From Pit to Patio

Hello nasty pit. The three windows you see are as follows, closest to us is the master bath, last two windows are the master bedroom.

BEFORE: 

AFTER: 

1. Seven foot fence that I designed with my contractor. I wanted a horizontal slat situation, but the cost was crazy high. This fence is two sided, because we wanted our neighbors to not hate us putting up such a high fence. I didn't actually realize it was going to be this high, but we were out of town when they were building it, so when we came home it was like...ok this is it!

2. Replaced two windows with a 10ft door unit from Randall Brothers lumbar. It is very pretty, and I was going to paint it to match the trim, but I just love the natural wood, so I just sealed it with Waterlox.

3. The deck was like a fantasy to me. I knew I wanted one, and it was more expensive to add it to the fence project, but I had to bite the bullet. Otherwise it would still be waisted space. We went out one foot, with our neighbor's permission, so its slightly wider than the before shot. Their own fence was about three feet away, so there was a useless corridor there anyway.

4. Containers! With Confederate Jasmine, the white kind. Its evergreen in our zone 7, and has a fragrant bloom. It will also over take the wire trellis I made for it within a few years, and be a wall of green.

5. Trellis. I just measured evenly, drilled a three inch brown screw up the supporting posts, and used seven gauge aluminum wire to create a trellis that is almost invisible, and sturdy. Lets just hope it never gets hight by lightning.

6. Down there is a view of the deck and fence when it was completed last winter, from the window. We waited until this year to put in the doors, b/c I like to save up and I had to find something I liked a lot. My favorite features are the band on top, so that water doesn't soak the porous part of the plank when it rains, and it is a neat trim as well. Also, I like the extra wide support beams, or whatever you call them. 

Here is a  better view of the doors, and how they look into the bedroom. There are also lights flanking the door. I didn't plan ahead, so when our contractors where here, they one day said, hey! We need lights. Doh! I had to run over to Lowes and just buy the least offensive thing. I don't like these, and I wish they were not leaning back, but I was sick and tired of it, so I don't care that much.

We had to go to a specialty shop to get that huge planter for a Japanese Maple that we moved from another part of the property. It is massive, and actually sort of blue, but looks black. That tree is creating a screen so you don't have to look at a long fence when you are sitting on the deck. That little door behind the tree is there so we can access the side of the house for cleaning or whatevs, but our dogs can't get back there. Plus birdies come!

 View from the inside. Nothing is styled in here, and you can see that I still have not painted, b/c I sort of hate the blue and I want to change it...Our bedroom make over is a whole other story.

 I could have spent a whole lot more and gotten a solid wood slider set with screens, something you need in the south, but I didn't. I will have to figure out what to do in the Spring, but I don't care at the moment. I love hearing the birds, and feeling the cool breeze.

A reminder of what our bedroom looked like when we moved in! Crazy different isn't it! Also a reminder of what the view was from our deck, over to our neighbors house.

Before:

Now the fence almost covers up Raw Dawg. I actually miss being able to go outside and say hi to Ed, and his buddies who gather there a lot to chat. I call them the League of Retired Gentlemen. I planted a row of shrub roses. Meh, not my fave, but I was getting lazy. Our deck is itty bitty, and we thought about extending it, but I am tired of doing stuff, so I bought that tiny table from overstock, and we love it! Only 36" square. Plus I have an entire hydrangea orgy happening there.

After:

Other favorite feature of the fence is that it is a straight line on the top, and on the bottom. Our land slopes so they stepped it down with each 8 foot section. I hate fences that just curve along the ground, plus they put the wood right on the ground, and it gets moldy and gross b/c water seeps in there. I sealed it with a wax sealant, so the wood will gray naturally, but still repels water.

Other things:
1. I am working on our bedroom this year. I have chosen the bed, and so forth, but I need your help! Post to come.
2. Going to show you our shed make-over, and back fence. Plus ideas for how to grow our garden.
3. Laundry Room. Mayhaps the pimpest room in the house, I doth believeth.
4. Facade make-over. I still have to show you!
5. Updates on operation code-word, and Happiness loan.