When we moved into our home, last July, multiple rooms needed furnishing. This meant that, unfortunately, the backyard would have to wait.
But spring forward a year later and, prompted by an early-season sale at Canadian Tire, I could finally plan out my backyard oasis!
To help me visualize the process and ensure I was getting the best deals, I used a great iPad app called Morpholio. I find mood boards help me stay on track when I’m trying to decorate a space. It’s easy to see things when you are out shopping and buy them just because I like them. But then I get home and realize they don’t quite work (I’m notorious for this one). By carrying around a virtual mood-board, I can whip it out and compare the piece at the store to my overall room design, making sure I stay on point! For more on mood boards, head on over to the Pottery Barn website.
For my backyard, I was really inspired by a recent trip to Miami, and in particular the outdoor design of The Delano Hotel. The hotel’s clean white lines, teak wood lounges, stripes and palm trees had me swooning.
With this #inspo in mind, I put together a Morpholio mood board to assit me on my travels.
I’m having a major palm-print moment, too, so I was happy to be able to incorporate some great prints on my new outdoor cushions, which were a cost-effective purchase from Etsy. Add some solar fairy lights from Ikea, a white Muskoka Company chair or two and the result?
Miami chic à la Toronto suburbia.
Mordy loves the Sophia chairs from CB2 as much as I do!
What does it cost to put an outdoor patio together? See my budget breakdown below:
- Teak dining table from Canadian Tire, on sale for $750
- 4 teak dining chairs from Canadian Tire, on sale for $125 each
- 2 Sophia dining chairs from CB2 (my favourite purchase at $129 each)
- 2 white, recycled Muskoka chairs from the Muskoka Chair Company — my splurge (I’m a sucker for original products and supporting local Ontario businesses) — at $299 each
- Tommy Bahama palm print outdoor cushions from Etsy for $23 each
- Black- and white-striped outdoor cushions from Etsy for just $20 each
- SOLARVET solar outdoor fairy lights from Ikea at $16.99 each
- NIPPRIG black-striped place mats for the table for $4 each
- Outdoor mirror, hurricane vase and flameless candle from Homesense — all together costing about $60
Emma Gregg is in-house counsel at Travelers Canada, and
Precedent’s design columnist. Read more of her tips for DIY decor.