Leisure Living

I'm not sure if the outdoor furniture store Leisure Living is only in Utah, but for those of you who've heard of it, you'll probably remember their catchy slogan...."We love the way you love to live....inside out, Leisure Living!" Apologies if it's now stuck in your head, but I couldn't think of a better title/theme for this post since we really do do a lot of living now in our backyard and I've been dreaming/wanting/hoping for a relaxing outdoor space such as this for a very long time (probably since the early 90's when I'm guessing that slogan was created).

Anywaysies....after a couple of months of shopping here's what we ended up with! We wanted to keep it all under $1,000 (that's good considering we wanted to furnish a lounge area and 2 eating areas) but thanks to some good sales/ my mix + match style (btw- I found that outdoor stuff sold as as "set" does not always mean it's cheaper), I was able to get everything (see links below) for $800. I did have to do more shopping around than I originally thought because I found outdoor stuff to be pretty limited. It's either Golden Girls girls style, really hard to match with other things, or way too expensive! Thankfully, I started this process back in March (which I'm glad I did since many of these things are now sold out) and so far we're really pleased with everything and it's all held up very well.

I LOVE COLOR! But since we've yet to find the time/energy/guts to go bold with the interior decor of our home, I decided our outdoor space would be my chance to have some fun ~ after all, we do have 3 kids who all also like to hang out back here! 

All-Weather Outdoor Whicker Loveseat 

All-Weather Outdoor Whicker Chairs (These are stackable!)

Outdoor Cushions (more maroon than bright red I'd say...even though they look like bright red in photos)

Toss Pillows (Patterened ones are outdoor ones, turquoise ones are not)

Outdoor Coffee Table (this one is slightly different and more expensive than ours, but same material and brand)

 5x8 Outdoor Rug by MadMats (now sold out but is made by recyclable plastic...so durable and COOL!)

Kids Picnic Table (in Sams Club they had the green/brownish ones...we actually bought 2 since we like them so much! Great for kids parties too and very easy to compact and bring indoors).

Adult Picnic Table

Ceramic Pots (kids had fun helping me pick what to plant in each, and were great helpers in planting them!)

We feel very lucky to have a covered patio area just steps away from our dining/kitchen area in the inside of our home. When house hunting we learned how rare it was to find a patio ground level that was covered and had immediate access via glass sliding doors to the dining/kitchen rooms. The previous owners also left those cool bambo blinds (rolled up in photos) for extra privacy (not that we really need since we and our neighbors have so many trees, but still a nice touch) as well as an adjoining concrete pad for additional seating (don't get us started on the damage we accidentally did by pouring salt on it during the winter :O....it totally ate it up down to the gravel and left us with those horrendous orange spots!).

Here's a close-up of the picnic tables. Yes, they are plastic but heavy duty LIFETIME brand plastic! We decided on these over metal, glass, or wood since they don't get too hot, won't break, fold away easily, seat a lot of people, and are very easy to clean! I love their greenish/brown color. Also, the adult sized picnic table does come with a hole for an umbrella, which we may decide to add later on. 

Here's a shot from the the back of the yard looking towards the back of our house.

Here's a shot of the kids playground taken from underneath the patio area. Even though it's a bit bright, if you look closely you can see how we have another concrete area for some more seating by the fence. Hallelujah for a fully fenced yard - total lifesaver with the kids especially our lightning fast crawler....Elyse! ;)

 

Aside from the cool rug, efficient picnic tables, and fun pillows do you want to know what my favorite outdoor pieces are? These original windsocks done by my creative and talented boys. They make me smile every day and really finish off the playful look I was going for for our relaxing and fun outdoor space.

Hope you all enjoy a wonderful and relaxing Memorial Day weekend! I checked gardening off of our to do list by potting a few larger pots of flowers in our front yard. So great to have some more color and I love how welcoming and happy flowers make me feel. ;)