1-4. Create a dining area with a table and chairs.

5-7. A club chair anchors a comfortable spot

8-10. Obscure unattractive views

11. To help cool the room, install a ceiling fan.

Tell us about your design challenge: Find out how

St. Denis has a greenhouse in her back yard that she uses as a solarium. "I love having the extra room, but I haven't been able to figure out just what to do with it," she wrote in an e-mail. The 161/2-by-91/2-foot space is great during the spring and fall because the structure doesn't have heat or air conditioning. But she'd like to use it more often, as a space to read her newspaper and look out into her garden as well as to hold evening cocktail parties.

Replace the floor with cork, which is water-resistant and warm and will soften the space. (The designer suggests Classic Marmol tiles from Natural Cork.) Bring bright colors from the garden into the room through furnishings and fabrics. Create two zones, one for reading and another for entertaining, but keep the areas flexible so the entertaining space can be expanded for larger parties.