Before Restore

It’s supposed to be really nice this weekend. Like, gorgeous. Weather like this is a DIY’ers dream.

So in honor of that, I thought I’d share this terrific project idea to really give your house some Curb Appeal. Not only will YOU like the look, so will buyers if you happen to sell your house at some point in the future.

This is the flower bed after I tore out all the flowers, weeds and mulch. See how ugly that exposed foundation is?

You can see it actually has a dark color of stain on it: it had fallen victim to a failed project to stamp the wall to make it look like stone. A great concept, it just didn’t work well in reality. (Meaning, it required both of us.)

When we had the deck enlarged last summer, we had our contractor paint our exposed foundation with Restore. We just hadn’t done this part. (Honestly, I don’t think we thought about it. You really didn’t SEE it, and you know how it is when you don’t see something…)

On a recent weekend, I used our leftover Restore to paint this portion of the foundation in the picture shown below that had now been exposed.

I did not enjoy it. But I love, love, love the finished product!

“Restore’d” Foundation

 

Restore makes it look a little bit like it’s been stucco’ed. It gives it a solid texture, and helps fill in cracks or small holes.  Restore is made by Rust-Oleum, comes in several colors, and is available for decks or concrete.

If you’re painting concrete,  make sure you purchase Restore for Concrete. The Deck Restore is not thick enough to stay on a vertical wall.

Behr also makes a similar product for both decks and concrete, called Deckover. It comes in 54 colors, according to their website.  Either of these should be readily available in your local home improvement store.

We have a walkout basement on our addition, so a great deal of our foundation is exposed. It required one Home Depot and two Westlake’s to get us all we needed.

It goes on very thick, so you’ll use more than you would if you were simply painting or staining the same surface. It uses special rollers to give it the texture.

It is messy.

So make sure you wear shoes and clothes that you really don’t care about. And use plastic to cover up your patio or your nice landscaping.

Here’s a tip: Because Restore requires 3-6 hours to dry, if you decide to paint one coat one day, and the second coat the next, wrap your rollers in plastic and stow them in the freezer overnight. I highly recommend tossing them when your project is complete. These aren’t rollers you’ll be using again. And, be sure to use some blue tape to protect your siding.

Ladies, I recommend wearing plastic or latex gloves to protect your manicure. Ask me how I know this. 😉

Happy Restore-ing! 🙂

BEFORE

Over the years, my landscaping has taught me one thing over and over:

“Low maintenance” does not mean “No Maintenance.”

Take this flower bed for instance.

The grasses were overgrown.

Some of the plants were dead.

Some of the plants I wondered what on earth possessed me to pick THEM? What was I thinking?

Why did I let myself be talked into cedar mulch?

Why did I let it go so long?

Is it too early for a drink? (Just kidding, not really. That came later.)

It had reached the Point of No Return: the best plan, I decided, was to rip it out and start over. The “over” comes later. You’ll have to stay tuned.

I did not enjoy it.

The cool thing about being married to a contractor is the toys that come as part of the package deal. I had most of it ripped out, and Jimmy brought the backhoe and helped me with the rest.

5 years worth of plants, mulch, and landscape fabric discarded: $235

Backhoe fuel, additional black dirt, and ruined pair of shoes: $122.50

Co-Pay for back adjustment after ripping out flowerbed: $35

Having all this ugly crap gone: PRICELESS! 🙂

Our Back Deck

This is the last post in the series of Quick Outdoor Space Projects that was on ‘rain delay’ from the Monday of Memorial Day weekend.

I spent all day last Saturday sweeping tree debris from our decks and patio and getting them somewhat ‘beautified’ again. The stager in me gets the warm fuzzies every time I see a tidy, uncluttered space that’s balanced. And beautiful!

Every year I do something a little bit different in my outdoor living spaces. It’s good to change things up once in a while.

This year, I added a rug.

This love seat and table used to sit on the front deck, but I moved it to the back this year. In this picture, you can see my houseplants, a square pot that’s going to be an herb garden (this sat on my kitchen counter unplanted for two months, lest you think I’m too ‘Martha’!), and a color bowl that I picked up at Home Depot.

Doesn’t the rug just add a little certain something? It really gives the space its Wow Factor; I know it looks good if Jimmy actually notices!

The big bonus for an indoor/outdoor rug is that they feel like a rug, but can actually be hosed off with a garden hose! When the sun gets really strong in the ‘dog days’ of summer, I will bring it inside to prevent the sun from fading it.

And, it’s perfect to use inside if you have pets. Because no matter how well-behaved your dog is, accidents WILL happen. It’s the nature of the beast(s). 🙂

An Outdoor Clock

I love bling. I love wearing it. I love seeing it. And I really love it in an outdoor living space.

By ‘bling’ in an outdoor living space, I’m referring to something a little sparkly or shiny or metallic that can add a pop of color and pizzazz.

Take my outdoor clock for instance. I bought this last summer, and finally got it hung this week. It’s on my west side patio, which is underneath a deck so it has shade from the sun. The copper edging harmonizes well with the rest of my space. It also has temperature and humidity guages, which make it interesting conversation piece. I have it hanging above my outdoor sectional, which really gives it a ‘”living space” feel.

As I sit here writing this, I realize I forgot to put batteries in the clock. OOPS. Oh well. One thing at a time. 😉

Outdoor bling can be anything from a brightly colored candle in a candleholder, some neat colorful tiki torches, or colorful or shiny metallic flowers or glass globes. Even the solar ones that change color are eye candy, and are really pretty inexpensive.

One word of caution: Resist the temptation to overdo outdoor bling. Too much of a good thing is not a good thing. We’ve all seen the yards where people have gotten carried away by lawn ornaments: Your eyes are all over the place, and you can’t focus on the space as a whole. It’s like having a head full of bumblebee’s, it’s so busy! Depending on the size of your space, one or two well-placed pieces are usually enough.

The season for outdoor living is short, so make your space one that you’ll really enjoy. Happy living! 🙂

On My Front Deck

Moving your houseplants to your deck or patio can really add visual appeal to the space, making it feel more like an outdoor living room. With some plants and a few potted annuals, your outside space will have both color and a cozy, homey feel!

Once the mercury stays above 50 degrees at night, your houseplants can safely be moved outside. They need to be protected from direct sunlight, although a few early morning hours is no problem. Up next to the house or in a corner is usually the best spot. (Of course, as I write this, it is 48 degrees and raining here in Kirksville. My plants have been outside for a week, so they’ve had some time to acclimate to the temperature.)

Keep an eye on them for the first week or so; if they start to look discolored, they probably need to be moved to another spot that’s more shaded. You may have to water them more often if you aren’t getting rain periodically. During the high heat of summer, some plants may suffer if the temperature stays in the upper 90’s or higher for a prolonged period of time.

Don’t do this if you have low-light plants; they will get too much light. Which means you will have fewer plants!

Your plants will love being outside. Not only will they thrive, if they are in the right spot, but the rain will wash the dust off. It’s one less thing you have to clean! If you have several houseplants like I do, you’ll be amazed at how much it opens up your indoor space. The house seems almost bare and cooler with them outside, which is a nice change of pace for the summer.

At the end of the season (usually about mid-September), I’ll water them well and spray for bugs a day or two before I bring them in. Your plants will be cranky for a couple of weeks after coming back inside and lose some leaves, but they will adjust.  And by fall, you’ll be ready for the warmth and coziness that plants bring to your home. 🙂

I love quick and easy home projects that are unexpected, or that add interest and freshen up a room. I also love repurposing: finding a new use for something that’s functional and not what it was originally intended for.

Colorful Sofa Pillows

Sometimes it pays to think outside the box.

I was at Home Depot the other day picking up a few things, and saw some outdoor pillows that were eerily familiar. I have one set of deck furniture that is looking somewhat tired, and the pillows are very faded. These pillows were exactly what I needed to spruce it up for the summer!

Or so I thought. I got them home, and I was somewhat less than enchanted with the results. I brought them inside and stuck them in a corner to return later.

Yesterday I realized why I was drawn to them. Do you see what I see?

Who says outdoor pillows have to only be used outdoors? The Mattress Police?

Not only do these really add a splash of color to my Great Room, but at roughly $12 each, they are pretty inexpensive. Pillows seem to have short life spans at our house, so I am always looking for something that adds pizzazz but not at a pizzazz price. Especially when you stop to think that if someone spills something on them, you can take them outside and hose them off!

I’d say these were perfect for summer, wouldn’t you? 🙂