As I suspected, I couldn’t completely finish the faux stones on the exterior bedroom door yesterday. But that project will be my number one priority today and this weekend, so I hope to have photos of the finished door by Monday. Meanwhile, for the past few weeks I’ve had an idea floating around in my head and the more I think about it, the more excited I get. But first, a little explanation.
Every time I post a mockup of how I imagine the area around the outside door of that bedroom, I receive comments with recommendations, which I am always open to and happy to receive. But let’s take this one, for example. This is one of the ChatGPT mockups I made a while ago, and while I still haven’t decided exactly what I want the steps to look like here, this is what ChatGPT came up with based on my feedback.
What I’m actually envisioning (and planning) is a much larger landing that’s the same depth as our front porch, extending five feet from the front door to the edge of the porch. And then, off the porch there are three steps. This will give you a more accurate idea of the depth of the landing and steps I plan to build outside the bedroom door.
But I always get suggestions to extend the landing area and turn the area outside the bedroom door into a small terrace where I can put a small table and chairs. That’s not going to happen. There are obstacles in the way that would cost a lot of money to move. As you can see in this photo I shared a couple days ago, our gas meter is right there in the corner of the house, and the gas company requires three feet of clearance on all sides around the gas meter. And then to the right of the door, you can see that white thing sticking out of the ground. That’s cleaning our main sewer line, which also can’t be clogged, and there’s no way I’m paying to move it.
As you can see, the width of the steps will be limited by those two very necessary and immovable objects. Technically, yes, they could both move, but in my opinion, that would come at a very high price and very little reward. Even if we had a small terrace outside this door with a small table and chairs, I can assure you that it would not be used. I just can’t imagine sitting out there, and I know for a fact that Matt wouldn’t either. If I’m going to invest money in an area where Matt and I can enjoy sitting outside, I’d like it to be in the backyard, not in the front of the house.
As a side note, there is no room for a permanent ramp either. There is about 16 inches from the floor to the door, which would require a 16 foot ramp if I am going to add a permanent ramp. There is simply no room for a 16 foot ramp. I’m going to stick with my idea of a large landing that is the same depth as our front porch with a lightweight aluminum ramp that can be placed in the corner of the bedroom for easy access.
Well, that’s part of the explanation before I show you the plan that’s been floating around in my head. Now let’s move on to the other part of my explanation. As you know, because I’ve been sharing this for a while, I’ve pretty much settled on the fact that we’ll never be able to build the addition I’ve always dreamed of. It costs a lot of money and continues to get more expensive with each passing year. I don’t feel comfortable spending that much money in such a shaky economy. So I shared in previous posts how I came up with the idea of living with the sunroom and making it work for us, and I’m also considering opening up that hidden bathroom next to the sunroom and making it usable again. (This has pretty much gone from a consideration to a plan in recent days.) The more I reflect on these ideas, the more comfortable I feel about them instead of tearing them down and spending tons of money to rebuild and expand them.
So, with those things in mind, the other day I was taking Cooper (our dog) out to his yard in the morning. Their patio is directly outside the exterior door of our master bathroom.
And as I stood there looking at it for a minute, I thought this is actually the perfect spot for a small terrace.
I can imagine turning it into a beautiful, private area in the back of our master bedroom, and the more I think about it, the more I love the idea. I know it’s not exactly common to have an exterior door in a master bathroom, and the plan was always to add it behind that room, so that exterior door was never a permanent fixture in that bathroom. But nowadays I have a “work with what you have” mentality. And every day that passes I am more so.
Several years ago, I remember seeing a photo of a beautiful (but small) master bathroom with French doors that opened to a private garden, and it was absolutely stunning. That image has stuck in my mind all these years. I wish I could find it and show it to you, but I couldn’t find it. But with that image in my mind, I have a vision of what this little deck could be. And the more I think about it, the more I want that vision to come true.
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 upper that my husband Matt and I purchased in 2013. Matt has MS and can’t do physical work, so I do most of the house work myself. You can learn more about me here.
