Welcome to the weekend in my backyard. Where I plan to sit. And enjoy. And relax. I'm going to I'm going to I'm going to I'm going to.
O.K. I think I typed that enough that I can't take it back. No take backs on the relaxing pledge. Only it's kind of a lie because there's a big project I have to finish in the backyard. But once I do that on Saturday morning it's going to be relax, relax, relax.
A few years ago I ditched the idea of using a patio umbrella in my backyard since it's shady anyway and got the black table, chairs and bench you see from Ikea. Not having the umbrella makes it feel much more like a real room. That has bugs. At least more bugs than the inside.
It's the first long weekend of the summer in Canada and for the first time ever my backyard is cleaned up and ready to go. Plants and everything.
K.
I'm bored with it now, is it too early for snowpants?
Just kidding. I won't get bored with the backyard until at least the second long weekend of the summer when I decide watering plants is for chumps and dedicate all my spare time to hoping they'll die instead.
The fake wicker love seat on the left in the photo above is from Walmart and used to be brown. I painted it the same way I painted my shed, with a sprayer. The chairs were some kind of a deal at Costco a few years ago. But what I'd REALLY like to do in this area is to create some built in furniture in the same conversational shape.
If you read my blog regularly you probably know I built a pizza oven because I live very far away from the nearest pizza place. At least a block and a half.
Summertime hasn't been the same since building it. People come here. They flock to my backyard and they sit and relax and wait for pizza to come out of the oven so they can shove it in their mouth. They get to relax while I get to sweat and slave over a hot oven making pizza. It's a win/win really.
If you're thinking of building a pizza oven, you should get the Bible of books for such a thing, Build Your Own Earth Oven. I used it and you should too.
But this year I'm vowing to do something I haven't done before in my backyard. No. Not drink 14 cream sodas in a row. I've done that.
I'm going to relax.
See I've said it again so I really can't go back on it now.
Hold up! Where did you get those wire cloches, Karen??? Well, I got them at a discount store in town but I found similar ones in case you can't live without them. You know, like you'll cry an' blubber and stuff.
Here's a handy little tip in case you didn't think of it. Even if plastic furniture is clearly meant for inside, you can still use it outside. Like these Panton S Chairs (copies because I can't afford real Panton S chairs and even if I could I'd rather spend that money on a dancing troupe of Dachshunds who wear multicoloured tutus). So, yeah.
(I'm not sure why the patio looks like it's covered in a layer of dirt in the photo. It doesn't look like that in real life. It's all splotchy and stuff in real life, but at least it doesn't look like it's covered in dirt. )
I painted the potting shed black last year with my Wagner Spray gun. It took all of an hour or so to do the whole thing 3 coats.
The three white balls you see have old Christmas lights in them so they glow at night. Which is so stunning it's enough to make me stop and stare every time I see them. Which counts as relaxing. You can read more about my spectacularly famous Glowing Outdoor Orbs here.
Most of the major things are done in the backyard, I just have a few things to get done.
Like what? Like this ...
That's just for that one corner. Ditto that kind of stuff for all the corners of the yard.
Except I can only do it if I also relax. Because that is now the rule. I wrote it in my notebook too so I've got it written down on paper. Like The Bible.
I have a big rope hanging on my fence. There is absolutely no reason for it other than the odd time I practice my lassoing technique on the ferns. Just kidding. I practice on the chickens.
The rug(s) at the pizza oven area are from a big box store. I can't remember if they're from Home Depot or Lowes or Rona but they're available just about pretty much everywhere now. I butted two of them up against each other to make a big rug instead of 2 smaller ones.
Someone who can't relax in this backyard has something seriously wrong with them. It's not like my goal is to relax alllll summer. Just 10 minutes a day even. Or 5. Or the length of your typical tween attention span. Hardly anything at all really. I can have my morning coffees outside for instance. In the backyard, without my laptop or my iPhone. No technology at all other than my iPad.
I know, right? Weird plant. It's a Boston Fern. Oh. You meant the other one. That's a Chenille Plant.
Those are a bunch of forks and knives on some plates. I put them there because you're supposed to do that if you're a blogger. Pretend you're constantly getting ready for some big party.
My smoker. Because I smoke. I even made bacon from scratch in it once.
This thing is for real, not just a blog prop. I keep many pots of herbs that I use for my pizzas right by my pizza oven so they're always ready to go when I'm making pizza. I said pizza a lot in that sentence. Pizza pizza pizza pizza pizza pizza pizza. O.K. I'm done.
Pizza.
The plant on the left? It's baby tears. The plant on the right? Some type of succulent that I nearly but didn't totally kill over the winter.
And finally my friend Buddha who may or may not help me relax. I may stare at Buddha hoping to relax and then realize Buddha needs cleaning at which point a very non-relaxing rampage of some sort will ensue. That's how it all starts. With a dirty little Buddha.
It looks like relaxing is a huge goal for most of you who took my 2 question survey last week (thanks to the thousands who took the time!), so I'm not alone. We doers of stuff sometimes need to be forced to relax whether we want to or not because believe it or not relaxing is important.
Have a great long weekend my fellow Canadians, get your backyards cleaned up, fire up the BBQ and relaxxxxxxx.
Rose
Love the smoker. Makes you want to relax and smell the bacon, never mind the roses.
Pat Marino
I love your cozy backyard...makes me just want to come visit!!! Suddenly I feel I HAVE to make a pizza oven....won't my husband be thrilled, not, he just rolls his eyes these days. Have a great weekend Karen!
Maureen Locke
I could relax there, no problem.. especially if my belly was stuffed full of pizza with fresh herbs. :) Beautiful back yard Karen. I'd love to have one, however my husband feels that a back yard consists of one huge patch of green to mow. No trees, no plants, no flowers. I did manage to talk him in to a beautiful magnolia right dab in the middle of said lawn. It only took me three years. All other greenery I have to plant on the edge of the lawn. Seriously, it looks silly. When I retire, I'm going to become bold and just plant helter skelter beautiful shrubs and flower beds and have a tranquil seating area, perhaps a pond, chickens and a garden. Hope he doesn't have a coronary.
Cathy
I'm in the midst of ripping out my old rotted deck; not like a huge multilevel thing you see behind fabulous estates, but a small 10x10 floating affair. More like a stage where my table sits and we dine alfresco occasionally. I used to have a Summer Solstice party there where " hats are mandatory, shoes optional." The evening light is magical.
Did you build your shed?
Karen
Hi Cathy. The shed came with the house, but just painting it black made it look new. ~ karen!
Cynthia Wenslow
All that talk about pizza, and yet, no pictures of actual pizza!
Don't relax until you make some pizza and post the photos, please.
Mmmmm pizza!
Carol
Don't ditch the ladder. It's in a good location, feng shui-wise. Paint it white, put plants on the rest of the steps. It would look fab, like the rest of your yard. Nice clean up job!!!
Penny
I didn't know about the feng shui bit, but I thought the same! The ladder is in a perfect location for a Primula auricula theatre, (in which case I'd paint it black or dark green) or Karen could use any plants in small pots.
Lovely job, Karen. My back garden looks like the Somme, circa 1918.
Kelly
I totally agree with leaving the ladder, but not white against all that black. Not sure it has to be painted at all; it brings a nice soft natural look back to the darkest corner.
Lisa
Love your backyard - and yes the relaxing bit...trying trying. I've always called your Chenille Plant a Lipstick Plant or cat's tail...had to take mine out when the neighbours dog kept reacting to it. Enjoy a "gin, ginger beer (real only - Bundaberg Ginger Beer is the best) and lime" in your garden....very refreshing. Not that I'm ever one to encourage a drink. :-)
Tammy
I might suggest moving the wood from where you sit. It can attract all sorts of unwanted creatures that you may not be happy with once they find you!
Karen
Oh, it doesn't stay undisturbed all summer Tammy. It's for feeding the pizza oven, so it needs to be close and it's constantly being used and replenished. I know exactly the bugs you mean because every summer I have to stack whatever wood I haven't used in the winter at the end of my driveway and by the fall the things growing and multiplying in that stack are horrifying. ~ karen!
Sue
Doesn't seem to matter whether it's inside or out; usually you can't even sit down and get comfortable before out of the corner of your eye you see something that needs to be done.
We have a lovely small deck off the bedroom where we have our coffee in the morning and watch the hummingbirds cavort. All I have to do is see a feeder that could be better placed, and I can't sit still until it is moved - or a hanging plant that needs to be deadheaded.
And, I don't dare go back inside for fear I'll get trapped doing something and never get back out. If I attempted to seek counseling for this condition, I would probably be so distracted by mentally rearranging the pictures on the wall that I would lose all track of therapy - actually, I have been there, and done that now that I think about it . . .
Debbie from Illinois
Road trip to Karen's for Pizza!!!
lori jones
i'll join in on the pizza trip!!!
Steph
Truly, really fabulous
Jennie Lee
I like your comment about how indoor plastic furniture can also be used outdoors. I do the same, only backwards: I have 4 white plastic outdoor chairs that I use indoors. And I don't care if that's against some kind of rule. They're Rubbermaid, from over 30 years ago, Magic Erasers keep them snowy white, they're so comfortable I've fallen asleep in one, and I think they're pretty. So there. And your backyard looks wonderful. You may know there's work to be done, but I assure you, everyone else is wowed.
Carey
Damm, that backyard looks good enough to relax in, all summer long. Enjoy!
Karen
Ha! Yeah. We'll see. ;) ~ karen!
Lynn
I wish you luck Karen in your relaxing goal . As the saying goes ( take the time to stop an smell the roses ). It goes along way to improving both mind an body. You have your list of todo's . I love your yard I have to say . This Friday we get natural gas ran for new BBQ , fantastic no more lugging tanks ? . At some point age snuck up on us an it kinda shocked us both . Go figure ( we are suppose to age ... What the heck ....). Enjoy your long weekend Karen
Karen
Lucky you! I just had to buy 2 new tanks for my BBQ and it wasn't cheap. I looked into it and I think it was going to be around $500 to run the line for gas. Maybe another year. ~ karen!
Muff Hackett
Karen,
You need a little Connie Kaldor to inspire your relaxation.
You're welcome
Muff
charlotte tataryn
it's gorgeous Karen - stop showing off! Some of us don't live in climates, or under that tree, which means YOU obviously don't have a ka-billion maple trees to uproot nor are you waiting for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday's rain to dump the 200-ka-billion elm seeds that make the tree APPEAR GREEN until they land IN MY YARD. Obviously, I'm envious.
Happy Long
Carswell
Heh. I put a bunch of fresh soil in my garden beds last year and topped it off with a generous portion of mulch.
Sadly, that's the perfect habitat for maple keys to take root and I've been chipping away at removing an incipient maple forest from my garden beds for the last couple of weeks. They are easy enough to pull at this point but geeeeez loueeez there's a lot of them.
Jani
I am like you...I would go out there to relax and then look at everything that needs to be done! I don't even know how to relax!!
Amy Parker
ha ha, me neither. What's the point of having a yard if you can't tinker around in it? Relaxing is overrated.
Gayle''
The plant on the left? Maybe a burro's tail. I think. Anyway, that reminds me I need to get out and trim back some of my potted succulants. Love them. Hard to kill 'em if they are rated for your zone. Have a great time relaxing--it will rejuvinate you to do even more.
Gayle''
Oops--make that on the right. Lol
erin hall
aka a donkey tail
Susan
I brought a cutting of that home here from Denmark in 1998 since I'd never seen it before. It's still living. I really don't know how it survived the trip home since now it falls apart if you look at it! Neat plant though.
JulieB/Julie Spahn
Yep! My mom had burros tail, along with a million and 17 other plants when I was growing up. She even made a few macrame hangers for some of the plants. Can you tell that many of my formative years were spent in the '70s. :D
Paula
The cloche link doesn't work!
Karen
It probably isn't available for delivery or sale in Canada Paula. ~ karen!
Linda in Illinois
It worked for me and holy moly !! that little cloche is $267.48, I will have to pass on that one
Marna
Your backyard looks great! :)
Carswell
It does indeed. I would have no trouble at all relaxing in that space.