Cheap Chic Decorating: AKA I found it on the street, continued.

Thomas and I are engaged in an ongoing project to create a party ready oasis in the backyard. One of the challanges has been to find budget friendly furniture pieces to create an outdoor living area that we don't mind exposing to the harsh Louisiana climate. We were able to get an incredible deal on the basic furniture, but it was time to add extra seating and the personal touches that would further the laid back, New Orleans, Boho, Caribbean flavored backyard we wanted. Luckily, the street curb has been a wonderful resource for doing just that: Above is the bench/low table we created with the paneled doors we found discarded from a house renovation in our neighborhood. I had the metal bases left over from a project where I used the table tops as art (for that project, view provisions interiors blog--the table tops are the series of wooden plaques.) The fabric through is an Echo shower curtain that I found on clearance at linens and things years ago. I usually use it as a table cloth, and its colors helped inspire my backyard palette.

Above are the doors as we found them.
We also found a gorgeous paneled door being discarded from another house. Attaching another pair of leftover legs as well as three coats of marine spar polyurethane resulted in this overscaled beauty (we decided to leave on the door knob for a quirky touch (i.e. it was too hard to remove and we were feeling lazy):

Here is the back of the dooring being prepped for exterior paint (for protection from the elements) and attaching the legs:

Here is the new seating area centered around the mantle we also found on the street (please ignore the ugly concrete that is awaiting staining):

The great thing about the table, is that even though it's smaller than a standard door, it has plenty of room for accessories, snacks, and drinks. It's even sturdy enough to be used as a bench. The low hot pink and turquoise tables just visible between the pairs of chairs are actually kitty litter containers I spray painted pink and left the turquoise tops. They're impervious to the elements, add a great splash of color, make great drinks tables, are a great way to reuse something that would otherwise be trash, and their destruction during a party will not upset me.

So remember, kids, when you are out walking the mutt, keep your eye peeled for usable discards. One man's trash is another man's decor.

Party time

The backyard sitting area is finally finished enough to show. While viewing the pics, ignore the ugly concrete which will be painted or stained after hurricane season. The chairs are from World market, and I've centered them around the mantle we found on the stree. In order to give my self incentive to finish, we decided to host a party for my sister and friends who are in town for jazz fest. The party starts at 8:30, and I still haven't bought the adult beverages, so I think you can determine how well that whole deadline thing is working.

This pink beauty was the inspiration point for the backyard. It was made from car and motorcycle parts by a New Orleans artist. We found it at Bottom of the Barrel Antiques in the French Quarter.

Recession Shopping: aka. I found it on the street

My inspiration: the living room of Mary MacDonald's guest house, as shown in Domino Magzine and every decor blog that has ever existed or will ever exist. The inspiration was the random striped wall, which I decided to do on the side of our garage to give some interest to the outdoor dining area.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, we've been working on finishing the backyard. It's a small completely paved area (I plan on staining the concrete a dark color....after hurricane season). I've pretty much finished the dining area, which is sheltered under an overhang by the garage. I'm not very good with plants, so I'm using a lot of color on the hardscape. I used the inspiration pick from above for the general idea, even though the feel of my space is completely different. Instead of sleek, L.A., midcentury and expensive, I transformed it into, crumbling and peeling, New Orleans, and cheap (i.e., everything was repurposed, found on the street, or bought using Thomas's deep employee discount.) All joking aside, we were going for a House of Blues, caribbean bar vibe: funky, laid back, and designed for parties. Across from the dining area is a seating area with four adorondak chairs. I've been searching for something to ground the space, and while walking Cleo, I found it: this fabu mantle that was being discarded from a home being remodeled. Four long blocks of draging that damned thing and a dog later, and with the addition of Thomas's fabulous version of a Dr. Bob (a great local folk artist) sign concocted from bottle caps and a scrap piece of lumber, we have a focal point.

. I promise more pics of the backyard when it gets a little further along.

Summertime: when the outdoor living is easy.

Because our dining is so small (12 x14 like everyother room in the house except the bathroom which is even smaller), I can only squeeze 6 in there, and it's a tight fit 4 and 5 fit more comfortably, so I usually serve buffet style to larger groups. However, sometimes I really want everyone to be able to sit around the same table. Since I can't add on to the house, I decided to convert the 60's carport in the backyard to a dining room. The long table is actually two small tables that I can push together or pull apart depending on the situation, and I can seat 8 comfortably.

In Louisiana, I won't be able to use it year round--it's too hot from july to september, but it has already been great to use during the fall, the mild days of winter, and now in the spring.

Thomas requested a caribbean club feel, and I've tried to achieve that my using saturated colors pulled from the lucky find table cloth. Since this outdoor room is off of the kitchen, I also wanted to colors and feel to flow from the dining room (see below), hence the orange accents, and the kitchen (also below) which determined the use of the avacado green. The blue ceiling is a common feature in subtropic and caribbean homes. The sign is a street find from a restaurant that is being renovated in the neighborhood. Woohoo to dumpster diving. Since anyone who knows me knows I have a black thumb, I also planned the vibrant color scheme to distract from the lack of foilage. Once I go forward with my plans to stain the concrete paving the backyard, I'll take more pics.