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Back Garden Update #2


You may remember back in July I did the a back garden update (you can read it here), well since that post progress slowed right down due to the bad weather. But with it getting closer to my birthday which we are hoping to be sat outside for and the bank holiday weather being absolutely brilliant me dad came round and really cracked on with getting more of the work done. He spent basically all day in the garden on Saturday whilst we went to the football and he has done a fantastic job once again. It is really starting to take shape and look absolutely brilliant.


He managed to get the railings up going across the front which I believe has transformed the area even more. It just separates the top from the bottom and looks so simple but brilliant. It is also a bit of a safety rail because it is a fair drop and I can just imagine someone having a few too many drinks and falling off the edge and I think I would be odds on favourite to be the first to fall of it. Plus when the nephew starts moving around at least he will be safer on it.

The railings look a little bare at the moment though so I think some caps will be going on top just to make them look a bit nicer. I am also very tempted to get some nice fairy type of lights to go over these for when we have parties and gatherings just to make it a little more cosy. The whole decking area is so big we also need to get some more furniture to fill it up a little bit our little table just looks so lost on it. 


My dad has also put in the first planter which was requested by Liam, I don't do gardening and definitely don't do plants but he has said he will look after them so let's see what he picks. I actually wasn't too sure about having these at first but they do look really nice and will be on each side of the steps. they will look even better though once they are filled and the bottom of the garden is completed. 


So all that is now left to do before my birthday is...

Put the fence up at the side of the decking
Finish off the front of the decking
Finish off building 1 more planter
Get rid of the green shed and get a nicer one
Get rid of all these weeds from the bottom of the garden
Find some lights just to brighten the whole area

We have decided we are going to leave the bottom of the garden until next year now as the weather is once again changing. Plus we are starting work on another room hopefully very soon which I can't wait to show you all, so keep your eyes out for that.

See you soon,
Lucy.

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Back Garden Update

Finally we have progress in the back garden and it is all thanks to my dad and Liam. They have been working away on weekends trying to get the garden from a muddy, weedy mess into somewhere we can actually sit out and enjoy.




First off they had to make the framework for the deck which proved more of a struggle than first expected as it turns out the ground is solid clay. So it took quite a bit of digging on their behalf. I was sent to spend my dads with my mum and sister whilst the work was going on so I was well out of the way so I am super grateful for everything they have done to get it looking so good so quick. They needed to redo some pipework and raise the water meter cover to be able to get the decking spot on and also had to make a hatch for access to the water supply. The colour is looking brilliant too so I may have to go with my original idea and wait a while for painting this. The area is a lot bigger than we all expected too so there is plenty of space on here and still plenty left at the bottom of the garden.


So here is what it is currently looking like with the hatch in for the water supply and the water meter raised. I am so happy with how it is looking now, I just cant wait until it is finished and we can get out and have tea out there and start having BBQ's. So still to do there is:
  • Put the fence up at the side of the decking
  • Finish off the front of the deck
  • Put in the railings (wooden spindles) and little handrails
  • Build Liam's planters
  • Level and turf the bottom of the garden
  • Add chippings and lights around the edge
There is still plenty to do to keep us going but I just can't wait, I am hoping it is all done ready for my birthday as I plan on all the family coming around and spending the day here. I also can't wait to start adding bits to the garden such as plants and furniture, in fact I already have some ideas for it, who fancies a garden wish list post? It is all slowly coming together and we are slowly getting more and more ticked off our job list which is a brilliant feeling.


See you soon
Lucy
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Garden Renovation Update #1

You may remember at the beginning of April I posted all about our garden plans (catch up on it here) and well we have finally started on each of the gardens, it is definitely going to take a while but here how things are looking at the moment...


In the front garden my grandad came up and dug up a border under the window which we wanted doing, but now we have it there we are thinking of taking it all the way around the edge of the garden as you can tell that is what was previously there. Now we just need to go find some nice plants to fill this area and I need to convince Liam a little bird bath may look good in the centre of the grass.


Now the side garden is where I am going to be spending most of my time as it is going to have toys in for my nephew as well as being my little football area. There was a fair bit to do in here which I think I underestimated. We needed to take up some paving flags, remove the sheeting from the old planter, dismantle the BBQ & flower bed and level where things had been removed.



I actually spent time with my mum whilst Liam and my dad did these jobs and they did really well for what they were left to do. They took up a strip of paving flags, levelled the ground and applied some grass seed. Liam also removed the sheet from the planter and levelled all that. My next step is to remove the flower bed, level that area and dismantle the BBQ, we are also thinking of putting a little fence around the edges. Then this area should then be good to go and I can fill it with football equipment and stuff for the nephew as he grows up.

Now this is where the big project is, we have gone for the decking and astro-turf option and as you can see from the image about we were left with a mess to start with. The group is just mud but when my dad and Liam where digging for the holes for the decking posts we found out most of what the dug was clay making it even harder for them. 


However they have done a fantastic job in just 2 days so far, along with doing the other gardens and digging the holes the above images are what it is looking like now. I helped my dad put the big posts in and get them level whilst Liam was working but then he took over from me and has done a brilliant job. I honestly don't think this section will take much longer and I cant wait to show you the finished product. 

Once the decking is down we will be adding a fence, levelling the mud and laying the astro-turf whilst also adding a small border filled with chippings.

I am so excited to finally get everything done and out of the way so we can enjoy the warm weather in any of the gardens and I can get training in the side too . Once all this is done though the savings will be started again to get all the side of the house and driveway done including finally knocking the awful garage down.

Check back soon for more garden updates.

See you soon
Lucy 
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Huge Garden Project #1

One of the perks of the house we bought other than the size of the actual house was the size of the gardens. The house is a semi-detached with a big plot of land, there was talks of a buyer before us getting planning permission for another house on it as it is that big. However, the gardens do need a lot of work on them and I can't wait to get them just as me and Liam wish. We are at a point now where inside there aren't that many major jobs to do but we can start planning out the gardens especially with the nicer weather that we have been having. Luckily for us my dad's friend is a gardener so he is coming down to tidy it up in the mean time and getting it a little nicer for us. So here is how it is looking at the moment.


So to the left of the drive we have this little pathway to the front door surrounded by grass, which has gotten out of control. As it stands we don't use the front door but I would love to get this front bit tidied up. The hedges in the front of the house need cutting down (I want rid all together), and the grass needs cutting. Liam wants to concrete / pave this bit up to a certain point and then put some flowers under the windows in like a little flowerbed and to be quite honest I think it would look brilliant. We also need to find out whose little fence it is separating the gardens as it really needs replacing.


I forgot to put an actual image up of the driveway but that definitely needs re-concreting/paving to make it look a lot neater and the weeds need to go. The garage is also getting ripped down so we can extend the driveway a little and make a nice seating area for the side garden that is fenced off from the drive. 

To the left of the garage we also have this huge space that we are going to level off and some will be the fenced off seating area with access to the side garden and the rest will be left for an extension of the drive, access to the back garden and access to the side door. The green shed thing is hopefully going too and a fence will be put up between ours and the neighbours as at the moment it is just left open. 


This is currently one of 2 ways to the side garden, with the garage going this will be opened up but this maybe where the gate ends up going leading to the seating area and side garden. We also need to see who the hedges belong to and I think these may end up being replaced by a fence if I can change Liam's mind as I hate them. That little old fence will also be taken out for good.

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Now we are onto my favourite part the side garden. I want to get rid of the hedges, fence posts and the overgrown vegetable patch. I also want to get this levelled out. The hedges on the right are coming down and replaced with a fence and a small seating bit is getting added just by this and where the garage currently is. The rest of this garden will have a football net in and have plenty of space for me to train in as these images don't do its size justice. The BBQ that is currently in maybe staying but we have yet to decide on that.


The back garden is definitely in need of a total makeover. There is currently a fairly big step down so we need to get that sorted. We have just put the rotary thing in for our clothes and the old clothes post needs removing. We then need to level it and decide on if we want turf/stones or decking. One thing I know for sure is Liam gave in and agreed with me that we can have a pond. So between me, Liam and my grandad we will be getting that done. We will probably also end up getting a nice furniture set for around here.

I just can't wait to finally be able to sit out in the garden and enjoy the sun, I really can't wait to get into the side and work on my football again too. I think that this year while the weather is nice there may be quite a few BBQ's where we get everyone we can around and get them to help do bits in each garden just to give us both a hand. I will be posting updates on the garden's as little bits get done.

Can you recommend anywhere good for garden furniture? Or do you have any tips that may help us? Let me know in the comments or over on my twitter.


See you soon,

Lucy



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