Michael, *thanks*! We'd have to dull the surface down, but it's brand new so we wouldn't have to clean it. But as we went to see it, I realized I'm not all that thrilled by it--it was a step down from what I was led to believe it was. Ah, such are the vagaries of craigslist...but I'll keep your advice in mind if we end up buying something else like it. I was specifically hoping you'd see my post and reply, actually :) Hope everyone is well and safe in your kin circle :)

Ya know, I was all ready to tear my awnings off the front of my house (there's a tree for shade). It never even occurred to me to paint them! Thanks!

Hi Leenamark, I wish I could give you advice on the aluminum vs vinyl issue, but I cannot. All I know is that the corrugated green plastic patio covers that they used to use look pretty yucky pretty quick. I have been daydreaming about using my patio more. Mine faces west, so does need some shade. Along with shade, breezes are also necessary for keeping the sitting areas comfortable. That leads me to ask you about using a solid top, like aluminum or vinyl. Is your purpose to get shade and be comfortable, or to get an area that is not going to get rained upon? If you need it to be a dry area, then a solid top makes sense to me. If you want shade, then think about using something like what MoccasinLanding was talking about. We took a vacation to a nice summer home that had an open pergola on a patio with trumpet vines (and attendant hummingbirds) and shade cloth that you could pull in place if you liked. What I liked about the pergola was that on a cool day, we could choose to have the sun on us, or we could retreat to the shaded part if the sum was hot. The breezes blew through, since there was no solid obstruction, so on hot days, we had the advantage of moving air. Just thought I would give you my perspective, I wish I had more experience with your REAL question, but I don't. Merry Christmas!

What a nice sunroom. I like the cushion, but the whole thing still seems rather bland on my screen (no views to pick it up). And I've always been a white lover. My "vote" would be for you to choose a color scheme and then paint the wicker a glossy color of your choice. Maybe take a cue from that nice brick floor so that any choices make it look its best. I'm thinking a dark brown or very dark, slightly cool green, but glossy navy sounds wonderful. :) Red? You have so many options, depending on what you like. I think it might help to split up the furniture, though. Maybe put the chairs and ottoman on the end of the porch for a separate seating group, facing each other entirely or angled also back toward the main group, and then bring in chairs of another style to go with the loveseat, turning their backs, at least partly, on the garden (swivels?). All the wicker wouldn't have to be the same exact color. Maybe only the settee in a dark color and the chairs in a lighter version of the same color, or vice versa? The tables could remain to flank the settee, painted the same color, to add importance to that area. But maybe cover the tops with something a little different to add more interest without actually grabbing attention? It could be a different material than glass. Or something attached to the underside of the glass (collages from school papers, antique-style maps, fabric with a great pattern, seed packets relating to the garden, whatever furthered the look you like). Will you need a reading lamp? Floor lamp, or the coffee table could become a side table to hold one. Not right now, maybe, but how about upholstering the top of the coffee table to turn it into another piece to sit on, and in the process break up the expected? Or move it to another part of the porch altogether and set plants on it?