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For me, home is a sanctuary where I can be completely myself, relax, unwind, and enjoy my family and friends. These things have never been more true than they are now, during a global pandemic!
We’ve been mostly home since March, and I’m so thankful I had already been planning to redo my patio and entertaining space. Not that there is much entertaining of people outside our family going on — but it doesn’t hurt to have a beautiful place to unwind with my kiddos!
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I’m also daydreaming about the fun dinner parties and events I will hopefully have at my home in the future. I’m such a social butterfly — laughing and spending time with friends really fills my cup — so it’s been truly challenging not to have that outlet during all of this.
I know so many other people are feeling really isolated right now, too! I think it’s a great time to transform our home spaces to make them more comfortable and enjoyable for ourselves should we be spending time in quarantine this Fall/Winter.
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I’m so happy with how my little outdoor oasis turned out at my home, and I wanted to share a look at it with you guys today! There was absolutely nothing back here when we bought the house. The entire stone patio is new (All the stone is from Swenson Granite), as is the furniture, and the breezeway linking the garage to the house. My design goal was for it to feel fresh, but timeless, and for all the furniture to be light and bright but comfortable.
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My absolute favorite feature of the entire reno is the outdoor fireplace! I love lighting a fire at night out here and opening a bottle of wine. I’ve even done S’mores a bunch of times with the kids. The mantle is made out of a hundred year old beam that we took out during our house reno, and on the mantle I display a historic wagon wheel that was found buried deep when we dug for the foundation of the garage.
I love incorporating the history of my home (originally built in the 1800’s!) in its current design to honor the past!
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I’m doing the landscaping little by little, because I couldn’t afford to do a huge structural landscape reno AND all the plants and flowers I wanted to put in, but I did line the stone retaining wall with some hydrangeas. Hydrangeas make me so happy — I love having my coffee out here in the mornings, and listening to the birds!
My long-term goal is to introduce more plantings to the mix. I also want to revamp the lawn next spring! The construction process totally trashed the yard, and it just hasn’t fully recovered yet. I’m doing my research and I hope to have a less patchy lawn next year!
This looks like such a relaxing spot! Are your sofa pillows also from Frontgate? I do not see them on the site but like the look…
Thank you!
The pillows are West Elm!
Very relaxing and inviting oasis right in your yard. Enjoy!!!
I have SO many questions about a White House and black trim. We actually have white siding, white painted brick and I was wondering how you determine what windows to paint all black trim. I see some windows are and some are not, any input would be wonderful!
Those windows and doors are actually steel frame! They’re not painted. We wanted to mix a more modern building style with the historic home.
HELLO!
The black metal lighting outside you back door, where was that from? Thanks!
I actually found those at target.com! I recommend checking them out, and then if you can’t find a steal, my other fave is Urban Electric
Do you happen to know the exterior paint color of your home? Thanks!
Your house is beautiful! I love the modern mix with historic charm. I would love to know what white you chose for the exterior. Was it also Chantilly??
It was already painted on the outside! Not sure the color