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Those Sleepy Little Sleeping Porches provided by ServiceMagic.com.

The sleeping porch is thought to be a recent phenomenon, only finding its way into the most modern homes. But the truth of the matter is that sleeping porches have been around for more than a century. However, recent home improvement trends have brought this savvy little addition back to the cutting edge.

Southern Porches
At heart, sleeping porches are just screened-in porches that are used for a different purpose than a typical porch. Because southern plantations homes had large wraparound porches, they were set up to be "screened in" once this product became available. Some of these homes had decks and balconies on the second floor, which also transitioned nicely into screened-in porches to keep the home's occupants from having to fight with all the bugs.

This was before air conditioning, so when it got hot in the summer people needed to have access to any breeze that might blow by. So often these porches, second-story decks, and balconies became sleeping porches.

The Craftsman Adoption
The Craftsman style of architecture (1905-1930), also called "Arts & Crafts" and made popular by Frank Lloyd Wright (you might have heard of him; he's kind of a big deal) is perceived to have been influenced by southern homes. The porches that are signature on these bungalows are often included in the front and back of the home, specifically on corners so as to have access to breezes from all different directions. However, a sleeping porch is often upstairs in many of these homes.

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