My dream was to have a wisteria arbor like this

Isn’t that just beautiful?  My vision was to do it across the concrete walkway here

(See those table and chairs? They rotted and fell apart from the sun.  And the fireplace behind it blew over and shattered.  Such a bummer)

We have a wood bridge that connects the walkway to the bbq area. We put the columns up 4 years ago aded the Costco bbq island and some chairs but that was about the extent of it

 I was dreaming of finishing off the columns over the bbq area by adding  the dark wood beams  like this picture {but no fireplace}

Source

But I think I dream too big.  Because once I got the cost of the engineering, materials and labor it was way more than what we wanted to spend.  So there it sat unfinished for 4 years.  It did not stop us from enjoying the area and having parties, but it was time for me to come up with a plan “b” and get it done.

I decided to go with a wood beam arbor over both areas, and to keep costs down, we used aluminum rather than wood.  I really didn’t want the upkeep of wood, and after seeing the aluminum sample and how it was surprising similar looking to wood beams, I was sold.  The dark wood color in aluminum wasn’t doing it for me, so I went with white.  Not the dream I was envisioning from my inspiration picture, but it was going to be better than what was there.

So the rest of the columns went up over the walkway

And now we finally have the two spaces completed

Even though the white arbors aren’t anything like my inspiration pictures, I still love it!  Once we had the arbor’s up, you can see why it motivated me to faux finish my bbq island. 

All the furniture I have out there right now needs to be moved around or put somewhere else.    I still need to purchase hanging lights and a bigger outdoor table and chairs.  I am thinking  I could still add the wisteria over the walkway and maybe some rustic furniture to achieve a similar look to the inspiration pictures.  But honestly,  I love the new white arbors, and I am so happy it is finally done.

Update. The Apartment Therapy Color Contest is going strong!  I am in first place in the west division.  WOOHOO.  But the competition is fierce!  The numbers change hourly.  It has been exciting and heartfelt to see all my friends & family rallying behind me and drumming up votes.  It is an exciting time I tell ya!  The voting is open until Monday, November 21st.  You can only “fav” once, but any other family member or friends can vote

You can click here to vote. 

And I want to thank you all to have taken the time to vote already!  I really appreciate it.  Cross your fingers I can hold on to that first place, I have big plans for my winnings!

My new arbors is a post from: Cre8tive Designs Inc.

I took the plunge and painted my outdoor bar stools.  Silly me, didn’t take a before picture! But I can tell you, the finish on these bar stools had seen better days, they were brown and fading. At first I was whoa, I might of gone too far.  My intent was to bring the red of the Pottery Barn cushions that I have on my outdoor dining room table.

You can see the cushion on the chair in the background here

I thought when I saw them for the first time looking out my family room window, that maybe I should tone down the red with some glaze. Maybe my taking a chance on red wasn’t the right choice.  Too bold?

But when my family saw them, they loved them and said to keep them the way they are!  No need to convince me to do less work, so they are a keeper.

Plus they go really well with my 4th of July decorations I am putting out.  What do you think, would you take a chance on red?

I took a chance..on red is a post from: Cre8tive Designs Inc.

So to get ready for summer, I started the process of sprucing up my back yard.  First thing on the list was our chaise lounge cushions, they were in dire need of replacement.

I knew it was bad when my husband noticed the fraying ripped cushions and asked me when we were going to get new ones.  He doesn’t usually notice things like that.  {sorry I couldn’t find any before pictures of the old cushions}

I got new replacement cushions on sale from Pottery Barn. They aren’t made for my exact style of lounge chair, a little more narrow than the frame, but they are a huge improvement, so I don’t mind.  

Now I am on the hunt for some replacement cushions for my sitting area by the fireplace.  They are looking kind of drab and boring with the new pop of color on the chaise lounge chairs.  So in the meantime, I added some new throw pillows as a temporary fix.  {also from Pottery Barn}

I need to replace the black outdoor carpet, it is fading and getting frayed on the edges.

And just to tie it all together, I replaced the patio table cushions to match as well.

Overall it is looking pretty good.  Today the sun was shining, the skies were blue, I hope it is a hint of what is soon to come!

{In case you are new to my blog and would like to see more pictures of my yard, you can click on these previous posts I have done here, here, and here.}

Getting ready for summer is a post from: Cre8tive Designs Inc.

Well I guess this guy just didn’t want to leave us, because after being stored for 2 years, surviving the fire, and then again being stored for another 3 years, it finally found a spot, but in our yard. It sits right at the end of our concrete walkway.  Eventually we will have an arbor over this area and it will be the focal point at the end of the path.  So cool!  But the only thing was, it looked funny without a backing.  It looked even worse on the other side of the fence when you drove down our street.  Once again, I turned to my handy husband, and we found this beautiful wood laying around, walnut I think, that was left over from the re-build of our house.  I told him what I wanted and he surpassed my expectations.  He is a keeper..

I envisioned the back to be like an old barn door.  He did a fine job don’t you think?  And once again, it was for free! Just re-purposing stuff from around our house, it is amazing what you find.  I am just debating if I want to stain the wood, or just let the sun naturally age it.  I am going to find an old iron grate and make it into a planter to put inside.  It goes so well with my newly refurbished table and chairs! I am just going to love this area when it is all done.

See what I mean about it being the focal point when you look down the path? It just anchors the space perfectly. I am so excited how this all worked out, it was meant to be. I still need to add some plants and decorative items, but I just couldn’t wait to share it with everyone.  Thought I would give you a view from the area with my cool vintage bike I got awhile back.  It is all starting to come together don’t ya think?

I am linking up to

The Homeless Fireplace is a post from: Cre8tive Designs Inc.

I knew I wanted to paint them white similar to Miss Mustard Seeds, but with just a little more glazing and distressing since they were going to go outside.

I used an outdoor fabric I got from Joann’s for the seat cover.  That was a chore, taking off two layers of fabric on those cushions.  I thought the top fabric was ugly, you should of seen what was underneath it!

I brought out from our storage, an old wine barrel and wood top that had been collecting dust.  Seriously, I purchased this over 4 years ago to go in my wine cellar, but it was too big, and at the time I had no other use for it, so I put it away.    It wasn’t until after I had gotten all the chairs done that I realized the table was too high!  Luckily I have a handy husband, and he painstakingly cut the wine barrel down slat by slat to make it dining table height.   Whew!

The table and chairs are part of a bigger plan though.  This whole area eventually will have 6 columns going down the outside of the concrete area with an iron arbor above it.   We are hiring that portion out, so unfortunately I am on their schedule.  I can’t wait to sip some ice tea and enjoy my new space.  Thanks Miss Mustard Seed!Of course I am linking up to

and my other favorite

Thrift Shop Chairs to Outdoor Seating is a post from: Cre8tive Designs Inc.

When we first built our home, we had solid carved wood doors with an iron transom above the door.  Attached to the transom we had put the letter “N” for our last name.  You can’t really see it in this picture, but this is the only picture I could find that remotely showed the front doors.

As I have mentioned before in previous posts and have put it in my about me section, our home burned in the 2003 Cedar Fires.  This is what was left of our front entry way. {I hate looking at these pictures, or even posting a picture on my blog, but there is a good that comes out of this as you will see at the end of this post}

When we rebuilt our home, we opted not to do the solid carved wood doors.  We went with glass and iron, which now looks like this

Even though we lost everything, some random things did survive.  After the fire, it was demolition and clean up.  One day one of the workers hands me the letter “N” that hung above our door, and wanted to know if I wanted to save it.  I couldn’t believe it!  Of course I said yes! It was a memory of things once had, it was a keeper.  Once we moved back into our house, I still had the “N” but didn’t know what I wanted to do with it.  I laid it in an area in my yard for now, waiting to find that perfect spot.

So this is where is gets good!  After we moved back into our home, I had bought this picture to hang above my outdoor fireplace.  It was a perfect fit.  But after a couple of years, it faded to this weird green. It wasn’t made to be outdoors, I guess this is what happens when you hang an inside picture outside.

Last week the idea finally came to me! {well to be honest, my inspiration came from this post Diana did on her blog  at In My Own Style} I took down this tired old picture, took the picture out of the frame and noticed that this was painted on a pressed wood board, so the back side was perfectly smooth

I got out my mod podge, some fabric I had in my stash and went to work.  I knew I wanted to attach the “N” to the board but I of course don’t have the skills to do that. I went to my reliable source, my husband, the inventor, and my personal handyman.  And of course I wasn’t disappointed!  My wonderful husband securly attached the “N” to the board.  And now look at it! It is a work of art, and for FREE!  Woohoo!

I don’t know how long until the fabric will fade, but it just makes me smile every time I look at it.  The “n” has found finally found a home.

Linking up to

The Letter “N” is a post from: Cre8tive Designs Inc.

It is REALLY windy in this part of my yard, it is a little area that sits on top of a hill.  I mean crazy windy, gust and everything.  Would you believe that this is my second iron gazebo in this spot? Yep,  the first one blew over the hill into pieces!  Seriously, that is how windy it is sometimes.  Luckily, I was able to get another one, and this time we anchored it down in the ground.  I never replaced the patio set that went down the hill along with the gazebo.  I saw this fun green little set at Homegoods  and I knew it was just the right one to brighten up the gazebo, so home it came.  But once I put it in there,  it just wasn’t looking right.  The overall feel of the iron next to the metal table and chairs was too much.  It need to be softened with some fabric.  So it was on to plan “b”, attempt to  slip cover the chairs.

Now this was my first ever slip cover!  I decided to use some linen fabric I had in my stash, I didn’t want to go out buy fabric in case it didn’t turn out.  (that is great confidence huh?) But you know what? It wasn’t half as hard as I thought it would be!  Plus it was an excuse to use my ruffler attachment. Geez I LOVE that thing!   I really like the casual look of my finished slip covers, I wouldn’t change a thing.  I didn’t go all the way down to the bottom of the chair because I thought snakes would love to hid under it.  Yes, we have lots of snakes around here, so I had to take that into consideration.  Time will tell  how long the linen fabric will hold up in the sun and wind.  But now that I know it isn’t that hard to make them, I can always use an outdoor fabric later on when these are worn out.

Oh and the flower boxes are the ones I ordered from Gardeners Supply Company, that I blogged about in my last post here.  So far it has been a week since I put  water in the trough thingy and there still is plenty of water left according to the little gauge.  It works out so perfectly because I am not always in this part of my yard but when I am, it is so nice to see beautiful flowers growing.

The great thing is, if I get tired of sitting in the gazebo I always have this other cute spot on the other side of the grass.  I am thinking I need a small table in between those chairs…maybe a slip covered one!  Watch out, I am on a slip cover roll.

I am linking this to

Slip Covered Patio Chairs is a post from: Cre8tive Designs Inc.

Chair planter is a post from: Cre8tive Designs Inc.