Take a Look at the Schaffitzel's Plant-Filled Porch

Mike and Betsy Schaffitzel call a dreamy colonial-style house out in Fair Grove home. In 2003, they broke ground and spent the following six years building their dream home. Imagine cruising along the East Coast and looking at all the regal colonial homes—that’s where Betsy drew her inspiration. “I’ve never been to the East Coast, but I love the style,” Betsy says. She spent a lot of time scouring through books and magazines looking at pictures of colonial homes. 

Their porches—a darling front porch and a screened-in porch on the side of the house—have become sweet oases. In the mornings, Mike and Betsy sip their coffee on the screened porch where they can see the sunrise and in the evenings, they unwind on the front porch. Both porches are adorned with greenery and the flowers of the season.

The Schaffitzel family includes six children, with three currently in the school-aged range receiving homeschooling. “The kids utilize that side porch a lot for school,” Betsy says. When the weather is nice, the kids enjoy the fresh air on the porch while learning from their tutor.

From birthday parties to Fourth of July parties to dinner parties, the Schaffitzels are natural hosts. They use the side porch to entertain guests, and it also leads to a beautiful pool—a popular spot during the summer.

Betsy took style inspiration for the porches from Schaffitzel’s Flowers (1771 E. Atlantic St., Springfield), the greenhouse her mother-in-law, Barbara, owns and Mike manages and operates with his brother. The cushions on their outdoor furniture feature black and white stripes. “They were inspired by our black and white awnings at the flower shop,” Betsy says. Their entire family and many friends helped with the house, Barbara helped her stain and paint the entire house, and a lot of the house was built by Mike. “He built all the trim inside, he did all the wiring inside, and he laid all the flooring in the whole house,” Betsy says. “It’s kind of a labor of love.”