10/20/13

Some Fall in the Backyard!

Hey everyone!  I'm sharing an area of our home today that I don't show too often, because it still needs a lot of work.  But, oh well, it is what it is and that is our patio and backyard.  The Man wants to build an outdoor kitchen which will be spendy, so we don't want to do too many things that might have to be re-done when that project happens.  The covered patio area is quite big and the uncovered area is huge and is completely usable the way it is, and that's how it will be for awhile.  So, all that being said, here is what we have.

The covered patio sits between the family room (behind me in this photo) & our master bedroom (the tall door goes into our bedroom).  The two big windows across the back are in our 
sitting-dining room area.
This shows about 1/2 of the space.  We have an overhead fan/light that needs to be installed, but we haven't found what we want at the right price to replace the wall-mounted fixtures.  There has even been talk of turning this into a sunroom, but that's another spendy project.....sigh.



A big rug for this space would be nice, but.......this is Arizona, land of haboobs and creepy crawlies that would love to hang out under a rug!  Trust me, those little scatter rugs get extremely dirty, so I can only imagine what a large rug would look like.

The two lamps are many years old and used to reside in our sunroom at our previous home.  During the summer, I simply remove the shades and store them inside.  The fridge had been in The Man's office and has been quite useful here on the patio.  It will eventually be incorporated into the 
outdoor kitchen -- maybe.....lol!

I like adding some seasonal items that we can enjoy from inside as well as outside.

I made this chalkboard a couple of weeks ago just for this space.  I'm no artist, but I really
do like the way it turned out.  It was a "Zero Dollar" project -- had an old frame, paint from the front porch bench, chalkboard paint from another project & a piece of plywood that The Man cut and fitted into the frame.

This little glider is about twenty years old & is on its 4th set of cushions.  I like to add new seasonal  pillow covers to freshen things up.  The orange throw is an old stadium blanket from college days at Oregon State University -- GO BEAVERS!  Yes, OSU is home to The Beavers who trounced Cal State on Saturday -- just sayin'!


The view from the covered area out to the open area and where we spend most of our outdoor time.

Love these adirondacks -- this is a favorite spot for early morning coffee or late afternoon wine.

Haven't had an opportunity to use the fire pit yet this season.

I love how these mums look in my Talavera pot!

I like having my herb pot here where it's convenient to the kitchen.  These succulents are the only ones that survived our summer.  I plan to line the old willow basket with coconut liners and fill the space with these succulents and several more varieties.

Another potted mum -- I just love mums, don't you?

Well, that's a wrap for this time.  I've been tweaking a bit inside to incorporate a few Halloween items in with my Fall decor, and will be sharing a post soon.  Hope y'all have been having a wonderful weekend.  We had a lovely Saturday which included a movie date and lunch out.  We saw
"Captain Phillips," with Tom Hanks -- VERY good, and I think I smell another Oscar for Mr. Hanks!

Thanks so much for stopping by.  You are always welcome in my home!

I love to party with these fine bloggers:

Sunday
The Tablescaper at The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sundays
Karen at Sew Many Ways for Sew Darn Crafty

Monday
Kathy at Creative Home Expressions for Creative Home & Garden Hop
Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Metamorphosis Monday

Tuesday
Maria Elena at Our Home Away from Home for Tuesdays at Our Home
Mary Beth at Cupcakes and Crinoline for Project Inspired

Wednesday
Karin at The Style Sisters for Centerpiece Wednesday

Thursday
Pamela at From My Front Porch to Yours for Treasure Hunt Thursday
Emily at 52 Mantels for Thursdays Are Your Days

Friday
Kathryn at The Dedicated House for Anything Blue Friday
Amanda at Serenity Now for Weekend Bloggy Reading


17 comments:

  1. I love how welcoming your back patio is! Great job on the frame! TFS

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  2. I love it. We have a similar setup but you have much nicer furniture. Here in NM, we have the dust storms and critters, plus we get snow in winter, so we can't have rugs outside either. Someday I really want to get a retractable awning to cover the patio (the porch has a roof but the patio is open). So many improvements, so little time/money. :)

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  3. Very nice! We want to do an outdoor kitchen too but I don't think it will happen for awhile. I love mums but can never keep them alive.

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  4. It looks nice, Carol! It's funny you should mention outdoor rugs...I bought one for our patio in March, and it's already all moldy and gross. I've never had an outdoor rug go bad that quickly. I'm convinced it was really an indoor rug, sold as an outdoor one. I just ordered one from Ballard, then realized I didn't want to put my new pretty rug on my concrete patio (which was also a little moldy from all the heat and humidity) so we just spent the entire weekend cleaning the patio with bleach and installing pavers over it. :) One thing always leads to another. LOL! At least my new rug will have a pretty home once it arrives. :) Anyway, your mums look gorgeous and that Talavera pot is beautiful! I love your pumpkin pillows too. BTW...my hubby would LOVE an outdoor kitchen too!

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  5. The space looks great, and I love the chalkboard too! An outdoor kitchen would be awesome, but that'll only happen here whenever we get the indoor one done! Can't wait to read about yours.
    Dee :)

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  6. I love your space and there is nothing more enjoyable than a glider on the porch! What fun to be getting an outdoor kitchen, looking forward to seeing more! Hope you'll hop over and share at AMAZE ME MONDAY...
    Blessings,
    Cindy

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  7. Another view from your lovely home Carol! I love everything that I see. The wooden chairs, the minimal decors and of course the creative chalkboard. Have a great week Carol!

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  8. Love the pumpkin pillows Carol. Love Tom Hanks too, glad to hear the movie is good!

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  9. Your outdoor room is fantastic. You could paint a rug on your patio and then you wouldn't have to worry about the creepers. I love your chalkboard! Really adds a pop out there. Where did you get your Halloween quilted cover that sits on your table? It is so cute!

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  10. That's a really nice patio you got there, heh. Hopefully, you've got the right sunroom to complement the view you are getting from this patio. Good day!

    Aldo @ Jacob Sunroom


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  11. You've got a great outdoor space, Carol! I was still working on ours when we moved two years ago. An outdoor kitchen would be great. Keep the inside one from getting the house all hot, which I'm sure you have to deal with in your neck of the woods. I used to cook outside as much as possible in the Summer at our old house just for that reason.

    Thanks for linking up to The Creative Home & Garden hop. : )

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  12. Carol, this post makes me miss our Arizona home! I love your chalkboard project and all the touches of turquoise on your patio. Nice!

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  13. Yep, those Beavers sure did a number on the Golden Bears :( Being a SoCal gal I'm just glad it wasn't USC or UCLA but the Bruins lost as well :( Not a great CA weekend!! How about ASU??? :) Anyway, I like your covered patio area, I have a large back yard but nothing covered, oh how I wish I could fit in a spendy project before next summer!! Soon, we need to meet up!!!

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  14. I just love that Talavera pot! The colors are beautiful! And I am so jealous of your Adirondack chairs! What a lovely space you have :)

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  15. I love the colors you have scattered about on your porch..Thanks for sharing! Sheryl

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Make this a great day!
Carol