I am crazy excited to finally share our (almost) finished patio makeover with you! Yes, almost. You see, this project has taken way longer than expected due to bad weather (so.much.rain) and underestimating just how long it would take to sand down the deck prior to applying the new stain. So, what's not done you ask? The railing. So yes, I'm sharing our deck reveal because other than the new railing not being installed, everything else is done and that deserves a big "woohoo!!!". Incase you're wondering, we will be installing glass railing along the front of the deck and metal along the sides.
Yeah, I totally underestimated just how long and how much time it would take to sand down the deck, to remove the old stain. Then there was the rain, so much rain, which delayed everything even more. But, we were patient and tackled what we could, when we could. We are SO incredibly happy with the new look of our upper patio, it's so much better than before, like, we can't even believe the difference.
Let's back it up a bit. The decision was made to re-stain the deck because the old colour was peeling and well, it wasn't the look we were hoping for. I chose a bad colour, we didn't apply it well, and it just never looked good. Then there was the outdoor dining table, which we had purchased when we were in our old house, which had a much bigger deck than the one we have now. So it took up way too much space here, but the other thing is that we very rarely used it. Hubs suggested we do away with a table all together, which made complete sense, but it also gave me a bit of anxiety. I mean, what if we wanted to eat out there? Then what would we do?! But in the end, we are more of the "sit outside and chill" vs the "sit outside and dine" kind of people. We donated the table and chairs and it was totally the right decision for us. I think I may eventually purchase a small bistro table, or perhaps a firepit/table combo for the lower deck, but there's no rush, that's for sure.
Okay, now for the before. As I mentioned, the old stain was peeling and we simply had to do something about it. We chose to sand the deck down vs using a wash. We used a belt sander (be sure to wear ear and eye protection when using sanders) wherever we could (we had two going most of the time, to speed things up!) and then a hand sander for the smaller spots (again, two going when we could!). It definitely took time, but we loved the fact that we were able to restore the wood close to it's original condition.
(we were anxious to remove the old railing! some of it is already down in these photos lol)
Ugh.
After we decided to replace the outdoor dining set with a conversation set, we measured out the space so that we would know exactly how much room we had to work with. The last thing we wanted was to end up with another set that was just too big for the space! We immediately fell in love with the Somerset Collection from Canadian Tire (sold separately but includes a loveseat, armchair and ottoman). Gosh, I just love it! The sloped arms, the neutral fabrics, the weave and the comfort. This set has it all! As I said, we are max relaxers, this set and new space is truly an extension of our living space. I love how when you're looking outside from inside the house, how it looks like a continuation of our indoor living space. It all works together perfectly and I never appreciated how important that is!
We also added a pergola to the upper deck. My husband really wanted a design with clean lines, so we went with that. He drew up the plans and he and his Dad installed it in a day and a half (they're amazing like that! lol). Of course, we had to string lights from it ;) We love it! What amazed us was how much bigger the deck looked once the pergola was finished.
The next step was to stain the deck. One thing we knew for sure is that we weren't going to make the same mistake twice, because we most definitely did not want to have to sand down the deck like we did this time. We wanted the deck to essentially look the way it does right after it rains. So for that, we went with Premier Paint Natural Semi-Transparent Stain, from Canadian Tire. After applying the stain to only a few boards, we knew that we made the right decision to achieve the look we were going for. Though it's "natural", it does have a bit of warmer tone. If you want something a little less warm, but that would give you a similar look, I'd recommend taking a look at Cape Cod Grey.
And this is how it looks now:
Pssst, Canadian Tire carries these beautiful planters and terra cotta pots! Yes, please!
What we learned through this is that it's so important to take the time to really prep the deck properly prior to applying stain. It's a lot of work, for sure, but it's so worth it. It's also important to choose pieces that work with your lifestyle. Since we aren't big outdoor diners, having a conversation set was the way to go. We've sat out here every night since we set it up and have had friends over multiple times! We're using the upper deck way more than ever!
Cheers,
Canadian Tire was kind enough to work with me on this post. All opinions are my own.
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