Welcome to our backyard! It’s been awhile since I shared much about our outdoor space so when my friend Stefanie from Brooklyn Limestone asked if I wanted to take part in her Beautiful Backyard Blogger Series it was a no brainer to say yes!
A beautiful backyard tour of our colonial home. Let’s take it outside with this fun blogger series for some amazing exterior inspiration.
Stefanie will be featuring 10 blogger backyards over the next two weeks, be sure to stop by her blog for a new and different beautiful backyard every day.
Our backyard space is simply another room to our 1740 home and functions similar to many family’s backyards. Plenty of space to run, play, bounce, swim, sit and eat. There are a handful of DIY projects sprinkled throughout our outdoor space and I will be sure to point them out along the way starting with the giant dining table.
I built the outdoor trestle style dining table awhile back. It seats 10 adults comfortably and has so much surface area for food and decor I absolutely love it.
We have since updated this patio space for a more casual seating area.
There’s a fun path that leads down the side of the house to the backyard. Our backyard is truly hidden from street view, it’s a treasure you can’t see from the road. As a result we have our own escape right in the middle of it all.
We have almost all the amenities you could need in a backyard:
- patio with dining table
- firepit
- pool
- trampoline
Coming from the other side of the house leading towards the back you can see the space better.
I should note our house sits sideways on the lot because it was built long before the streets and roads came along. So I’m guessing when Samuel Brown built this home around 1740 he strategically positioned the house according to the sun and on the highest point of the farmland for drainage reasons.
Naturally we have a fire pit complete with adult and kid size adirondack chairs.
If you look back into the yard we still have the original well (that pile of stones in front of the tree) and yes there is water in it. The gnarly tree behind the well has been there forever too and is nearly hollow in the trunk but somehow it keeps on living. It is a redbud tree and has the most beautiful purple flowers in Spring for about 3 days.
The see saw is also a DIY project and it’s a great size for kids and adults.
FRONT YARD
Now let’s look towards the front of the house, which is actually more of a side yard because the house is turned sideways on the lot.
I’m ever so grateful to the previous owners who planted all the hearty vegetation that surrounds our home. Some days it’s quite the chore to wrangle all the overgrowth but I cannot complain because it’s just so lush and bountiful.
Next to the front door is a plaque style marker from the local chapter of The Daughters of the American Revolution, our house is not a historical landmark. As a result I feel a huge sense of historical responsibility to maintain the true character and original charm of what once was (and still is) Samuel Brown’s homestead. (Sidenote: my sister’s married last name is Brown.)
Looking towards the street from the front door you can clearly see how the house is sideways on the lot. And just barely visible up on the left side is the new DIY swinging bench I recently completed.
The swinging bench was built from cedar boards and I left it unfinished to weather naturally. It’s a great spot for people watching and my kids will often sit out there after we finish dinner on the front patio.
Most weeknights we eat dinner up here on the front patio simply because it’s closer to the kitchen. And I have since updated this seating area to accommodate our family of five with a round outdoor dining table DIY project.
I hope you enjoyed this tour of our beautiful backyard and outdoor areas. Thank you for taking the time to look through our exterior space. It is a lot of hard work and effort in maintaining but at the same time it continues to be a joy that gives back.
Be sure to stop by all of the beautiful backyards in the next few days. Each one is unique and different in their own way and truly a reflection of their owners:
- July 25: Eclectically Vintage
- July 26: DIY Playbook
- 27 July: Jaime Costiglio (you’re here)
- July 28: Life on Virginia Street
- July 29: Brooklyn Limestone
- Aug 1: Primitive + Proper
- Aug 2: Migonis Home
- 3 Aug: House 214 Design
- Aug 4: Rambling Renovators
- Aug 5: Facci Designs
your yard is gorgeous- i love that stone patio so much! and all of your hand made pieces are so at home…. that see-saw looks like epic fun to me!
Your home and yard are a spectacle, candy for the eyes. I really LOVE that gnarly tree.
Thank you so much for sharing!
It's hard for me to tear my eyes away from your house – the color is so striking and works so well with the landscaping…but your outdoor projects are killer. I love how you made them with love!
Oh wow, what a yard you have! I think this is my first time taking the outside tour and I just have to say, it's as beautiful as the inside. Love it!
Your yard puts the STUN in stunning! Everything is neat + orderly + obviously well-planned. Meanwhile, those outdoor plates with the blue borders + red stars look just like Chicago's city flag!