Summer is almost here, and vaccinations are on the rise. If you are like the rest of America, you're getting ready to set aside social distancing and put the social back into social animals. You scramble to the back door to scope out the old hangout spot, and you are astonished to find it in total disrepair! Winter wasn’t kind to your backyard.
So, how do you turn your backyard into the premier post-COVID hangout spot? This post will go over some tips for making your backyard the envy of your friends and family!
Clean Your Home’s Exterior
If you want to impress guests, you should take a walk around the exterior of your house. Take note of any mold, vines, or damage to exterior siding or stucco. Usually, you can remove mold and dirt by using a power washer with a strong outdoor detergent.
However, if your home has damaged stucco, then a power washer can worsen the problem by chipping away at the cracks. You may need to contact a stucco remediation contractor to fix your issue if you see exposed brick or other structural materials.
If you see vines or other types of plant growth on your home’s exterior, check the affected area for damage to your siding or stucco. Usually, you can remove vines by hand without damaging your home’s exterior.
Landscaping DIY
The demand for landscaping and outdoor services is on the rise, but the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a skilled labor shortage. This means the cost of landscape services is generally higher. There are a few DIY landscaping tricks you can employ to get that professional landscape look on a pandemic budget.
Choose an Outdoor Focal Point
You want to plan your landscaping so that visitors are drawn naturally toward some sort of focal point. This focal point can be a fire pit, a porch, a pool, a garden, or some other centerpiece.
Create a Path and Accents
Using old stones or bricks, which can be purchased in bulk or found cheap, try to create a logical path connecting this focal point to a driveway or door. Using the same stones or bricks, line other features, such as bushes and flowerbeds, with similar accents, so that there is consistency to the characteristics of your backyard.
Directional Lighting Makes all the Difference
Another way to draw people towards your focal point is to use directional lighting. By lighting up bushes and other features along a path, you can draw attention to the focal point at the path's end. At your focal point, whatever that may be, make sure there is ample lighting so visitors can see well and move about safely at night.
Solar lights, outdoor LED string lights, weatherproof lanterns, and other creative lighting options can help you direct people safely and aesthetically throughout your outdoor space. By highlighting outdoor features from a consistent angle, you can create a feeling of depth and space, even if space is limited.
For Furnishings: Have a Theme and Stick to It
When thinking about furnishing your backyard space, you should have a guiding aesthetic theme or principle. The principle can be anything, but there should be a consistency in how it's implemented. Your theme could be anything from unpainted wood to modern minimalist furniture.
Your theme can go beyond the type of furniture and cover furnishing concepts like mismatched furniture, kitschy antique furniture, or stark uniformity. The point is to have a unifying theme or aesthetic idea behind why you have what you have.
Make Your Backyard the Envy of the Neighborhood!
Using this article as a guide, you can turn your backyard into the place everyone wants to hang out when the weather is nice this summer. Consider the cleanliness of your home’s exterior. Also, take into account how landscaping and lighting play a role in the perception of your backyard space. Then, decide on some sort of stylistic theme or principle when furnishing and decorating your outdoor space.
Finally, send out the invites and show off your hard work!
About the Author
Jennifer Bell is a freelance writer, home designer, blogger, dog-enthusiast, and avid beachgoer operating out of Southern New Jersey.
