patio-makeover

Patio Season {small updates}

I love that the weather is warming up! We have a patio off of the back of the house which we utilize as an outdoor room in the spring, summer and fall. We spend a lot of time in this space, weather permitting. It’s not a pretty sight by the time winter ends. Blah! The Lowe’s Creative Ideas challenge this month is outdoor mini-makeovers. Perfect timing!

patio update

Trip down memory lane: When we purchased this house, we installed two sets of French doors. There were concrete sidewalks with ramps to the old ‘single’ doors. When we bought the house:

house-before

A few years ago, we installed a concrete patio

concrete-before-after

but we never replaced the siding where the old ramps were located. (I also address the dirty concrete. Keep reading!)

missing-siding

I headed to Lowe’s with iphone pictures and measurements. The Lowe’s associates were super helpful in directing me to the siding supplies, advising what I’d need: a “J-channel” to match up/attach the vinyl siding. They even provided tin snips and a tape measure so I could cut it to fit in my vehicle.

j-channel

Installing the J-channels was easy, just nail into place. Then we just  a close-matching piece of vinyl siding (“heather”, also available at Lowe’s) and snapped it into place.

installing-vinyl-siding

Finally! No more embarrassing eye sore of missing siding…it’s those little things that really bother the home owner more than anyone else, ya know and one that is so surprisingly easy and cheap, I’m wondering why we put it off. Hopefully with some age, it will blend in even better.

before-after-siding-fix

I moved all of the furniture and gave the concrete a good scrubbing (water + Krud Kutter). It cleaned off the surface dirt and mildew but not rust or grease. However, it looks a much brighter!

scrubbing-patio

I used spray paint to freshen up some existing decorative accents, planters and a ‘grill cart’ and added some colorful flowers to planters and window boxes.

patio-accessory-update

Some new things available at Lowe’s:

Outdoor area rug defines the cozy seating area…

patio-makeover

Love this umbrella candelabra (misted with Rustoleum’s “Lagoon” spray paint to match other accents) and beautiful fat hanging flower baskets…

umbrella-candle-holder

The sun sets on the other side of the house. Sometimes evenings are chilly. This wood burning firepit is perfect for a little heat (and roasting marshmallows)…

firepit

 

Cutest decorative owl candle holder…

owl-candle-holder

When it’s warm and not raining, I start my day with a cup of tea here. When we entertain small groups and it’s warm, this is the party location…lots of family dinners/cookouts and since it’s right off the kitchen, hosting and clean up are super convenient. It’s also where we enter the house. Now it’s visitor-worthy, pretty and relaxing. C’mon over!

patio-before-after

 

BEFORE

patio-before

AFTER

patio-makeover

More pics…

patio-flowers

cocorosie

 

patio-makeover

patio-makeover

Next up for this space:

  • rearranging some of the furniture another time or two
  • pallet herb garden
  • canopied swing bling
  • patio pet bed
  • raised flower bed
  • grape arbor/gazebo path/patio is on the DIY list again (maybe this year?!)

Free Standing Pallet Herb Garden:

free-standing-vertical-pallet-herb-garden

Patio Swing Makeover:

how to add curtains to a patio swing

 

Sharing at Project Inspired.

See more fun DIY ideas at Lowe’s Creative Ideas, follow Lowe’s on Instagram, Pinterest and sign up for the Creative Ideas magazine and app!

Spring 13 Blogger Badge Subscribe Banner Version

*Disclaimer: As a member of the Lowe’s Creative Ideas Creators and Influencers network, I received a Lowe’s gift card to complete this project for a mini outdoor makeover challenge, however the tutorial images, instructions and opinions are my own. 

30 thoughts on “Patio Season {small updates}

click to read what friends are saying...


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.