Well, it’s been a loooooong time coming! Our outdoor spaces are finally wrapping up and we are THRILLED. The mulching was finished today, and a few minor patio projects are being finished up this week. I’ll show you that as soon as I get it cleaned up, but for now, I’m excited to share our deck space!
Warning: Picture overload. Don’t say I didn’t tell ya. ;)
It started when we decided to do the patio – we knew it was time to restain the deck and get that under control as well. It was looking OH so sad – when we had the deck built six years ago, we made the BIG mistake of staining it immediately after it was built.
The deck builder came by the day after we finished to tell us we weren’t supposed to do that. Which was AWESOME. Pressure treated wood shouldn’t be stained right away. Which would have been AWESOME to know. ;)
Have I mentioned our deck is about 800 square feet? Yes. We spent two whole days staining just to find out we weren’t supposed to do what we just did.
Live and learn. So after all that time, and because we stained before we should have (you should wait at least a few months to stain – now we know), it was in bad shape.
To make a very long story short – we were going to clean, prep and stain the entire thing over again ourselves. That was all fine and dandy until after about five hours of cleaning the railings and wanting to poke my eyes out. And I wasn’t even half way done.
That’s when we realized we had to decide where to dedicate our time – and we decided to hire out. I could have cried I was so happy! Did I mention 800 square feet – and that does not include the railings?
Happy dance.
The stain the company used isn’t what I wanted – at all. I wanted our deep red deck again, but that’s not how it turned out. But after all the hassle and time, I was just thrilled to have the furniture back on the deck and out of our yard:
It’s not at all what I envisioned but now I SO DO NOT CARE. :) It’s done and I’m happy. It is growing on me – I’m good. I’m especially good that we didn’t have to spend another 15 hours doing it ourselves.
See my mongo cabbage in that pic above? I heart them:
Gah…I’m so obsessed with this stuff! I found them at a local nursery (for $7 each)and they are as big as my head! BIGGER. I love these things. And the mums were on clearance at Lowe’s for a buck each – not sure why but I’m not complaining. :)
I don’t show the beast on our deck very often, but we do have a hot tub. It’s not the prettiest thing, but it is pretty darn awesome. We haven’t used it much lately, but it’s all clean now and ready for a nice (WARM) dip!
We moved the retractable pergola over the hot tub and it made that part of the deck look a tad better:
We had the hot tub placed down a bit lower than the deck when we put everything in. We would have made it flush, but it has a stereo system (I know! Fancy schmancy! It doesn’t even work anymore.) that we need access to, so we had to leave it up above the deck a bit.
On to the pretty stuff, shall we? ;)
I showed you our new outdoor table set earlier this summer and it’s held up great so far:
I got the plates from Target a couple summers ago, and the placemats at World Market this summer. I LOVE THEM. You’ll see them again soon. ;)
The mason jars are filled with split peas and LED lights – I’m obsessed with those little jobbies!
But the best spot, our very favorite, it rocks our world, we could sleep out there spot, is the other end of the deck. For about four summers now, hubs has wanted a gazebo – and he got his wish this year. ;) We found one for a steal at Sears earlier this summer:
It was on major clearance and now that we have it, I wish we would have done it four years ago. Every time I tell hubby that, he just smiles the “I told you so” smile. He’s always right…why have I not learned by now??
It feels like a ROOM – it’s also a fun new space to decorate:
And you know that makes me happy. ;)
You can see more about the DIY table in the middle up there here. It’s held up awesome and it’s one of my very favorite things on the entire deck:
LOVE it.
Love those pillows too – the square ones were all on clearance at Lowes. The rectangle ones are actually placemats from World Market:
I love their placemats – the stripe and floral are both the same placemat, but they have the different designs on each side. It’s like two pillows in one – for $4! (To see how how easy it is to make placemat pillows, go here.)
The furniture was a fab find on Craigslist a couple summers ago. The cushions that came with it fell apart (not because I left them out in the snow…cough…), so I grabbed up the brown cushions at Home Depot on clearance – in JUNE!:
I actually like these better than the old ones – they’re simpler and not so poofy. They are a bit rough though, so that takes some getting used to.
One of my other favorite parts of the deck is the candelabra:
It was a Wuslu.com find last year and it started out green:
LOVE.
This shot gives you an idea of how monstrous our deck is:
And now you understand why I was giddy at the thought of NOT staining all of that. ;)
I love looking back – here’s a shot the summer we had it installed – just days after we stained it (grrrrrr…):
Now it feels like we have three separate rooms out there, not to mention the patio.
We are THRILLED. :)
Of course, I love the space at dusk:
But even more when it’s dark:
The gazebo actually has LED lights in the pillars, which are way cool, but the light is a bit harsh. The garden lights are so much softer and prettier. :)
I got the light strands (I used two) at Target last spring, hoping I could figure out a way to use them. I wound them through the gazebo and they offer SO much light (when we want it):
It honestly feels like your inside (but outside) when they are on, it’s so bright. But it’s a warm bright – you know what I mean?
And I love their fun, whimsical vibe. We sit out there and just kind of sigh and look up and count our lucky stars (or light bulbs). ;)
So there you go – enough pics for ya? It’s been a long time coming, and we are so happy that we’ll get to enjoy some cozy fall days and nights out there. And on hot summer days, it’s much cooler under the gazebo, so we’ll be out there even more next summer.
I hope you enjoyed the little deck tour! We honestly couldn’t be more pleased with it. And the patio – well…it’s the cherry on top!! I will be back soon with that!
Wish I could have you all over for an outdoor party. ;) If you’d bring the sangria, I’d be tempted…
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