Garden Envy-It’s a Thing

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Ok, so we are finally making some much needed progress with the garden that we have quite frankly pretended did not exist for a grand total of four years now. Oh and we’re bringing in the big guns. We’re bringing in a landscape gardener and a designer to turn our teeny tiny garden into a stylish outdoor space. After quite literally years of umming and ahhing, we’ve passed on the responsibility to the experts. Getting help to install ATM Living aluminum pergolas and modernising the garden can really be transformative for the space. You want to ensure that your garden makes people envious but in a good way. In a ‘wow, this is amazing’ kind of way! Here’s the plan as well as some fab interior bloggers to follow who have been giving me lots of inspiration and just a touch of garden envy with their garden reveal posts.

But first. This. *shiver* (don’t judge me) Our house is set out like a town house and as a result our garden is set out on two levels with some rather ugly stairs to climb up to an equally unispiring concrete slab.

So my first thought was…

Decking

Decking makes everything better right? Originally we were going to replace all of the flagstones with decking (anything to disguise those flagstones) but we are now leaning towards a partially decked area and a grass covered bit. Adding texture to your outdoor space is a simple way to transform it in an instant and we’ve got our eye on this timber decking from Travis Perkins. It will complement our garden fence and make the area much more easy on the eye.

Built in Benches and Colourful Cushions 

MAJOR garden inspo from Melanie Lissack Interiors…

When you want all the outdoor seating but you don’t have one million pounds to spend on one of those super sized rattan garden furniture sets. Oh and this means more space for patterned cushions. I think cushions are really important and it’s one area you can really run with. I saw this incredible Miami inspired balcony over on Melanie Lissack Interiors that makes me realise just how much you can do with a small space. Such creativity at play here.

A Statement Feature

We aren’t sure exactly what this is going to be yet but we do know that we want one. Personally I wanted a grey vintage bath that I could fill in the summer with ice and stack bottle after bottle of Whispering Angel Rose wine for parties and BBQs but my husband suggested the slightly more sensible option of a firepit. I haven’t yet broached the subject of wanting a hammock!

A Separate Seating Area

Image from Dear Designer…

So, we are going to need a place to eat and relax and I’ve seen some lovely table and chair sets for two which is a cute idea but I’m torn again between a small sensible option and one of those comfy sofa style seating options. Then there’s this lovely little table set up that I saw on Dear Designer. This table decor is simple yet chic. Obviously it needs to be weather resistant as England does like to tease us with summer and then take it away the next day.

Shade

I also really want to create a little shade sanctuary for Ted. He told me earlier in the week that he would quite like a wigwam or something exciting to retire into when the sun gets a little too hot and he needs a nap.

Lighting

Hmmm. The only lovely thing about our current garden is the lights we put in when we moved here but I would like some lanterns to make it a little more cute and cosy on a night. I’ll be popping down to Homesense soon (they are opening one in Guisely which is more than a little bit exciting) as I genuinely love their alfresco range.

Plants/Flowers/Anything Green

Incredible garden set up by Swoon Worthy…

I have nothing that resembles a flower in our garden so we would like to include something colourful to brighten it up. I’ve been reading a number of garden reveal style blog posts (link me to yours in the comments so I can be nosy) and I do quite like the idea of a metal plant screen that Kimberley from Swoon Worthy used to house some pretty pots and plants. In fact, I kind of love her whole outdoor set up. (there is that garden envy again).

Looking through all of these new interior blogs that I’ve found has got me so excited for my own garden improvements and I can’t wait to share these with you soon. Do you have any favourite interior bloggers that you follow?

Also, I’m using this blog post as a petition for the vintage wine filled bath so if you think my other half should OK this, give me your support in the comments!