I hope you all are having a fabulous weekend!
It has been sunny, hot, and beautiful over here in Washington state! We spent almost the entire weekend outside soaking up the sun and doing lots of things together as a family. It was perfect! We also finished up our patio makeover {on a budget} and I am excited to share it with you today!
It has been sunny, hot, and beautiful over here in Washington state! We spent almost the entire weekend outside soaking up the sun and doing lots of things together as a family. It was perfect! We also finished up our patio makeover {on a budget} and I am excited to share it with you today!
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When we moved into our home about 4 years ago our backyard had absolutely NOTHING in it. Just cement, grass, and a fence. It made for boring and hot summers! This is what our backyard looked like when we moved in….
As you can see, we were in the beginning stages of building a covered patio. At this point you can see there was only grass, cement, and a fence.
This space has come a LONNGGGGG way!
Here is a look at our back yard looking towards the East. It was BARE! Absolutely nothing was out there….crickets….crickets. At this point all we had were the pillars built for our patio cover.
Ok, so then we got to this point. Whew…SHADE! The patio looks OK but we still needed some stone on the pillars and the backyard was still bare and boring, we didn’t have any patio furniture, and it was just sad. But, don’t get me wrong, we were blessed to have shade at this point. I am so proud of my Hubby for building this {with some help from his uncle} because it saved us a TON of money {like $8,000 in savings!}
Then came the landscaping
We did everything ourselves here too, saving us about $4,000!!
Things were starting to come along. We had plants, trees, and bushes going in, curbing being installed, our 10’ x 12’ shed was built, we were installing our stone paver patio in front of the shed, and the stone had been installed on the patio pillars. Next…..was laying rock…ugh this was hard work!
So the backyard sat this way for about a year. It looked good but we had some finishing touches that were missing….like table and chairs to sit on under the covered patio!!
So, this past year we finally purchased a patio set {on a budget} and we are loving it! Here are the details…
Our dining table, chairs and cushions cost $240 total!
I will be sharing details on how I found such a good deal and teach you how to shop like a budget savvy mama too!
We are absolutely in love with our “new” space and feel like it is our own private getaway. The best part is, we did almost all of the work ourselves which not only feels amazing but it saved us a lot of money….we’re talking close to upwards of $10,000! Labor is expensive, especially in landscaping jobs because it is HARD WORK! My advice….do the work where you can based on your comfort and skill level. If you don’t know how to do something…don’t give up! Research tutorials, ask for help, and learn. That is what we did and we wouldn’t change a thing!
Love it Jen! It looks so good!! Great job! We need to hire you and your hubby to come fix ours up!
Thanks, Krysta! We would totally come help you guys out!
Visiting from Tip Me Tuesday! Your patio looks great! Great job!
http://www.retroreduxgallery.com
Thank you so much!!
Love it. Love the stone columns and the little patio around the shed!
Thank you! We are happy with the look of the stone. I’d love to add some to the front of our house….{one day}.
Your yard looks great Jen! Your plants are filling in nicely! Those arborvitaes grow fast!
Isn’t it amazing what a little research and willing to do the work yourself can save?! Not to mention the pride and gratification of a job well done you did yourself. We installed a sprinkler system in our yard this summer. Saved a few thousand dollars. 
We have always done our own landscaping and as many home projects as possible. We need to finish the basement in this house, but my 24 yr old moved back home and took over the basement with all of her belongings.
Thank you, Michelle! Yes, it is amazing what a little hard work can do. We were able to save so much money in many areas of this project by completing it ourselves vs. hiring someone to do the work. I love that you and your Hubby DIY too. Great job on the sprinkler system…I bet that feels good to save lots of $$$!
What an amazing transformation. Absolutely love the stone on the pillars.
And pretty much the whole thing.
Mary
Thank you so much, Mary!!! I appreciate your sweet comments
what a fantastic transformation. And the fact that it was a DIY makes it even better. Good for you, hubby and uncle! I am featuring this in my Weeky Wow’s on Sunday the 5th.
Thank you, Laura! I really appreciate the feature!!!
Amazing!!! You did a great job. We are in the process of doing ours, I can’t wait:). Have a great day!Jen
Thanks, Tricia! I can’t wait to see your final project…I know it will look fabulous!!
that is such a fantastic transformation! great landscaping too!
Thanks, Daniela!!
I’m green with envy! It is fabulous! I really love the rock on the pillars. Is it real or faux? You should both be very proud of yourselves.
Thank you, Jeanette! The pillars are made from real stone…well they are the half stone pieces used for facing houses and pillars like we did. You can find them at the home improvement stores..but I recommend checking a local company {they may give you a better deal}.
Wow, that’s so great!! Love it!
Thanks, Liz!
Jennifer, I am so so happy for your! YOur yard is just stunning… a real haven! And thank you so much for sharing it’s evolution. Lots of planning and thinking and time and sweat… and of course money! And you have such a wonderful and beautiful outdoor living space!
I kept reading and looking at all the great pictures and kept saying WOW… WOW… I am so impressed. Looks like a landscape created this space.
Thank you so much for joining TUTORIAL TIPS AND TIDBITS… your yard makeover is so inspiring!
Wow, thank you, Yvonne! I really appreciate your sweet comment. I love your blog and ideas as well and am so glad we can keep in touch.
That looks amazing! In addition to being able to enjoy it yourself – that will add a TON of value onto your house if/when you sell!
Great job!
Samantha D
Thanks, Samantha! I agree….and hope that we do get the money back that we put into this project. I figure that we still get to enjoy it and it makes such a different for year round outdoor enjoyment. Thanks for stopping by!
It looks awesome! You guys did a great job, I love it.
Anna
Thank you, Anna!!!
Looks beautiful! Was it hard to do the stone work on the pillars? My husband and I would like to do it but not sure how hard of a diy project it would be. Thanks!
Looks beautiful! Was it hard to do the stone work on the pillars? My husband and I would like to do it but not sure how hard of a diy project it would be. Thanks!
Your backyard is beautiful! My husband and I have been wanting to do stone on our pillars as well. Was it a really hard diy project? Thanks so much!
Great price on the dining set! Cant wait to read about it.
Dianawilson 20 (at) aol (dot) com
This is absolutely gorgeous. Gotta ask: What kind of tree is the “droopy” looking one in the corner of one of the cement-lined beds? I looove those trees and have been wanting one in my yard, but I don’t know what to ask for at a nursery, other than to say “You know, those droopyish Christmasey Whoville-like trees?”
This is absolutely gorgeous. Gotta ask: What kind of tree is the “droopy” looking one in the corner of one of the cement-lined beds? I looove those trees and have been wanting one in my yard, but I don’t know what to ask for at a nursery, other than to say “You know, those droopyish Christmasey Whoville-like trees?”
This is gorgeous. Could you tell me what kind of tree the droopy-looking evergreen is? I LOOOVE those trees and have been wanting one for my yard, but I don’t know what to ask for at a nursery other than “one of those droopyish Christmasey Whoville-like trees?”
Thank you all so much! Wow, all of your sweet comments makes the hard work, sweat, and a little tears here and there totally worth it! Ok, to answer a couple questions from the comments above….
@Jeanette- the stone is real and it is a stacked stone that is made for surfacing pillars, siding, etc. We had help with installing it however, I think that this is definitely a project a DIYer could take on with a little research and purchasing the correct products. I may be able to put a post together if people were interested
@Erin- The droopy tree is called an Alaskan Weeping Cedar and they are a great tree to fill a larger space and create year round color and interest. We have two of them at our house…one in the backyard and one in the front. Love them too!!
I was wondering where you got that edging stone from?
Hey Derik! The edging is actually made from cement and paid using a machine. We call it curbing here…what state are you in? Depending on where you are located this option may be available to you. Hope this helps. Thanks for stopping by!
Love it! Would love more info on the patio cover if you could
What a makeover!!! WOW. The pillars are by far my favorite part. Sharing over on my FB today.
What a gorgeous transformation! I can picture all the BBQs already!
Amazing transformation! Would love to see a tutorial on the stone columns.
Love this transformation!!!!
I LOVE your backyard! Did you post where you found the table and chairs? I have been looking for something like that, ie something that will seat 6 (not the typical 4). Also, did you post how you made the patio shade?
Hi Jennifer…
Your curbing looks professional. You two didn’t do THAT, did you? If so, how the heck did you do it?!
Hi Jennifer…
Your curbing looks professional. You two didn’t do THAT, did you? If so, how the heck did you do it?!