When selecting materials for the veranda, wood with a nice grain is highly recommended since it will produce beautiful results and also provide years of pleasurable viewing. Boards can be placed either lengthwise or laterally, but if placed laterally, wide-sectioned wood creates the best effect. Should the eaves be sufficiently deep, tatami matting may even be used. This lends it a more formal air, and turns the veranda into a kind of corridor or even part of the room to which it is contiguous. Care should be taken that this section does not protrude from beneath the eaves because of the danger of the wood rotting or the tatami becoming discolored through long exposure to sunlight. In such cases, bamboo is probably best, although this virtually precludes the use of chairs and tables. Sitting Japanese-style solves this problem, however, since Japanese cushions may be placed on the floor.
When gravel, stone, or tile is used, as in the case when the veranda is not elevated, the section lying in the direct line of raindrops as they drip off the eaves should be changed or cleaned as, otherwise, the rain leaves behind unsightly marks. A material that is washable with water or a light cleanser is best suited to both the veranda and the area beneath.
To complete your veranda, you may want to provide some outside accessories. The Japanese are given a visual clue of the transition from one zone to the other when they are ready to return to the home after, for example, working in the garden. This visual reminder is the large, often interestingly-shaped, stone placed in front of the veranda where shoes are removed. The removal of shoes, as was discussed earlier, determines for the Japanese the difference between interior and exterior. In addition to this stone, one may also provide a stand with washbasin which, in the past, was placed near the toilet located at the end of the veranda. Today, it may be used for washing hands after gardening.
Handrails are more the exception than the rule to effect the open quality of the veranda. Generally speaking, no furniture is placed on the veranda since it can double as a bench to sit on, a table on which to serve refreshments or to lay clothes for men-ding, or an open crib for a baby. Shoes are not worn when the veranda is above ground level.
The extended veranda, variation #2. Referred to in Japanese as the "moon-gazing dais."
An unelevated, receding veranda.
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