Outdoor Living in South Florida - Patio's and Porches

South Florida has such a unique sense of itself with its' history, wildlife, diverse ecosystems and of course its' people...ooohhhh its' people, such an odd bunch we are!  But what really makes Florida a destination point is its' weather which my North Dakota friends always have such unique adjectives that make me LMAO when describing Florida during their visits.  Though with that said Florida is not for the faint of heart.

South Florida is, what my friend Jimbo calls, "boogie hot" most of the year (we have three seasons sometimes two, thank you global warming yeeaaahh), we are so humid that the awesome flat iron of yours would be a waste of money (which is why hair salons do so well here, we all need as much professional help as we can get), the extra moisture in the air is great for our skin (even though I own like 5 bottles of lotion and facial moisturizer), we coexist with lizards and cockroaches on a daily basis almost to the point of ridiculousness (I think I have named a few in my lifetime), alligators are known to show up in South Florida pools (then they become someone's pair of shoes and matching belt), we have so many invasive species here that they are starting to become thought of as native (including people lol), we get so much rain here that I am surprised we aren't underwater by now, the biodiversity here is so incredibly diverse that you could walk across the street and feel like you are in another part of the world and we have some of the most beautiful beaches in the world but most locals never go.

With all the kidding aside, there are so many wonderful reasons why people choose to live here.  Like I mentioned before the beautiful weather is definitely one of them.  It allows us to enjoy outdoor activities all year round.  One of my favorite outdoor activities is "lounging on the patio."  Growing up in Miami you could either find me in our backyard hammock or lounging on the patio somewhere.  Patio's have certainly changed their look and function in the past 50 years.  Our modern day patio was originally designed after the European style courtyards, verandas and loggias.  In the design world we now call them "outdoor living spaces" or "outdoor rooms" because they are so much more than a traditional patio.  Since we live most of our time outdoors why not enjoy it right?  Here are a few snippets of what our patio looked like in the 1960's and 70's when screened-in patios were a new design thing.

My Dad & our dog  Bozo when my parents
first bought the house in the 60's.

Our patio was used all the time for just
about any event, my brother, me & friends.

So many birthdays, holiday's, parties, lunches,
diners, breakfast's, etc that we enjoyed on our patio.

With all those get together's you can imagine
how many pictures we've taken on our patio.

Then the old school patio got a makeover, we all grew up & our children enjoyed the patio.
You can imagine how hard it was for all of us when my Dad decided to sell the house a
few years ago....ahhhh good times indeed!

So now you know what they used to look like let me show you some of my favorites....

This is a traditional Florida screened patio gone wild

Another screened patio in Florida

Here is a twist on the traditional screened patio but it's all open.

A beautiful Mediterranean style which I like
to call Floriterranean style.

Another Floriterranean style patio and loggia

This open air outdoor patio is more my style.

The tropical colors, wrap around porch & wood beam
ceiling signify a modern uptake on a traditional Florida home.

I believe this is Palm Beach though it explemplifies a
classic "Florida room".

This is a veranda designed for a completely custom
built multi-million dollar house.

Here is another custom built multi-million
dollar Florida McMansion.

This tropical lagoon is much more my style.

There you have it friends a little peak into South Florida patio's. 

Happy Gardening and Best Wishes,

Sheri

xoxo