Hey friends! Welcome to my garden tour! If you have been following my Alder Street Renovation story, you may remember that the yards were in almost as bad a shape as the house! There was no grass in the front yard, and after we finished our construction the back yard wasn't in great shape either. The sweet lady that lived in the home before us had a very green thumb but the existing plants and bushes were in very weird spots so, unfortunately, there wasn't a lot I could keep! This is a reminder of the front of the house after we had started a little of the demo.
It has been a long process and lot of hard work but things are finally starting to shape up!
The camelia and hydrangea came with the house and I was so happy to be reminded of how they are flourishing after looking back at the "before" picture. You can see that I added a little brick pathway that curves around to the side porch. I did this myself over a period of time so if you see any spots that look a little uneven, please forgive!
Defining the front flower bed with a border and creating this little path across the front of the house helped to create a more welcoming and intentional space. The flower beds are filled with plants that I don't really have to do much tending to, rosemary, Texas sage, the camilia and hydrangea bushes. Other than keeping them trimmed and watered, they don't need much care. My pots and urns are my favorite way to garden! It is so fun to keep them upadated for the changing seasons, and it is easy to take care of them and keep them watered.
The brick path curves around to meet the little side porch we added and the hexagon stones that create the path to our patio.
This is just a little reminder of what the side of the house looked like. I never get tired of looking at these "before" pictures! They make the "after" pictures look so much more beautiful! They also remind me of how hard we have worked to create something so lovely. I think we enjoy it so much more, having had to put in so much "sweat equity" as they say.
This pretty little pathway leads to our favorite spot, our patio!
Matt and I started the pathway a couple of years ago and just never got past the end of the porch! Last year, when life slowed down during quarantine, we took the opportunity to get it done. Well, almost got it done. The process of the pathway and patio took a while because those stones are so heavy and getting them as level as possible is such a pain! It could also be because we would lay four or five, and then call it quits for the evening and have a cocktail. Hahahaha.
Life got busy again and I didn't quite get the patio rounded out, but we will keep chipping away at it. This is our favorite spot to sit and have coffee on cool mornings or to have a cocktail on fall evenings under the twinkle lights. Even though we are sandwiched pretty closely between our neighbors, the fence and the bamboo give us a nice bit of privacy.
I have more pretty containers of flowers on the patio. I love to keep little things I can clip to bring inside to enjoy. I also have a pot of herbs that I love to snip on when cooking dinner.
Well y'all, I think this garden tour might have been more fun for me than anybody! It is always good for me to take a step back and remember how far my little home has come. Sometimes I have tunnel vision and can only see all the things that I still need to work on! Now that the front yard and patio are looking good, I have got to move on to the back yard. I have been working hard to clear out and tame the jungle but there is still a lot to do to get it looking good. I hope this has inspired you to spend a little time outdoors and create a space that you truly enjoy! Don't worry if it takes you a few years like me, life is always a work in progress!
