Vacation Inspired Backyard Makeover Reveal {before + after}

I know this backyard renovation makeover post reveal is something I’ve talked about THE most for quite some time now and took the longest to reveal. I feel once you see the scope of work and read of the many obstacles that came along with this renovation makeover, you’ll understand why. I know social media’s time-lapse videos may have conditioned a lot of us to think renovations are something that happens in a flash with just one swipe of a hand; even though fun and cool, but I assure you otherwise. Disappointingly, it isn’t like that in real life. This project has also taken a long time to reveal because transforming this space took a long time to complete, we’ve been working on it in phases – a little bit at a time since we bought this house back in 2017… until 2020 lockdown changed everything and shifted our full attention to seeing this project through.

Since we were forced to go from being jet setters to homebodies – we decided to give this space our full focus and get it completed. Our plan for the backyard renovation makeover was to make the most of the square footage we had to work with – assuring to apportion the space properly so it could flow seamlessly. Ultimately, the vision was to turn this outdoor space into a peaceful and calming escape that would help make the transition into the new slower-paced lockdown lifestyle at home an easier one to slide into. Unsure of when we would ever be able to travel again to visit our beloved spots, it was a no-brainer to incorporate a lot of the elements reminiscent of all our favorite vacation places into our own backyard. Every inch was designed to help transport us to those beautiful environments every time we step right out of our back door. We set out to hire help, submitting my design plans and getting different estimates to bring that vision to life, but the outrageous estimates we were getting made us realize that we would need to roll up our sleeves to see our plans through ourselves. So, that’s exactly what we did! Thankfully, we work for ourselves and set our own hours which helped in the amount of time we could dedicate exclusively to the project. Read on to see the before and after.

THE BRICKWORK

For starters, the backyard was haphazardly divided into precarious and awkward sectioned areas. For instance, there were large loose pieces of concrete border around the ‘crabgrass gone wild’. Not only was it quite unsightly but was a complete water waster since the old irrigation system was broken below the ground. So every time the sprinklers went off, it created a marshland back there. Given that we live in the desert now, where water is scarce, the first thing we knew we wanted to do was to replace that weedlike grass with an artificial one to save on water and create a space that is as low maintenance as possible. Plus, the whole backyard space was incohesive and largely unusable, due to its poor layout. The old-reclaimed-looking brickwork was one of the first elements we decided on to tie in the same eye-catching chevron design of our front courtyard. The beauty of centuries-old brick is unmatched and adds one-of-a-kind appeal that brings us that piece of the east coast style that we love so much, here out west.

Adding a winding path that begins from our side gate and meanders in between the artificial grass and planting beds to get from point A to B – leading to a circle in one of the corners of the yard was one of the most important features we wanted. We wanted to bring the feel of an enchanting garden that nurtures a more intimate connection with every turn you take in the space. After having four different estimates, we decided to hire this one contractor to remove the old grass, do the brickwork and install the new astroturf, but despite the endless back and forth conversations – assuring that he understood the design plans to do the brickwork, he ended up being quite incompetent. Of course, once he got the money, his tone changed and all promises/agreements made were conveniently forgotten. Days he promised to work all day to get the job done in a week’s time, turned into no-shows. His workers spent more time on their cells, instead of working. Naturally, that created a lot of unnecessary delays. At some point, he even told me that ‘my design plans were going to turn out ugly!‘ In fact, my husband ended up taking one day to do the brick circle design in the corner of the yard, since the contractor and his workers had a hard time figuring out how to do it. But after days and weeks of endless headaches dealing with them, we were relieved to have all the brickwork done, astroturf laid (and him out of our lives). Though the serpentine pathways back there didn’t turn out exactly how I had it in my design plan, overall everything ended up being way better than before to which we’re so grateful for.

THE FOUNTAIN WALL

The last part of this renovation caused the longest delay. This back wall is one of the main focal points of this backyard. It is the first thing you see out of the large back picture window from our living room. Ever since we moved into the house, I always envisioned placing a fountain there to bring your eyes right out into the back garden that would make you feel you’ve entered an intimate vacation resort. I believe that fountains are an integral part of bringing that sense of peace and tranquility to a garden. Besides adding charm and depth, it cancels out any unwanted noise, as well. This was another part of this backyard makeover that brought a lot of disappointments. Since it was a challenge to find available and capable workers to build the original fountain design I wanted, we went to plan B to buy something already pre-fabricated. We finally found one pre-fabricated fountain that came close to fitting the scale of what I originally wanted but, the owner of that shop no longer had delivery guys to bring it to us due to the pandemic lockdown and finding someone with the means to go get it for us became an elusive feat. We decided to order one online. Finding something to fit the large area carved out for the fountain to be shipped was of course difficult for its sheer size. We eventually found the one we have now but it had a delayed delivery date of six weeks that turned out to be four months, and when it finally came, the dreadful unimagined happened – the largest part of the fountain was cracked in half! We had to get it replaced which added another two weeks plus. Gratefully, the store manager was super kind and accommodating in getting things resolved to our satisfaction. Then a friend came the next day and helped my husband put it together until the late evening (that alone was a herculean effort as the entire fountain weighs in at over 800 pounds! Needless to say, our friend says he will think twice when we ask him to move anything in the future.)

THE CHAISE LOUNGE AREA

This chaise lounge area positioned straight across the fountain wall and the rest of the garden provides a beautiful place to recline and decompress in late afternoons watching the hummingbirds battle over the bird feeder and stargaze in the evenings while enjoying the calming soundscape of the water fountain.

THE CORNER CIRCLE

Inspired by our travels, I wanted to create separate comfortable seating areas to retreat into as you would find at an all-inclusive boutique resort of a faraway island escape. As previously mentioned after hiring a contractor to do it, he ended up not being able to build it, so my husband had to do it himself, even though the contractor was already paid to do it. It took my husband almost a full day to complete it without any brick-cutting tools. It was all old-school bricklaying. And it’s turned out so lovely. Now, this cozy corner circle is such a perfect spot to have breakfast on weekend mornings under the umbrella or late afternoon wine sipping with a well-balanced charcuterie board. It not only offers a full-on view of the whole backyard to admire our hard work, but it also gives us a sense of being tucked away in a corner spot at a Parisian cafe on the sidewalk of Paris (although we are bird watching, instead of people watching in this case here.)

THE DAYBED SPOT

This daybed was one of my husband’s must-have pieces in the backyard. It was also another one of the major pieces with massive delays. We ordered it before spring but we didn’t get it until almost the end of summer. It’s one of our favorite corners to rest in front of the firepit. Since we work at home and would now be confined to spending an inordinate amount of time at home than usual due to travel restrictions, we needed a peaceful oasis where we could wind down, lay low, take a cat nap or read a book.

Now when we sit out in this outdoor space, we still can’t believe it is the same place! All of the hard work, spending what seemed to be endless weekends hauling bags of topsoil, tons of plants, ground cover, plant food, and large planters, our backs aching from hours of digging holes, pulling large rocks out of the dirt, tilling the dirt, putting down fresh soil, and food down to ensure the dirt was fresh and ready for us to plant left us exhausted. However, it was all worth it seeing what we now have created together as a team. There’s no greater joy than seeing your hard work pay off. Being able to enjoy this vacation-inspired backyard makeover we envisioned translated from paper to reality – a haven centered on harmony with the natural environment – giving us refuge from this chaotic world makes it all the sweeter and a blessing.

Now, you may be wondering – how about the patio side behind the chaise lounge area? For the sake of keeping this post somewhat short, I thought I would reserve the patio reveal for a different post. Stay tuned for the second part of this drastic makeover reveal. Don’t forget to register for updates at the bottom of the homepage, so you can get the latest posts as soon as they’re published.