Our tiny beach cottage has come a long way and we have finally been able to share it with family and friends. Last week we spent the 4th of July with my brother and sister-in-law for days of sun, sand, boating, and lots of relaxing and good food! B and I were so excited to finally be able to enjoy all our hard work with people that we love so much!
All the relaxing with my family and I forgot to take more recent photos but for the sake of today’s post, I think the photos I have will illustrate our progress pretty well!
We built the small deck platform off the back of the house earlier in the year but didn’t do much else until more recently. Then in June, what started as wanting to spruce up the front of the house, turned into adding to our backyard as well, and what a difference it makes.
You can see the backyard after we built the deck and then compare that to what we have now. What a difference!
We added the “boardwalk” that will lead to the future outdoor shower.
Just off the eastern back corner of the house, the future outdoor shower will sit. We’ve been working on the plans for that and should have it ready to construct this summer yet. Adding the little boardwalk brought more interest to the back of the house and makes the deck feel much less tiny.
We planted low-maintenance grasses and shrubs.
What really sets the backyard off is the contrast of the white landscape stone we added. What was originally just going to go along the front of the house to help with the sand kicking up onto the house when it rains, ended up becoming a complete yard transformation.
We had so much stone left over from working out front, we decided to soften the hard lines of the deck out back and planted grasses for privacy and texture.
The project was pretty simple in terms of making it happen. We used flexible landscape bed edging to lay out our planting beds. Then, while still in the pots, we placed the plants where we wanted them, making adjustments to spacing and layout as needed before digging any holes.
Once we were happy with the plant layout, we then dug appropriate holes and planted each plant according to the recommendations.
Advice on Choosing Plants:
Some of our plants came from Lowe’s and Home Depot but the larger, “anchor” plants were purchased from a large landscape company with a greenhouse. We have found this to be worth the effort and sometimes added expense as the professionals that work there can help choose the proper plants for your location.
The flowering bush at the end of the deck was one that was recommended by our landscaper. We told him we needed something that would give us a screen without growing too tall or too wide. We also told him that the location was mostly shaded with sandy soil. He provided us with several options and we were able to pick what we liked most. The service and expertise are well worth the slightly added expense.
Phase 1 of the Fence is Complete
The day I took these photos was also the day that B finished Phase 1 of our fence as well. I took photos of the boys exploring their entire yard for the first time just to mark the occasion. We will plan on adding a buffer fence along both sides for the screen from the neighbors but the boys now have more room to roam which is a big plus!
Future Bar and Patio
I mentioned in my previous post that we have big plans to screen in the overhang on the shed and add a marble patio using the marble tiles I scored at a consignment auction for pennies. I’d like to get this project done this summer but I think it’s more realistic that we won’t start this until fall.
The Front of the Cottage
The front of the cottage still needs work. Since taking this photo, I did do some painting and our plants are more established making them look much better. There is still more painting to do but every little bit adds up.
More to do:
As I mentioned we still have a number of projects to do on the outside. We’ve vowed to enjoy most of our summer so the pace of tackling projects has slowed quite a bit. Still on the list are:
- Build the outdoor shower
- Built the bar between the screened room and patio
- Build the patio
- Screen in the open side of the shed
- Finish the fence
- Add a small gate next to the outdoor shower
- Add a secondary fence on the West side for storing the aluminum boat
Home projects, big and small, take time. Tackling just a little bit at a time does add up and even if you are only doing a little at a time, seeing the progress along the way does wonders for keeping you motivated and on task. Take it from me, I’ve experienced it endless times.
Have questions about anything I’ve shared? Leave a comment below.
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