Spaces: The Garden Room

This was our deck earlier this summer, just after we finished staining it.


This is the deck with the new trellis.

We have a beautiful deck off our dining room that sits over our garage. It serves as a back yard of sorts; a great place for the kids to splash in the pool or play while I make lunch. I wanted to place a trellis along my deck for awhile now. I was looking to create a space for hanging baskets and bird feeders and maybe a string or two of those fun cafe lights for ambiance. We finally accomplished this project in August!

This project was a classic representation of how many projects get accomplished around here. I have an idea, which I may or may not be able to communicate in a way that gains the same gusto from other family members. My husband, trusting me, does the work.

The night before we purchased our supplies I was feeling a bit apprehensive; maybe my vision of this trellis was cooler than it was really going to turn out. Fears were squelched as the project took shape. I absolutely love it. I think of it as my garden room. Somehow defining the space of the deck by adding 8' 4x4's made the deck feel bigger and yet cozier.

We set aside a long weekend to accomplish this and two other outdoor projects, but we completed this one in just one day. We used metal "L" brackets and 4x4 post holders for decking to secure all the pieces to our existing deck. With a few cuts on the miter saw and screws to hold everything in their place, it was finished. And when the "L" brackets weren't being used for the project, they were serving as tents in a Lego campsite.