Backyard Before and After!

I'm really excited to share my first before and after on this blog! This project is actually my own backyard. Redoing the backyard was always something we wanted to do from the moment we saw this house. We absolutely fell in love with the porch and could totally see ourselves entertaining out there (which we do frequently), but the orange paint color on the fence and porch and the patchy grass had to go! It was a lot of really hardwork, and we still have paint touch ups to do, but well worth it. I can't even describe to you how different it feels in person and has truly transformed into a very Zen space for me and my husband. So here are the Befores:

What we did:
1. Tilled the whole backyard to get rid of all the patchy grass and leftover sand from previous owner
2. Layed out metal edging for our new grass island, planted St. Augustine sod
3. Got 15,000 lbs. of med. sized pea gravel (yes you heard me!) for the dry scaping
4. Gathered a bunch of brown sandstone stepping stones from a friend's land out in Llano (for free!)
5. Powerwashed the fence and porch.
6. Painted the fence a dark chocolate brown color (Valspar "Deep Earth" flat finish, Duramax for exterior)
7. Painted the porch to match the exterior trim (semi gloss finish for exterior)
8. Painted porch floor the same as the fence.
9. Created a storage area with the left over brick and stone squares in a cool design.
10. We did ALL the work :)

And the Afters!

I do have to give credit where credit is due. My husband and I knew we wanted some type of path with a planting area around the tree, and new grass. A friend of mine, Robby Lee, who has experience in Landscaping Design, stepped in and told us how to bring our ideas to the next level by creating a grass island with a dry bed surrounding it. It really breaks up the rectilinear shape of the backyard and adds some more organic lines. I loved the idea of the rocks surround the grass because it's easy maintenance and it gives a more modern feel to the landscaping.

Things to come:

1. Plants! Especially a Red Bud tree in the empty corner.
2. Furniture and outdoor fabrics, reupholster dining chairs
3. Outdoor lighting