A Bohemian Bungalow Patio Makeover

Interior decorating may be my trade (and my passion), but when I’m not working on a client’s home…or my own…I pretty much live for the outdoors! Landscape design has always been a fascination of mine, not to mention a huge priority when it came to revamping the homes I’ve owned.

I couldn’t believe my luck last spring when the amazing Home Depot team asked me to participate in the Patio Style Challenge. Remember that ramshackle city space my husband and I brought back to life with a makeover of the courtyard? It needed some major love, and thanks to Home Depot, that’s just what we gave it!

Well, believe it or not, we’ve moved again! You see, Hubby and I are expecting our first baby in September. Our downtown cottage was a gem to live in, but it was tiny, and we were both longing for something a little more quiet and family-friendly, so we found a quaint little bungalow in a charming downtown neighborhood to house our growing family.

So now we have an actual backyard!! And let me tell you…it’s glorious. Well, okay…it needs some work…but the potential is definitely glorious!

Here’s a little glimpse:

The landscaping is actually quite lush and gorgeous already! It just needs some resurrecting  (aka weed-pulling and mulching) since it seems to have been ignored by the previous owner. And there’s a little concrete patio just off the back of the house, but it seemed barren and lacking.

I knew the patio and yard had to be an immediate project once we closed on the house. Corey and I love to entertain outdoors, and I knew we’d be spending ample amounts of time outside rocking and soothing this baby! So, I couldn’t believe my luck when I received a perfectly-timed email from Home Depot asking me to participate in their Patio Redux!

My challenge this year was to transition my Home Depot furnishings to my new backyard and give a whirlwind facelift to my new patio space. Challenge happily accepted :)

Here’s a sneak peek at the finished product! My adorable friend Geneva lounging with her sidekick Poppy.

Last year I received the beautiful aqua dining set from the Home Depot. The vivid hue was exactly the pop of color my courtyard needed last spring, but our new house is a 100-year-old bungalow with greenish-gray cedar siding in the back. I knew I wanted to tone the aqua down to a color that was more complementary to my new exterior. I also wanted to work with the architecture, not against it, so I set a theme: a sophisticated Nantucket feel with a youthful Bohemian flare.

So, first things first, I chose a soothing, subtle color palette of gray and white to anchor my design. I picked up a few cans of Dark Gray Rust-Oleum spray paint in a gloss finish so the chairs would be easy to clean. Because I’m pregnant, Corey took on the role of painting the table in the luxe dark gray, and the chairs in bright white for an interesting contrast!

Here’s Corey preparing for the spray painting…

Since my dining needs were so generously taken care with the Shelburne set, I knew I wanted to outfit the rest of the patio space with a cozy seating area…and some much-needed shade. After perusing Home Depot’s website, I fell in love with the idea of this eucalyptus two-seater patio bench. The lines were classic and elegant, and would meld perfectly with the ‘cottage bungalow’ feel I was going for.

But, that seat bottom looked a little too hard for baby lounging, so to amp up the the comfort factor I ordered a canvas sunbrella bench cushion in white.

Now, to coordinate with the newly coated gray dining table, and to compliment the back exterior of the house, Corey doused the eucalyptus bench in the same Dark Gray Rust-Oleum spray paint, and I am so pleased with the gorgeous result. Cozy sitting area achieved!

Now for the shade, which I knew would be essential for enjoying this patio throughout summer’s brutal heat. Enter Home Depot’s 9-foot Market Patio Umbrella, and my little outdoor area is well on its way to completion!

Now that the layout was established and the major furnishings were painted and in place, this girl had some styling to do! And…err…weed pulling.

Out with the old, gangly masses of weeds that surrounded the patio and plagued the established landscaping…and in with gorgeous, purple-hued catmint plants and white impatiens (all from the Home Depot’s amazing landscaping selection) for a much-needed pop of color and texture!

I also wanted a variety of potted plants to really bring life and warmth to that cold concrete patio. I found some amazing clay planters as I was perusing Home Depot, and filled them with lush ferns and more whispy catmint to help achieve that soft, bohemian flair I wanted.

That stark red door got doused in a coat of powdery blue paint, which really enlivened the back of the house, and a caster-bottomed console table (that I already owned) got wheeled to the back and covered in a natural and black striped tablecloth to create the perfect little bar/entertaining platform.

To really cap off the patio styling, I laid down a cowhide rug (which will only venture outdoors on special and dry occasions), added in two small-scale directors chairs, a vintage rattan ottoman, and draped an antique kantha quilt over the bench to enliven the sitting area.

And isn’t that blue ticking stripe accent pillow just gorgeous? It’s outdoor grade–also hailing from Home Depot! I actually have four of them…the other three made their way to backyard fire pit where they form a super cozy lounge area.

So there you have it! My bungalow patio with a bohemian flair. We’re already thoroughly enjoying our new little lounge/reading area…

Our uber-shady and spacious dining table…

Whew! That was a whirlwind patio redux…but one that was super well-worth it.

Now, I’m off to take a break from painting our new house…with an iced tea on my bohemian back patio!

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