I think sometimes this is just how things go when you are updating your home: one small change leads to another and another and then all of a sudden, you’re knee deep into a brand new look! (Whoops) And this is essentially what’s happened with our back garden this year. We’d really not intended on doing anything major but after the builders left the area in front of our small extension pretty much obliterated, we realised we needed to address the situation in time for the warmest months of the summer.
I already talked about how we decided to create a brand new deck that sits about halfway down our garden and create a new patio right in front of where the kitchen will be going (you can catch up here) and once that was done, I realised we needed a few more things to fill the space. In our previous home, the garden was easily only a third of the size of this one and so creating different zones in such a large space became my priority.
Anyway, cutting to the chase… here’s what that part of the garden is looking like now and I’ll chat through the changes and additions!
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Incredibly, within days of realising we’d really need some additional furniture, accessories and plants, the lovely folks at MADE got in touch with me to see if we needed anything for our garden this year. Don’t get me wrong, here. I know how incredibly fortunate I am to be able to work with brands that allow me to see my dreams into reality and if you have been reading my blog for any length of time, you’ll know I’ve been a fan of the brand for a really long time. The timing really could not have been more perfect and I jumped at the chance to work with them again.
I ended up mixing and matching their items with things I already had and purchased other items as well to create a really lovely spot for relaxing on our new deck. As I shared in my mood board post, I wanted to carry the colour scheme of the house outside as well so as you can see, peaches, pinks and greens are the prominent shades. I really think it makes the outside feel more cohesive with the inside and just feels like an extension of my own style.
The sofa, coffee table and chairs are ones I’d had for a few years (you might remember them from our old garden) and they are all still going strong but I added in layers of accessories to create more of a living-room-outside look. Cushions and throws soften everything and I purchased that gorgeous pink rug from Rugseller.
I only realised once I’d put it down that I’d created a little geometric triangle theme between the table, the rug and the cushions. I can assure you that was just a happy accident but it all works so nicely together. The pink and mustard geometric cushions and the pink throw are both from MADE.
The planters are all from MADE and in the month or so since I’ve planted everything, it’s all thrived rather nicely in this spot. Big bouncy hydrangea, a little bay tree (which I’m hoping will get bigger over time to create some height here) and that raised planter create such a cute little vignette here. I have to say I am SUPER proud of my little herb garden which includes chives, thyme and lemon balm – it’s utterly thriving.
A little tip I learned recently: plant up lavender amongst your herbs. Not only does it give it a bit of extra colour and scent, but they also keep away the slugs!
I’m so in love with these terrazzo planters in my most favourite shade of peachy-salmon-pink. Yum.
To the right of the sofa, I decided to purchase that little teal metal table from Maisons Du Monde just for an added touch of contrast. The little cactus was bought from George at Asda – when I bought it online, I thought it was a lot bigger! Ha! So I popped it here just as a little accessory.
I also purchased a couple of shepherds hooks as I wanted to hang a string of festoon lighting in this spot. The hooks are the tallest I could find anywhere and they are from Charlies which I later found out is a company that’s based locally here in Shropshire. The festoon lights are from Lights4Fun and they work on solar power so while they aren’t bright, they do add a lovely little twinkle in the evenings.
In the tree, I strung up some solar lanterns (also from Lights4Fun) and I purchased a windchime from my local Wyevale Garden Centres. I’ve never been a huge fan of the really high-pitched tinny windchimes but this one is huge and creates the most wonderful calming dulcet tones when the wind blows. I love it – it makes me just feel so relaxed!
Moving to the back of the garden, we created another little seating area – this spot gets the sun first thing in the morning so it’s perfect for a morning cuppa and its the first area that gets shade in the evenings.
I purchased the rattan bistro set from Alfresia and added a little raised firepit that was graciously gifted to me from Charlies.
I love that the firepit is really easy to move around and it’s ‘pre-rusted’ which gives it that lovely warm amber colour. At night, we throw some logs in and with the little twinkling festoon lights in the tree, it’s just the nicest spot to sit with a cold beer.
Yes, of course, Meisha had to get in on the action!
I’m considering the idea of creating a little quarter circle in this corner of the garden with stone tiles at some point in the future but for now, it’s just a lovely little spot as it is.
Finally, the patio area right in front of the kitchen extension has been completed but I’m only showing a couple of pictures here because you really must see this gorgeous dining set that was gifted by MADE!
I shared this on Instagram so it was shot on a different day to the rest of the pictures you see here but I’m so happy with it. I swear I keep going outside to admire it because it’s so perfect for this space and was exactly what I was looking for to fit this spot.
It comfortably seats 8 but we’ve mostly been just sprawling out on it for now in the evenings and enjoying our dinners alfresco!
The reason I’m not sharing more of this specific area is simply that it’s not yet done! The back of the house directly to the right of the picture is scheduled to be painted soon, the bed directly in front of the house desperately needs addressing and there’s still a huge pile of soil and aggregate to the left of this shot! Ha! #keepingitreal
We are hoping to build a large raised planter in the next couple of weeks to address at least part of the issue and the painter is scheduled for July. I would also love a rug in this spot as well as some outdoor lighting (once we have our outdoor plug sockets installed). So once I can check some of these jobs off the list, I promise to share more!
Of course, everyone likes a bit of a before and after, right?
Here’s what this area of the garden looked like just 6 weeks ago!! Ack!!
And this is what it looks like now with the bright sunshine on it! Pretty nice transformation, don’t you think?
I’m really happy with how the garden has been transformed and I just wanted to thank MADE for providing the dining set, planters and some of the textiles, Charlies for the fire pit and Wyevale Garden Centres who gave me a voucher to purchase some of the plants here. I couldn’t share things like this without these wonderful brands supporting me so please do go give them a visit if you’re updating your garden this year.
So now, it’s your turn! What do you think of the garden transformation? Have you been updating your garden this year too? If so, let me know what you’ve done! You know I love hearing from you! :)
Disclaimer: This is not a paid-for post and has not been sponsored but gifted items have been provided in exchange for coverage. As always, I only work with brands I love and would be happy to recommend. Thanks for supporting the brands that support Swoon Worthy.
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UPDATE! I had so many questions in the comments along the lines of “What do you do when it rains?” so I figured I’d update the post to answer!
We’ve had pretty nice weather the last week and that’s set to continue over the next 10 or so days so everything will pretty much stay out! No rain? No problem.
Light rain showers: We have an outhouse attached to the house which we use for storage (it’s better ventilated and insulated than the shed) so if it’s just a few showers, the (non-outdoor) cushions and throws will go in there. All the other sofa cushions and the rug are perfectly fine with light showers and dry quickly.
Heavy rain showers: If we’re getting heavy rain for a few days, we’ll also put all the sofa cushions in the outhouse. It takes us about 2 minutes to gather them up and they are fine to be stored in there until the sun comes back out! The outdoor rug is fine getting wet and is made for all weathers.
Over winter: Everything comes in the house to be stored through winter. I’ll use the non-outdoor cushions and throws in my home (or stored in a cupboard), the sofa cushions are stored underneath both our own bed & the guestroom bed or stored in the loft and the rug will get rolled up and stored in the outhouse. The furniture frames all just get covered with furniture covers!
Hope that helps! :)
It just looks amazing! I love the way it’s styled – perfect for summer. I love all the colours!!! Fantastic job.
Thank you so much lovely! xxx
This is such an amazing transformation. Do you fancy coming to help me with my garden?? It’s beyond hope I think.
Hahaha! We still have work to do on ours!! But hey once that’s done, I’ll be straight over! ;) xxx
It looks stunning! Such a difference. I love the colour scheme and the festoon lights too. I have done MADE furniture arriving for outdoors soon and after seeing how good all yours looks, I cannot wait now! X
I love the old wooden sofa you have. can i ask where you bought it? x
Ahh thanks and yes, of course! It’s from West Elm a few years ago :) xx
It looks absolutely stunning! What a wonderful place to relax and enjoy the summer.
Thank you so much lovely! We’re definitely making the best of it while the weather is decent :) xxx
I’ve been eying up an outdoor sofa for a while now, however I have concerns about how it will keep over the winter months – how do you store it? I have no space to bring the cushions etc inside so I’ve quite a dilemma regarding how things are going to withstand the dreaded British winter!
I will say it’s definitely worth getting – I LOVE our sofas as it makes relaxing outdoors so much nicer. As for the ‘what do you do in rain/winter’, I’ve updated the post to answer the question at the end as lots of people asked the same thing ;) xx
I really love the terrazzo planters and the colour of the hydrangea is to die for!
Thank you so much Jayne! The terrazzo planters are my favourites :) xxx
Seems like the pets are already a fan! It looks amazing Kimberly, and I love the little pink stone planter.
Haha! They couldn’t help get involved with the photoshoot as per normal! xxx
It’s so pretty that I can’t stop wondering, how do you take care of it all when it rains?! Very pretty and cozy! Hugs :)
Aww thank you Laura! As for the ‘what do you do in rain/winter’, I’ve updated the post to answer the question at the end as lots of people asked the same thing ;) xxx
Amazing space, and the furry children add the perfect touch. It’s beautiful and relaxing, a lovely place to lay back and read your novel while sipping your favorite wine.
Thank you so much Elena! We’re out here all the time now, taking advantage while the weather allows it! :) xxx
It looks lovely, I’m very envious!
Where do you store all those cushions when it rains, and during the winter?
Thank you lovely! As for the ‘what do you do in rain/winter’, I’ve updated the post to answer the question at the end as lots of people asked the same thing ;) xxx
Thanks for the update! We have a shed, that’s crammed full, and no room in the house for something like the sofa cushions. The underbed area is already being used for storage of other stuff, haha!
Mind you, your house is quite a bit bigger than ours!
To be honest, in our previous home, we probably wouldn’t have had the room for quite so many cushions either! Doing a massive clearout before we move definitely helped :D xxx
It’s so lovely and you’re so fortunate to have found your home with this amazing garden space to go with it. Outdoor space is so important when winters are long and summers are short.
We’ve had so much rain here in the MIdwest US this spring and early summer that my garden – and the weeds – have all gone crazy – and the mosquitoes and bugs are rampant. I’m actually looking forward to some of the dry heat of summer to even things out and allow me to get some much needed gardening done. My tomatoes and peppers and herbs are finally growing instead of drowning so I guess there is some hope.
I purchased a couple new deck chairs and would love to have an outdoor sofa with cushions, but that will have to be in another years’ budget, I’m afraid.
Thank you for posting your lovely garden. I’m so jealous.
Oh my goodness, I remember how bad the mosquitos were when I lived in Pennsylvania! Mid-summer was just the worst for pests… funny we don’t really get that too much here thankfully! As you said, at least with all the humidity, the plants are thriving ;) Hope the weather dries a bit so you can enjoy your outdoors! xxx
It all looks gorgeous and very inviting but I have the same question as a few others – where do you store your cushions and throws when it rains? I find this is always a tricky problem in this country. You can merchandise your seating areas until they are instagram worthy but virtually every night you have to pack it all up again!
It does look lovely though – you’ve done a great job especially with all the other extension plans you must be dealing with.
Thank you so much! Oh, we definitely don’t pack it all up every night! #aintnobodygottimeforthat but as for the ‘what do you do in rain/winter’, I’ve updated the post to answer the question at the end as lots of people asked the same thing ;) xxxx
As usual, absolutely gorgeous!
Aww, thank you Anna!! :) xxx
Beautiful job Kimberly! It’s all so gorgeous.. Enjoy it all..
Cheers
Marie
Wow 😮
Very envious. We’ve now got a bigger garden and at the moment just trying to get the jungle that it is under control first 🙊
Beautiful! I’m obsessed with that bistro set – I usually hate bistro sets because they are so upright and spindly looking. But I love that slouchy one – it actually looks comfortable!
It might be a little bit late now, but a good tip for the lavender is to keep the roots in a separate pot when you plant it. Lavender is super aggressive and will take over everything you plant it with if you don’t keep it contained. The advice I got was to move it to a small terracotta pot and then put that into the soil with the other plants, making sure to leave a little bit of the lip above “ground level”.
Hopefully that makes sense! The garden looks incredible, just getting caught up on everything and it’s looking fab!