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The Frugal Homemaker

Your guide to turning your house into a home... one DIY project and yard sale find at a time

How to make your back patio or porch be an outdoor oasis!

April 19, 2021

If anything 2020 taught us to make our home and outdoor spaces a priority for our family to enjoy!  I did quite a few projects on our back porch and we spent hours and HOURS out here last year – every lunch and so many suppers were eaten around this table all spring and summer!

Spring Back Patio Refresh-1

As I cleaned it up this spring when the pollen finally ended, I had a few more projects I wanted to do this year.

Spring Back Patio Refresh-4

For one, the stained and dirty concrete has been bugging me for years!  I have pressure washed, scrubbed it, used cleaners and it just doesn’t come clean – thank you GA red clay.  I have considered painting it for quite some time and finally bit the bullet and did it.  I wish I had done it a long time ago!  You can read about the whole process and color I chose in this post. 

How to paint a concrete porch or patio

It made such a huge difference! 

The other thing I wanted to address was the rug.  I got the rug above last spring from Boutique Rugs (called the Ware rug) and I absolutely loved it!  I loved the color, the design, how it defined the space, it cleaned up very well.

Spring Back Patio Refresh-7

Spring Back Patio Refresh-3

BUT once again, GA red clay and kids… it got dirty so fast!  The white design part on the design is actually a soft raised design that feels like indoor carpet (but it’s an outdoor rug!) and since they take a shortcut running from the yard to the front door across that front corner it just got so dirty!   So I wanted to move this rug up to our pool area concrete where it won’t get traffic running across it from the dirt and get another one that was darker and would hide dirt better. 

Ready to see my refreshed porch for spring and the rug I chose?

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-6

I just love it so much!!  I can’t get over how much painting the concrete completely changed this whole space!  It makes it feel bigger because it is all one color with no stains everywhere. 

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-3

We just absolutely adore this space!  The sun comes up on this side of the house so in cooler months I will come have coffee out here… but the rest of the time by lunch time this spot is shaded and we eat lunch out here, I’ll bring my computer out to the table and work while my little girl plays in the back yard, and we eat so many dinners out here! 

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-8

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-17

This past fall we added a DIY stone firepit to the back yard so my potting bench/serving station also became the perfect firewood holder too. 

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-13

Once pool season begins that coat rack or hall tree is filled with pool towels and goggles on a daily basis. 

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-14

Every piece of furniture (except the chairs) on this back porch has been built by us!  My husband built the grill table at our old house, then I built the farmhouse table completely out of 2×4’s, and also built the potting table and the hall tree as well! 

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-25

You can find the tutorial and details on all those projects below:

  • 2×4 Farmhouse table
  • Potting bench
  • DIY hall tree or coat rack

I also built and added the hanging plant wall last year too – find the tutorial here.  All the succulents except 1 stayed alive all winter so I just replaced that 1 succulent and added some new basil. 

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-30

Our back porch isn’t huge but we have tried to maximize every bit of it so we can enjoy it!  We had an uncovered deck at our last house so having a covered space that we can grill even if it is raining, a fan to help with the summer heat, and just shade has been such a huge blessing!

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-2

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-3

You know I love my plants and I love adding plants and greenery out here!  I added a live palm tree this year and love it!

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How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-11

I have 2 pots of hen and chicks succulents that did great all winter and are just growing and multiplying like crazy!! 

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-27

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-12

And let’s talk about this rug!

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-30

It’s the Fola area rug from Boutique Rugs – linked here.  Use code Frugal60 to get 60% off your purchase of anything on their site.  This is the 7×10 size and after discount it goes from $360 down to $144 which is an awesome deal for a rug this size!

It is black, gray, and white but this one has more of that flatwoven outdoor rug feel to it which won’t allow dirt to stick to it and be seen on it nearly as much. 

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Can’t wait to set up our pool area with the previous rug – it will be great up there!

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-23

I’ll link to anything else I can here:

  • watering can
  • black lanterns hanging by door
  • bird planter
  • Citronella candle on table
  • Adirondack chairs around firepit
  • DIY firepit tutorial
  • table tutorial
  • hanging plant wall tutorial
  • hall tree/coat rack tutorial
  • potting bench tutorial

But can I just encourage you to spruce up those outdoor spaces!  Make them be a place where you want to spend time, have people over for cookouts/games – can’t wait to host many friends and family this summer in this newly refreshed space!

How to make your back patio be an outdoor oasis for your family-6

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Comments

  1. Linda Stephens says

    April 24, 2021 at 10:27 AM

    I have followed you for quite awhile even though for some reason I can’t seem to get your new posts delivered. I love everything you do to your home. You are so very talented!

    Reply
  2. Rani says

    April 24, 2021 at 3:06 PM

    Lovely. You’re very talented, and it’s quite inspiring. Would you do a follow up post on the roses you planted along the fence. I’m curious to see how it turned out as I’m planning the same.

    Reply
  3. Renee says

    April 28, 2021 at 12:16 PM

    What if you have a narrow porch, mine is barely wide enough for chairs, but I just painted the entire house gray with white trim and painted the cement porch dark gray as house. I would LOVE to fix it up but have no idea since it is narrow. I can send you pictures if that would help

    Reply
  4. Sonya says

    April 28, 2021 at 12:20 PM

    What if you have a narrow porch, mine is barely wide enough for 2 porch chairs, I would love to fix my front porch up, so we can sit out front, but have no idea what to do. We just painted our orange brick home Dark Gray with white trim, and porch the color of house… Any ideas would be Great, I can email you a picture if that would help.

    Reply

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Hi!  My name is Christina . . .

I love doing simple, frugal things to make our house feel like HOME! Come learn along with me how to have a beautiful home on a budget.

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