Good morning, friends!
The beautiful warm weather we’ve been having has got us outside again…today we have a few small DIY projects that you can do in your backyard. Like most of you, we had an ordinary little suburban backyard that was somewhat… ordinary and sad. If you’ve watched our recent DIY patio projects trailer, you’ve seen that the biggest change we made was building a custom tree bench. Not only did the tree bench add more seating, it gave the backyard a beautiful garden-like feel.
As most projects go, one thing usually leads to another, and we’ve continued to improve the bones of the yard and patio. With two sides of the yard newly fenced and freshly stained, the third side fence looked tired and sad.
You can see the difference in the rich chocolate brown color of the new stained fence compared to the old, large, weathered fence. Although we would love to replace an old fence that is not in the budget, we will follow one of our mottos: “Good, Better, Better.” In this case, we are doing better. Restoring this old fence and protecting it with paint to match the rest of the fence is the best option at the present time.
The first step in fence restoration is to remove grayscale, which is a layer of mildew that has built up on the fence. Using the sprayer, Matt used a simple mixture of bleach and water to kill the mildew. The result is amazing because the fence looks much newer! During this step of the process, we also decided to add a trellis to one panel for vertical farming. We then colored the fence and trellis the same color as the fence and tree seat. By carrying this color across the entire yard it appears larger and unified.
We also decided to buy the sturdier trellis from the hardware store instead of the less expensive trellis since we could reuse it in the future when the fence was replaced. Besides being a practical addition, I love the texture that a trellis provides!
Here the fence and trellis are stained. This is quite a transformation! The dark spot visually recedes, making the yard appear larger, plus it provides a great backdrop for plants. I also think the dark color adds a little drama and formality to the feel of the courtyard.
Here’s a shot of the fence after the whitewash treatment…
Here is the fence after staining it. I love the depth and formality it adds to the yard! You can also see how the fountain and flowers stand out so beautifully against the dark brown. This transformation has me dreaming of making this bed out next spring…so many possibilities!
We also upgraded the fence posts with custom caps to match the fence. We then extended the trellis across more of the fence to accommodate our squash plants. And they really benefited from the extra trellis!
These projects often have a ripple effect and now that stump has to go!
We were getting better (and not better) with the second big project we tackled. Our patio is a mixture of concrete, cobblestone, pavers from different owners, and slab leaks over the years. While we would like to replace all the paved areas with flagstone which is not financially possible at the moment, so we decided to unify the different concrete colors with the concrete stain.
You can see the painter’s tape Matt used before cutting the edges and taping off the stain. We chose the color “High Tea” by Sherwin Williams. It is a warm brown paste color with a hint of green. I chose a medium-warm neutral color for two reasons. Firstly, all other colors are warm based. Secondly, using a slightly darker color can anchor the space and hide dirt.
Another practical and beautiful project is sanding and painting the top of the buffet. This sideboard is often used for DIY projects so the top has taken a beating.
It’s nice to have a fresh coat of paint on things! Once I get the brush in my hand, it’s hard to stop…
Also, since it is difficult to move and clean behind the buffet, we decided to put it on industrial wheels. The wheels will help keep your porch clean, but will also be useful for entertaining and doing projects.
We really enjoy the functionality and better transformation of the “bones” in our backyard and yard! Every year this space becomes more useful and enjoyable. I’m already excited about what next year may hold! What types of projects are you tackling this season?
