The Cutest Little Patio Refresh

black dots pillow // pineapple pillow // green lumbar // watermelon pillow // pouf // umbrella // planters set/3 // bunny planter // doormat // striped rug    

Everyone have a good weekend? If anything, I hope you enjoyed some pretty weather. We did! It was such a welcome change and I really hope we can just stay like this for awhile. I spent time on the porch painting Frances Ann's new dresser, and even though it was work, the fresh air made it just fine. I definitely have outdoor spaces on the mind now, so...

Is this not the cutest little collection to instantly transform your patio! Patio in a box?! I wanted to pull this together for y'all since my porch is headed in a different direction and it's too late to change that. I will share those plans with you all soon! But, I could not resist how darling this entire set is. The little dotted pillows and touches of pineapple? Love, love, love! I love the adorable little bunny because I always add a dash of whimsy in each space to keep things light and fun. He would be so cute to gift with a succulent for Easter or even as a little teacher gift! Add some glossy black pots on tabletops and on the ground with a bright pink begonia for a fresh touch. In my opinion {or in my location} most things like throw pillows only last a season and it is fun to change it up each year. Our weather just takes a toll on outdoor items so prices are always good to keep in mind! 

Fall Freshen Up

I was so excited to have the afternoon yesterday to get some things done in the yard. We still haven't adjusted to the size difference from our last yard, and this one needs quite a bit of maintenance. Once life gets in the way, it's hard to keep it in tip top shape- but Stephen and I both are lovers a nicely kept yard, so it drives us crazy. I bought some fall flowers and a few new evergreen plants for replacing some foundation plants. 

 It makes me so happy to walk out the door and see these bright and happy plants! I'm crossing my fingers these mums will bloom and not be toast in 2 days. And I'm loving the zinnias for fresh cut flowers, my fave! 

Potting the new plants was easy, I spent most of my time pulling weeds and deciding where things would go. This bed {seen below} also holds a rock pond that we are working on getting rid of. Too much maintenance and I don't like the added bonus of frogs, lizards, etc. No thank you! 

I also repotted several plants- an Autumn Fern and this ivy topiary that is still going strong from our rehearsal dinner in 2010! {It was a lot smaller back then} I worry every year it's not going to survive me forgetting to water it or a bug getting on it and taking over. The heart topiaries were on the tables, isn't that best idea? I love that we still have it!

This is another bed that you see when you pull in the driveway, it's my little project. We immediately lined it with boxwoods as a border, and filled in with a few hydrangeas and other old timey plants.

I also get to see it from our kitchen window. Love the view.

I cleaned up the potting bench and kept it real simple with some coleus for now. We are notorious for cluttering it up with yard tools and grilling tools, but I guess that's kinda what its for. 

 And I also added some new plants for the pots on our driveway-snapdragons, violas and dusty miller.

And last but not least, some baby pumpkins for the steps! 

 Three of them, to be exact ;)

It feels SO good to have things freshened up in the yard, before the leaves start falling. We are also looking at replacing more foundation shrubs with plants more our style- boxwoods, some pretty ligustrum etc. We took down some scraggly looking rose vines yesterday and it already is looking so much better! Little by little....

Hope you had a great weekend!

Currently Inspired: Moss for Pavers + Pathways

This past weekend at Lowes I was a little excited over these bright shades of green moss and knew I had to bring home a few to incorporate in our yard. We have several different areas that could benefit from the cheery greens: a round patio {DIY by my husband}, and two different pathways off of our deck. We added a fence to the yard this winter and we also are looking at extending one of those pathways from our deck to the gate of the fence.

Although this is much more formal than our backyard, I really love the design of these stones!

 So perfect next to a pool.

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A storybook garden here...

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Old world charm...

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A quaint little back yard.

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Loving this look...

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And here is guide on how to get moss to grow between pavers, in case you are interested in making your patio pop like me! Hint: add buttermilk! Who would've thought?

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Fall Porching

It's finally quite enjoyable to spend some time outside these days. I hope we get to enjoy cool days for a while before we jump straight to winter! We cleaned up our porch a bit to make it even more enjoyable for fall. The porch tends to collect lots of random items like gloves, plant tags, towels for wiping the dogs feet, random leaves and dirt, bugs, gardening shovels etc. So it's nice to spend a little time cleaning it up and making it fit for entertaining! Which we do so much of these days- haha.

Lantern: Ikea

PS- See our new fence in the back yard!?

Pillow covers: Pottery Barn

I bought these on sale at the end of summer. I simply slipped them over my summer outdoor pillows to save on expense and storage space! I wanted something more neutral with some black to go through winter and these were the ticket.

Blue Herb Pots: Anthropologie 
I also found these on sale at the end of summer, I'm not sure if they are still available in stores. I saved my rosemary from my summer herb pot and it is still going strong. I kept things simple with a few mini pumpkins to add some fall flair.

I spray painted some rims of pots last Spring, as seen on the left. I love the way the clay pots are weathering. I absolutely love coleus, with the bright green and burgundy!

I feel like each year there is a perfect time as to when you plant your fall pots- at least in this kind of climate. It was still really warm when we planted ours in early September, but we kept them watered really well. The mums were planted a little later and didn't bloom out as much as I hoped, like last year. I'm so happy with the other pots though I don't mind at all.

Happy Fall Y'all!

Our Summer Porch

Welcome to our summer porch!

Ahem. I realize we are now approaching fall.

Stephen and I treated ourselves to a new swing and table set for our Anniversary this year. I bought this set locally, but I know they are available in tons of outdoor furniture shops. I wanted a set that didn't require a custom cushion like many of the thick cushions you see at Home Depot, Lowes etc. Since we live at the coast, our cushions may only last one season and those bad boys are way too expensive to replace/recover! These are a box edge set in canvas white. I'm hoping I can squeeze a few seasons out of them. Since these are white, I can always switch up pillows and mix it up for fall!

-the potting bench-

Updated with a starburst mirror and foxtail fern.

I have loved using this to cut flowers all summer!

It's perfect for bringing in vegetables too.

I would like to add some blue and white planters to this scene in the future- but I'm waiting for a good deal.

This is actually a "bistro set" which I like because the chairs are comfortable enough for just hanging around, relaxing with out having to feel like you are sitting in a seat made for a table. But when we do want to eat outside- which we have done many times- it is nice to have the table for two! The table looks smaller in the picture than it really is, we can comfortably fit dinner for two {plus Weeks in the future!} here. I bought the rug last year on Overstock.com. Pillows are all Surya.





This is a mix of a charger {Tuesday Morning}, our everyday dishes {Vietri} and a melamine plate from Target. I think it is the perfect mix for outdoors! For this I just wrapped two paper napkins in each napkin ring- paper is realistic for outdoors, am I right?

-Outdoor String Globe Lights-

Our newest improvement!

We love the lights- Stephen hung them with a simple eye hook.

Come sit a while- and have a glass of chardonnay with me too! 

Outdoor Spaces and Spring Evenings

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Last night when we got home from a wonderful anniversary evening, we continued our celebration on to our screened in porch to finish off the bottle of wine corked from dinner. It was perfect. Having an outdoor space you can relax and enjoy a spring evening is a must in my book. I love the breeze, the fresh air, and in our case little to no bugs thanks to the screen. At our beach house, almost every single night ends up being enjoyed on the porch {even if that means being wrapped up in a blanket if it is chilly}, not in front of the tv or stuck inside. 

Do you spend your evenings outside? 

Happy Wednesday y'all! xo.