valentine's day My Big Fat Remodel - Backyard Edition

For those of you that have been reading for awhile, you know that we have been remodeling our house for the last....oh, let's see....going on couple years now (yes...it is a money pit). The interiors are close to being done, save for some issues with a bouncy floor in the kitchen which we are trying to deal with....that is whole story in itself.....and I really don't want to go there.

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I would rather go here! My husband has taken over building our deck on the back of the house. I am sooooo lucky to have a very handy husband. He has been doing such a beautiful job it makes me want to cry for joy.

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He is modeling the pickets after the front porch railings and has copied our 1911 detailing to a tee. It's a long story, but the posts are higher right now than they will be after inspection, so we can match the height to the front of the house (no longer "to code"....shhh!) The wood on the deck is Ipe, AKA Ironwood....which is a rain forest wood like teak, but much harder and is actually fire-rated. It is so dense it will not burn like other woods. You have to be careful to buy it from a source that is certified farmed wood so as not to harm any rain forests. The good thing is, it lasts so much longer than other woods, it is not necessary to replace it for the life of the home.

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Here...close-up of the detailing...primer coat on. Each picket has a piece of molding on each corner....Every time I look at this my husband gets to deposit more coin in the relationship bank.

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Our next challenge: the backyard. I am going to sketch it out for you and post our "vision", perhaps tonight! We are going to stucco the existing concrete block wall on the left and make a water wall there. The back fence may eventually also become a wall with a fireplace. We will hard scape most of this area and have planting beds around the perimeter...a tree in the back next to the fireplace. These "city" homes do not have gigantic yards, but it is plenty for us. We also have a side yard that will get lawn and raised vegetable beds (someday!)

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Our detached garage is on the left here, porch on the right. This will have a path over to the side yard. There will be a gate from the garage to the end of the porch so we can keep the dog in the side yard if necessary. I want to put an arbor with roses over the gate.

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This is looking down the other side of the house where we will have a stepping stone path and alot of shade plantings.

So if any of you out there are garden aficionados, please chime in! We are always looking for suggestions!