking at today. i love the look of the old mattress and lots of fluffy feather pillows.

{image - paris aparment}

{a perch for all}

garden party for every companion with seating aplenty - another back yard essential.

dainty wire chairs add french elegance to porch or patio: fermob USA x 2, anthropologie & treillage

these fanciful stools are double duty - but whether baby seat or petite sideboard, they do not compromise space: treillage, the gardner, west elm & wisteria

whether saving space or wishing for extra seating, these bistro style chairs are perfect as they can fold right up when not needed: treillage, fermob USA, GRDN & the gardner

{a nook for sunshine}

daylight savings has hit savannah with full force and what was lost in time and sleep was made up for in sunshine and 80 degree weather. the first spring--albeit unofficial--saturday was just begging to be spent outside in a sundress, so kl & i took a good bit of the afternoon to amble through outdoor antique/second-hand markets. when kl happened upon a steal of a wrought iron bench for her porch, in need of only a bath and a fresh coat of colorful spray paint, it got me thinking about the essentials needed to create an inviting and charming outdoor room with whatever space and budget you have (and in my case both are on the smaller side, so we'll focus on that mostly).

springtime comes easily via punchy throw pillows. add some geraniums, a potted hydrangea, and a baby palm or two and your menagerie will be blooming with color.

pillows from persnicketyhome's etsy shop, world market, earnest&thistle's etsy shop, and crate and barrel. top image from domino magazine.