Skill Level: EASY!
Tall Family’s travels have mostly been to work and school and back again since the beginning of this year. We’ve also recently taken a day trip that I need to report to you on soon, and what little available time we’ve had has been spent on managing the Tall Family House and obligations. We’re still employed (with my job as “full time plus”) and Tall Kiddo won’t be graduating high school/college for a few more years so we maintain a centrally located home in our non-travel time.
We want the Crash Pad to stay in good shape, and mostly it does with the exception of our basement which looks ready for an episode of Hoarders. One of these days, maybe, we’re going to get that straightened up to a more manageable level. At the same time, we don’t want to dump a bunch of cash into our projects and we’re always thinking about how we can do more with less. Every dollar saved is travel money, y’all, and we have some big plans coming up within the next travel year.
But for now, we’re focused on the homestead. On the recent long holiday weekend (three days and it felt great) we worked extensively on our outdoor areas as we have about an acre to spruce and maintain. We have a smallish back deck and have had a seating area out there for a few years. The truth is that where we live in the South there are two seasons – winter and blistering hot – and so we don’t make use of the deck area as much as I would like. Still, when I passed by the glass door leading to the porch and glimpsed the table and very faded red chairs that had turned awfully drab over time it was a bit well, the opposite of uplifting.
The furniture on the deck wasn’t especially expensive but the pieces that we have owned for years are definitely sturdy and comfortable. To give the area a face lift, I did some shopping and considered some new pieces, but because we don’t spend a lot of time out there due to the heat, I decided I’d really like to figure out a way to keep what we have even if that means in a couple of years I may be thinking about it again. So the challenge became an update on a tiny budget (about $100).
I researched updating mesh chairs and though Tall Dad wasn’t delighted by my color choice I selected black as the color for the chairs. In my mind, black would make it easier to cover existing color and I could match up about any sort of decor I wanted with the dark shade.
I stored the table in well, you know, the basement, for a change of pace. For the chairs, I hosed them down and gave them a good scrubbing and then set them out in the North Carolina sunshine to dry. The heat is intense here right now, so drying took only about an hour.
Note: My helper dog wasn’t much help for this project as she has an obsession with water, ran around wildly when I started the garden hose, and jumped in and out of the chairs as I tried to clean them. A water obsessed helper dog is not recommended for this particular project.
Using a can of spray paint for each chair (at about $8 per botttle) to be sure all areas were covered thoroughly, I used Rustoleum’s paint and primer in one in black/oil rubbed bronze. The spraying was easy, and I consider myself a serious non-painter. I sprayed the chairs in the very back of our yard away from everything else and would advise you to paint in a well ventilated area as well. Use long strokes for best coverage.
After the chairs dried for a few hours I moved them back to the deck and for about $100 I updated with a garden stool (via Belk) as well as flamingo pillows and a multi-colored lantern from Pier One. Everything I bought was, of course, on sale. The flower pot and standing flamingo came from, you guessed it, the basement collection.
If it ever cools off enough, I intend to enjoy the new deck decor but until then I am pretty satisfied to check it out as I walk by that glass door. And, that friends, is just one of a few improvement projects taken on by Tall Family on this long weekend. The revamp kept me from having to figure out to dispose of the older furniture, and I hope you have found some inspiration to consider all options before settling on making purchases!
Tall Mom Travels 