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The back yard seemed to take FOREVER. Mostly because I only budgeted $500 for front and back landscaping before the house purchase and the initial interior budget had been blown in about a year. (Click "Read More" to continue...)
The yard had pretty much been left to its own devices for about 30 years, which meant is was REALLY overgrown with ivy (yuck for many reasons) and a lot of other greenery that wasn't very pretty and took up a lot of precious real estate.
The first step was clearing out the overgrowth and removing the tree ring in the yard. Then out came the paving stones and brick path. The gas BBQ grill and window bars came off too. I hid the storage mess in the greenhouse with a bit of frosted spray paint on the windows and doors. The stone wall was tuckpointed. Gutters were added, the French doors installed, a new security door built and the new electrical panel installed to support the upgraded HVAC system.
Then I was finally able to design the yard so that it had three designated and very useful areas: 1. Some artificial turf so we could enjoy playing with our daughter, 2. A fire pit area to enjoy the desert nights, and 3. A large patio where we could set up at least three Octoberfest-style tables.
From there, we rented some machinery from Home Depot to level out the yard ourselves and found a local landscape company to help us turn my design into reality. My husband designed, built and installed the fence (with a bit of help from my dad.) Once it was all completed, a bit of café lighting really made the space usable and beautiful at any hour of the day.
If we had a bit more time before moving, I would have LOVED to hire my local artist friend to paint a mosaic on the greenhouse, but alas, we moved before I could get that project in the works. I also kick myself for not painting the French door the same beautiful color as the back security door (why I didn't, I couldn't tell you.)
Although it was a very small and narrow space to work with, I think we accomplished a huge transformation. I know we sure enjoyed our time out there!
Final Budget:
$3,950 - New patio slab, rock, and turf
$900 - Fence materials (no labor)
$175 - Home Depot earth mover rental
$450 - Wall tuckpointing
$500 - Misc. supplies and materials
_________
$5,975 Total
The first step was clearing out the overgrowth and removing the tree ring in the yard. Then out came the paving stones and brick path. The gas BBQ grill and window bars came off too. I hid the storage mess in the greenhouse with a bit of frosted spray paint on the windows and doors. The stone wall was tuckpointed. Gutters were added, the French doors installed, a new security door built and the new electrical panel installed to support the upgraded HVAC system.
Then I was finally able to design the yard so that it had three designated and very useful areas: 1. Some artificial turf so we could enjoy playing with our daughter, 2. A fire pit area to enjoy the desert nights, and 3. A large patio where we could set up at least three Octoberfest-style tables.
From there, we rented some machinery from Home Depot to level out the yard ourselves and found a local landscape company to help us turn my design into reality. My husband designed, built and installed the fence (with a bit of help from my dad.) Once it was all completed, a bit of café lighting really made the space usable and beautiful at any hour of the day.
If we had a bit more time before moving, I would have LOVED to hire my local artist friend to paint a mosaic on the greenhouse, but alas, we moved before I could get that project in the works. I also kick myself for not painting the French door the same beautiful color as the back security door (why I didn't, I couldn't tell you.)
Although it was a very small and narrow space to work with, I think we accomplished a huge transformation. I know we sure enjoyed our time out there!
Final Budget:
$3,950 - New patio slab, rock, and turf
$900 - Fence materials (no labor)
$175 - Home Depot earth mover rental
$450 - Wall tuckpointing
$500 - Misc. supplies and materials
_________
$5,975 Total
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