OUR BACKYARD PATIO MAKEOVER REVEAL : PART TWO

It’s amazing how the little details can finish off any space. Sometimes just changing or adding the smallest things can elevate the look of something so much, and you wonder why you waited so long to do it! This past June, we shared our patio makeover that completely transformed the way we use our yard (see it here)..today I’m sharing Part 2 of our backyard makeover reveal. When I first shared this space, I talked about our new deck, and that we’d be staining it grey and featuring it as part of this second reveal. Sometimes, things just don’t go as planned…our Summer has been a very cool and rainy one, leaving no time for the new wood to dry, and even less time to stain it. So today I’m focusing on our new shutters and window boxes that we added. Have a look and tell me what you think in the comments below, I always love to hear from you!Taking a look at the back of our home (it’s not completely visible in these photos), you can see that it’s fairly simple, with limited detailing. Much less than that on the front of our home, which has a mix of siding and stone as well as darker grey tones in the peaks, and black shutters on the windows.
Sometimes when you build a home, there are so many things happening at once, and so many details you need to cover, that certain things get overlooked. That’s what happened here…choosing all of the finishing details like shutters and window trim, you tend to figure they’ll be applied to all of the windows.
We were a little surprised to find out after the exterior had been finished, that the back and sides of the house didn’t include small details like thicker white trim around the windows (which was an upgrade we missed!), leaving it somewhat plain and lacklustre. So, now that we’re finally focusing on this space, we set out to build and add shutters and window boxes to the two rear windows that face the back directly, as well as the windows on the side of the house, and back bedroom windows (those are to come a little later). In the below images, you can get a glimpse of what the windows looked like beforehand, when we first revealed our patio. We love it out here so much, and have spent as much time as possible out here this Summer. Living in a northern climate, our days spent outdoors are limited, so we try to soak it all in as much as possible! You can see one of my favorite entertaining posts in this space here.And here it is with the shutters and window boxes we built. The difference is pretty amazing. We made these ourselves, using cedar planks with applied molding to create the panelling. The boxes are very simple boxes, also with trim added to the top and bottom for some added character. We made them in the same style as the shutters on the front facade, and the boxes are a clean and simple design.We painted them using Canadian Tire Premier Exterior paint in midnight, in a semi-gloss finish.

GET THE LOOK OF OUR PATIO :

Here’s a look at the front of our home, you can see that our shutters here need a fresh coat of paint too…add that to the list for next year ;) We also plan to add window boxes on the kids’ bedrooms (on the far left side of the house), as well as the far right garage window. It’s going to make a big difference on the exterior of our home, and I can’t wait to get it all done! I know you may think the way it looks is fine already – and don’t get me wrong, we love it, but these small details will bring a lot of added character!I realize we’re very fortunate, since we do so much of the work ourselves in our home, and that it’s a little easier for us than many people. My hubby can build a lot of things and he’s pretty good at it, I’m good at dreaming up the vision ;) I can tell you though, it’s been many years of trial and error when it comes to taking on projects like this. A lot of learning and making mistakes along the way!Try to imagine if you can, the two left windows and the far right window – all which have only siding and no stone – will have the added window boxes by next Summer, or later this Fall if I can get my way!  It will add even more character and detail to our home, and help elevate the overall finished look. Plus, my sad hydrangeas won’t be so lonely looking anymore…gardening is really not my thing if you hadn’t noticed! I like to plant, leave it, and hope that it survives!

GET THE LOOK OF OUR FRONT PORCH :

On this side of the patio, we want to eventually add another deck, excatly the same as the one we built this year on the opposite side.The stairs and deck will all be stained a medium grey, with white risers…and we’re also doing the same on the side entrance of our home…there are still a lot of those finishing details we need get to, and when it’s all finished next year (or sooner!), I’ll be sharing it here with you! Rome wasn’t built in a day, right?! I hope you enjoyed these updates and I can’t wait to come back and share the rest with you! xo

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