Backyard Makeover Garden Potting Room Before and After

Earlier this year I posted how I had transformed my back patio last season. This year my goal was to class up the potting bench area even more with better furniture, yet keep it 100% useful (gotta have a place for my soil bags and pots to go, right?). AE Outdoor approached me about a couple outdoor garden room furniture ideas – we decided to extend the potting room by building an outdoor seating area with a portable cocktail bar so I could film cocktail and culinary videos in the back garden this season.

Before deciding on furniture, I reviewed the Sunbrella fabric swatches for fabric choices the AE Outdoor Furniture team sent out to me, then decided on the best seating. I chose the Woodbridge 5 pc High Dining set because it had a “bar-like” feel.

I focused on spending a strong day cleaning out last year’s project material, the old leaves, and half the soil bags (see before photo to the right). Then assembled the patio set, which only took me about 30 minutes. Finding a portable bar was easy – I simply put two folding trays together I found at the local shopping center. The trays can be folded up and put away when not in use. I redecorated the chandelier with wide ribbon and flowers.

Antique glass insulators line the garden which surrounds the back patio. These are my favorite treasure and I have been waiting a long time to have enough insulators to completely line a garden bed. My grandmother gave me a few, then my cousins found even more, and my friends Hannah and Helen Weis brought a big box full last season and with their help I finally made a border (see below with a friendly gnome).

Once the frame work was built for the back patio, I wanted to add just the right dinnerware as a special touch. This year Fiestaware sent out a bold new color to add to my collection – poppy! It’s a firey orange-red color that is almost terracotta. I just love the shade and think the contrast works fabulously with the table and chair cushions. Special thanks to both Homer Laughlin Co. and AE Outdoor for making the back patio so colorful.

When I cleaned out the back patio area I discovered a bunch of beautiful old watering cans which hide the ugly staircase nicely and adds a bit of the rustic to my Fiestaware and nifty Woodbridge dining set (see above photo). If you would like to get your own set of outdoor furniture, the new 2015 sets are on the AEOutdoor.com website right now, which is where you can connect with all their social media and idea blog as well.

There you have it – a classed up redecorated backyard makeover garden potting patio room filled with color and a whole lotta fun. Before and after photos show the kick-butt results and filming back here is going to be fantastic this season. I cannot wait to see all the garden plantings fill in for summer while I am enjoying a cocktail on my new patio.