In Awe Of Awnings

Dial down the heat, turn up the curb appeal, and enjoy the outdoors in comfort.

- Pat Eby

I don’t know how anyone lived here without them,” says Gregg Williamson, owner of a 1902 Georgian Revival in the Central West End. “The late-day summer sun is really strong.”

Last spring, Williamson and his partner, Steve Richardson, installed a black-and-white awning, the first of three, to cover southwest-facing windows off their hearth room. The shade, they say, provides a welcome relief from the rays. “We don’t have window treatments inside the room, and don’t really want them, so the awning was a perfect solution,” Williamson says. The striped Sunbrella fabric adds a splash of fun and informality to the backyard, where the couple spends time entertaining and swimming in the pool.