It was beyond silly and humiliating to me that the rest of the yard looked like this.
Uneven pavers hard to walk on. A peak of old, rotten teak furniture on the left.
Overgrown everything. Not watered or maintained.
A once pretty space, gone to weeds.
Crazy courtyard. Our yard has three separate courtyards, depending on how you are counting. I could make an argument that it has four. Too much.
Overgrown lavender around rustic (?) fountain.
The bench where pots and orchids go to die.
We decided to bite the bullet and landscape the whole thing consistently with the strip along the back wall. It wasn't cheap, and it wasn't easy.
First we had to pull out an ungodly amount of concrete tile and expensive rock that my husband laid one by painful one into a sand base.
But honestly. All worth it.
Transformed courtyard.
Front of the house.
We got a nice lighted space for BBQ. See how the concrete pad complements the concrete pavers?
And then the fun part is accessorizing. The Preway I have ALWAYS wanted! Freestanding to heat the courtyard. Great party ambiance! And so sculptural.
And a vintage refinished Brown Jordan patio set to complete the picture. We had a cute baby girl shower a few week's ago. I was PROUD to hostess.
And yes, this photo was taken late-January-2015. Sorry East Coast.
And, I also bit the bullet on regular garden maintenance, so that the sorry situation we had on our hands before, will never, ever happen again.
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Everything looks fantastic. Loving all the contrast between materials, yet the flow, brings the eye along to the next "room". I grill all year round, here in north Mississippi....No matter how cold it gets. But I'm going to swipe the light over the grill idea. Thanks and keep up the GREAT blog, Alan.
ReplyDeleteRebecca, it's absolutely gorgeous! I love the rock and concrete. The fountain and the Preway and the patio furniture are just perfect for the space. Joe has sold several Preways, and we keep talking about getting one for ourselves, but so far, it's just been talk, so I have Preway envy!!! :)
ReplyDeleteThe work you've done here is awesome. I love that fireplace, too. Great punch of color to boot. This looks great!
ReplyDeleteWow...so glad I ran into this post. Great job cleaning up the spaces.
ReplyDelete4 courtyards sounds perfect. That oasis around the fountain is my favorite - rock placements, plant masses, everything is just right. The change and way the light captures the rocks, plantings on the space by the stone chimney might be my 2nd favorite spot.
Worth a re-read...and glad you noted doing something well isn't always cheap!
Hi, where did you get the rectangular concrete step stones? We are planning to do our walkway and are looking for step stones (24x12) but just cant seem to source them. Love what you have done!! Looks fabulous.
ReplyDeleteHi, where did you get the rectangular concrete step stones? We are planning to do our walkway and are looking for step stones (24x12) but just cant seem to source them. Love what you have done!! Looks fabulous.
ReplyDelete