Hey, y'all! I'm Cris.
  • Say Hello
  • Check Me Out
  • Work With Me
  • Find Out More
  • Shop My Favorites
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Contact Me
  • Sponsorships
  • Privacy Policy

Kiss My Tulle

Real Life in a Perfectionist World

  • Capsule Wardrobes
    • Fashion
    • Beauty
  • Travel
    • Disney + Marvel
    • Marvel Bounding
  • DIY + Tutorials
    • Home Improvement + Design
    • Food + Cooking
    • Health + Fitness
    • Holidays
  • Pregnancy + Parenting
    • Mommy
    • Daddy
    • First Trimester
    • Second Trimester
    • Third Trimester
    • Baby
    • Toddler
    • Kid
  • Weddings
    • Our $5,000 Wedding
    • Ceremony
    • Reception
    • Honeymoon

Home Improvement + Design · September 21, 2017

Building A Porch and Entryway Addition. Can I Have an AMEN?!?!

I'm a little over bathrooms right now so I'm sharing the NEXT project after that project.

It's a porch/entryway/half bath addition!

I cannot tell you how life-changing this addition is.

Building A Porch and Entryway Addition. Can I Have an AMEN?!?!

It has completely changed the way we use our house and has really helped to add some visual interest to the front.

Remember how the outside looked before?

Building A Porch and Entryway Addition. Can I Have an AMEN?!?! #homeimprovement #DIY
Building A Porch and Entryway Addition. Can I Have an AMEN?!?! #homeimprovement #DIY

And now after:

Building A Porch and Entryway Addition. Can I Have an AMEN?!?! #homeimprovement #DIY

Even unfinished (that's like a theme with my husband), you can absolutely see how amazing the change is.

Here's how it has altered the inside layout (besides adding a much need 100-ish square feet on to the house's footprint):

Building A Porch and Entryway Addition. Can I Have an AMEN?!?! #homeimprovement #DIY
Building A Porch and Entryway Addition. Can I Have an AMEN?!?! #homeimprovement #DIY

The Floor Plan

See the change in the traffic flow (I used this site to create the free floor plans)?

Before, the door open directly against a wall (thus removing about 2 square feet of usable space) and due to the kitchen's layout, the dining area had to be shoved against a wall.

When we wanted to eat at the table, we'd have to pull it out and block all traffic paths into and around the kitchen and living room.

It was ridiculous.

With this new addition, we relocated the main entry to the other side of the kitchen – which now leaves a great space for a banquette and dining area.

It also allows traffic to easily move from the kitchen to the living room.

This has been so HUGE to our way of living, I cannot even tell you.

The Front Porch

I love this new addition, not only because it improves the flow and space in the house, but also because it adds more usable space plus it's just prettier to drive up to a welcoming porch than a bare door.

The addition's layout is small but simple.

The porch is just a big rectangle added to the front half of the house.

Then a smaller rectangle was framed out and created a new front door + small entryway with a half bathroom.

The new porch is fab.

It is completely covered and has a nice area for seating plus two sets of stairs – one to walk up to the house and one on the side to access trash and the A/C unit.

We added a new front door and I picked out a couple of tall, narrow stock windows to flank it.

The windows weren't exactly what I wanted but we're on a budget and could only afford stock (not custom) so I made due with what I could afford.

The Entryway

The inside of the addition is wonderful!

I grew up in Alaska where every house has an Arctic Entry – a small room built on to the front to collect the cold winter air and stop it from cooling down the main house.

A lot of people turn these areas into full mudrooms.

It completely weirded me out when I first moved to Texas to not have this little room on people's houses – you would open the front door and BOOM, be right in there home.

It felt so sudden and intimate to me.

So, I definitely wanted a mudroom/entryway added to my house.

Once this little room is done, it will have a bench and floor-to-ceiling storage along one wall and then a small console table and mirror on the other.

I can't wait!

The Half Bathroom

The other big feature of the addition was actually a wish list item that my husband totally made happen.

Our little rural area is starting to be up-and-coming and since this isn't our forever home, we're trying to make the house as appealing as possible to buyers.

And one of those things is to add a half bath somewhere off the common rooms.

Once we started talking about the layout, The Boy realized that we had just enough space for a 36″ wide half bath (the legal minimum for a bathroom in our area).

Since a half bathroom just needs a toilet and a sink and isn't meant for people to linger – we were able to carve out a small area for one along the side of the entryway.

We'll be adding a pocket door to make the floor plan work.

The Pantry

Also, while we were building, The Boy realized that we didn't need the full length for the half bath.

He figured out that 2-3′ could be stolen from the back and used as a pantry for the kitchen!

You guys. I just love my new addition.

I have all kinds of decorating plans and cannot WAIT to share this process with you.

I promise to be back next week to share my decorating plans and how this baby got built for only $1500 and in 4 days!

Have any of you added a small addition to your homes with great results?

Sharing is caring!

  • Share
  • Email
  • Print

Posted In: Home Improvement + Design · Tagged: DIY, home, home improvement

You’ll Also Love

Create a Buffet: DIY Catering Ideas for Your Wedding Reception
Create a Pretty DIY Fabric Streamer Wedding Ceremony Backdrop
Ornament Gift Tag DIY Featuring The #CricutMaker #AD #CricutMade #CricutHoliday @Cricut #Christmas #gift #holiday #givingCreate Custom Gift Tags with Cricut Maker: DIY Ornament Tutorial

Comments

  1. Ray Bonnell says

    February 13, 2023 at 6:11 am

    I live in Alaska. Accidentally happened across your blog post about arctic entries, and your comment about entering a home without an entry feeling, “so sudden and intimate.”

    My response was, “Yes! I couldn’t agree more.”

    Reply
    • Cris says

      March 8, 2023 at 8:40 pm

      Yay! Someone who feels the same!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Next Post >

Afternoon Snack Time with Melanie and TEDDY SOFT BAKED Filled Snacks

I'm Cris. I live in Alaska with my husband, two kids, and two cats. I love sleeping, Disney, Marvel, and fries.

Kiss My Tulle is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Web Stories

Work With Me

  • Sponsorships
  • Contact Me
  • Find Out More
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy

Shop My Favorites

  • Travel Essentials
  • Capsule Wardrobes
  • Home Decor Finds
  • Pregnancy Must Haves
  • DIY Tools

hey, y'all!

I'm Cris. Kiss My Tulle is filled with humor, down-to-earth advice, true parenting stories that are equal parts funny and horrifying, and some swearing while tackling real life in a perfectionist world. Stick around!

Disney + Travel

  • Travel
  • Disney + Marvel
  • Marvel Bounding
  • Honeymoon

Being A Mom

  • DIY + Tutorials
  • Pregnancy + Parenting
  • Capsule Wardrobes
  • Food + Cooking
  • Home + Life
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Contact Me
  • Sponsorships
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2025 Kiss My Tulle · Theme by 17th Avenue