This is my favorite time of  year here in the South.  The greens are greener, the flowers are brilliant(er), and the weather is perfect for morning coffee out on the deck.

Last year we didn’t do anything with our deck space.  We hadn’t yet been here a year and we were still tackling a lot of indoor projects as well as adding several plantings to the front yard.

In talking about what we would do in the backyard we thought about creating a courtyard with pavers, a retaining wall for seating, a water feature, and the addition of a fire pit or fireplace.

We even paid a designer to draw up a plan.  It was AH-mazing!

As it turned out, if we were to implement the plan it would cost thousands of dollars and, though a nice feature it wouldn’t pay for itself in resale.  So for now, we decided to work at adding favorite plantings to the yard a little bit at a time and foregoing the fancy fire pit.  To be honest, with the amount of time we spend on our screened porch (our favorite room) I’m not sure how much we would even use it.

Here is how the idea of creating the feeling of a French Courtyard on our deck began.  A couple of weeks ago we had breakfast with our friends Mark and Leslie and afterwards we wandered through a few stores.  While we were shopping Leslie picked up the crocheted tablecloth you see here.  The round one.  She decided she really didn’t need it so I quickly grabbed it myself and told her it would be perfect for the little table on the deck and that we would have coffee there together.

Mr. OTN laughed and said it would never happen and that is when I set out to prove him wrong.

Since then I’ve spray painted the patio set, sewed chair covers and pillows, stenciled the pillows, pulled pots onto the deck, some new and some from different areas of the yard, planted shrubs and flowers, washed the deck, and finally, set about arranging and rearranging everything to get just the look I was going for.

Getting one’s hands in the dirt is such a joy when the temperatures are in the 70’s,

and with the warmer weather it seems like within just a matter of days my new plantings have begun to spread and grow. 🙂

My little boxwoods already need a haircut.

We bought a conical variegated boxwood and a couple of regular boxwoods, and tucked smaller plants into the pots around them.

I also added a couple of hanging baskets.

 

Last week the little patio fountain that hubby purchased locally was delivered.  You see, once I started working my plan he got into the idea himself.  😉

The dogs think our new fountain is the best water bowl ever!

This shows the yard beyond the deck, which is an area of grass bordered by trees.  The next step of our backyard plan will involve plantings along the edge of the woods to add more color there as well.  Shade lovers such as azaleas and hydrangeas.

Finally, what would a French Courtyard be without a bit of lavender?  I have a secret for you.  It’s from Hobby Lobby!  Since lavender likes a lot more sun than my yard provides I put several faux lavender sprigs into a cement planter and tucked some moss around the stems.  Even close up people think that it’s real.

Hubby and I have been spending a lot of time in our little “courtyard” and one day soon Leslie and I will have our coffee here and laugh over what she started by showing me the pretty tablecloth!

Morning quiet time here among the songbirds is a time to be treasured.  It is cozy and peaceful, and just what we need to make ourselves slow down from our very busy lives.

So that’s my French Courtyard.  We shall see how it fares through the hot humid summer.  It will certainly be a test of which plants work best in this location.  Trial and error.  That’s my motto.  Or one of them.  I have a lot of mottos.  LOL!

Oh how I wish I could invite y’all over to share this sweet space with me.  I know that our time together would be simply marvelous!

Blessings to you dear friends,

 TheDIYShowoff, LifeOnLakeshoreDrive, SilverPenniesSundays, SundaysAtHome, RusticAndRefined, Spiritual Sundays, GiveMeGrace