Design Ideas for yard and home Archives - Northern California Style

Hello, today a quick post about yards and gardens..I hope you all are enjoying spring. I’ve got gardens and outdoor spaces on the brain and I thought I’d share a few things that dropped on my radar the past week or so. Maybe you’re thinking that way too as we edge closer to summer? A few photos of the yard from last year…I have so many plants to still work on after replacing the back fence two years ago.

Yards and plants were something that has always been a big thing in my family. I grew up in a small tract house in San Jose, and my parents always took a lot of pride in the outdoor spaces making them beautiful. In 1972 my dad scraped together $5,000 to put in a big kidney shaped pool that he surrounded with cool plants and a meandering green yard of walled ivy. My mom would repaint and freshen up our wood chaise lounges each summer and dad would make sure to have her favorite impatiens and roses looking beautiful. My parents absolutely used the yard as an extension of the house and most weekends we were outdoors all day. So you see I naturally have an excitement that comes with the springtime and also a bit of anxiety about getting my yard pretty and tended to in time! I always want an inviting spot outdoors. Every year I have plant goals – to get more in, and furniture pieces I want to add..and others that need to go and are looking a bit worn.

As a Californian, it’s a given that we have and use our outside spaces as part of our homes. Nor more so than the past year as we were all grounded with the pandemic. As people are weary of being inside, the garden has sparked a lot of interest for those who previously had no interest and thought they had no skill. Many have also extended their spaces outside, as we did with our front patio.. We also have three neighbors who did the same! We could not have been more grateful to have done those things with the four of us being mostly home the past year. This was back when we first put the front patio in..

And now you can see the plants have taken off..

Many people have now created spaces for flowers and gardens where they previously had none. Some have found the ease of vegetable gardening- even from patio containers. It’s rewarding and also calming to garden! I also believe it’s good for your health. Gardeners seem to live long lives! I have another post with some gardening tips I have learned from my dad coming soon. I also know there is more inspiration on this wildly popular BBC series, Gardener’s World. Some is available free on Amazon with Prime. Newer seasons you need the BritBox which is $6.99 through Amazon I think. ( I can just see my husband complaining about yet another subscription, but so much to enjoy here.) I want to watch all of these episodes..

As it’s spring there is a whole lot of cool garden inspired items lately..

Target has a great collection for gardeners by Smith & Hawkins. I finally got myself a pair of proper garden boots..I like the low boots and pretty lining for mucking about and watering.

I also bought these great garden gloves– and I like the kneeler which I should have gotten.

Of course with the florals in mind, I LOVE these hand block-printed garden cushions at Terrain. They are meant to scatter about on benches or wherever. They aren’t sun resistant, so you need to have them in covered spaces or bring in when not in use as they are pricier, but have that vintage English garden feel. Gorgeous prints!

Also lovely are these Perennials (sun resistant) Rosemont Pillow from Serena & Lily which come in three colors!

And these Serena Perennials Palm Pillows which come in four colors.I think it’s not easy to find sun resistant pillows in lighter tones. They tend to be pretty bright.

Serena & Lily has new patio chairs and I love the shape. They come in white and natural. Great look with the small table. I’d like to have this little set for my front patio. The blue West Beach Pillow Cover on the chair is also outdoor friendly…Even the wall sconces match here! My white couch and chair on the top picture are S&L Pacifica.

I love, love, love wicker and rattan in any form. My husband likes to taunt me and say ‘wicker makes him sicker.’ MEN! I also just got the Rattan book and it’s 100/ 10..Great inspiration and historical photos. Plus the dust jacket has a rattan bit that will look fabulous on your coffee table.

If you’re into more colorful pillows these Vera for Anthropologie are cute..

The whole Vera line at Anthropologie is retro cool from outdoor tableware to dresses and handbags..Check it out here.

I’ve also ordered a few garden books. There are so many good one out now to inspire.. Under Western Skies is out in May and it looks wonderful with different new landscapes and yards that mix modern and traditionally pretty. There’s something for everyone in this book..

I love The Flower Yard for the smaller spaces and those who want gorgeous containers…

Arthur also has a beautiful Instagram to follow…

This book also is a good primer for those most interested in a kitchen garden.

If you are looking for living outdoor space inspiration, The Art of Outdoor Living by Scott Shrader is the absolute best. So many gorgeous spaces…

His garden spaces feel like real rooms. Mirrors are a wonderful outdoor addition…Love the walls!

Don’t be afraid to drag indoor furniture outside when you entertain. Do you ever do that? We like to bring out throws, poufs and pillows from the indoors out with us. I even have a vintage marble table as my outdoor coffee table. It’s been awesome. I just cover the wood parts with a tarp during the winter months. Bring the indoor pieces out and do what you can to create the feeling of real rooms outside!

One night where we dragged indoor chairs and blankets out..A bit messy, but you get the feeling.

I also ordered this California book..Lush Life, Food & Drinks from the Garden. I read about Valerie in Santa Barbara Magazine. She also has an Instagram EatDrinkGarden. It looks perfect for summer entertaining. Let’s think positive there will be more gatherings for us all this year!

I hope this was a little motivating for your spring yard and gardens. I know this weekend we will be working in the yard more and also helping my oldest Jackson move to his first solo apartment! It’s a big deal and he’s very excited. I am happy for him after finishing college and working a job from his bedroom for the past year. I am also slightly sad we are one step closer to being empty nesters. The years sure flew by fast.

Happy weekend !

Kim

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Hello I’ve been meaning to write a little more about life and some thoughts about decorating. I’m kind of emptying the contents of my head here, so I understand if you click away early.

Things are always busy in the springtime, but this year exceptionally so as both my boys are graduating -one from 8th grade and the oldest from high school. I can hardly believe it, but yesterday caps and gowns were handed out and it really hit home for me. I’m not sure I’m ready for this next stage!

Life has been a whirlwind as my dad and I finally got my grandmother’s home sold after a year of cleaning it out. Amazingly it sold within a week thanks to the talents of my dear friend Gail and her husband Stephen who managed to turn it into something unbelievably pretty with just paint, carpets, refreshing the details and staging.

Gail has an eye for this and it’s part of her service when selling a house. Honestly, I couldn’t be more shocked it turned out as well as it did. It was a huge burden off my dad and I as we got multiple offers and a lot more than asking which helps as it will fund my grandmother’s care. Our next step is to find grandma a place to call her own that has more services and meals. At age 98 she was still doing everything for herself and has finally agreed to more help so she can enjoy life and we don’t have to worry she’ll fall or leave the stove on.

My darling grandma Jody.

My 8th grader Griffin is excited to be heading to high school. How that can be happening already I do not know. Our oldest, Jackson hoped to go to college in Northern Cal and as the schools here are seriously impacted, it’s been a challenge. Everyone from this area has fantastic grades and accolades, so no matter what he’s done, it seems not enough for California schools. He’s gotten into some he’s not sure about and the ones he loves he is on a waitlist for. We are still not sure what he will chose. Making sure to pay and sign up for grad night, senior ball, graduation tickets, 8th grade dance, Great America trips, rent tuxedos, making a senior memory board and visiting more colleges has consumed all my brain capacity. I just pray I don’t drop the ball on something. I’ve got both a paper and electronic calendar in case and am sometimes scared to look at it in the morning!

Hard to believe these are my babies.

Besides all this I am finally getting rolling on revamping our home and garden. You know that feeling that your home isn’t living up to it’s potential? We’ve been here over five years and though we adore our house, it needs some updates. I’ve really been in holding pattern on this as we carefully considered how much we want to spend. With college coming for both boys pretty fast we want to make good decisions, but we also know this is the time to do it if we are ever going to. I think your home is your nest and it’s always worth working on. It should be your sanctuary.

One of the issues is the house needs a better flow between the kitchen and dining. A wall needs to be taken out or partially removed.

This is the wall that has to go..

My kitchen in it’s natural state!

At the same time the roomy kitchen may need a better spot for people to gather and the small peninsula we have is a bit small. I wonder if we should make an island? We have to replace our greenhouse windows which are falling apart, and at the same time may reconfigure the kitchen a bit. I absolutely want to change out the granite counters for marble and add some open shelving. I’d like to move the frig to the place the ovens are and add a big range where the current cook top is. I just want a classic look though that won’t seem dated in 5 years. I’m thinking some combination of wood/ marble…

Are these all not gorgeous? I want to preserve my cabinets, but add some new elements. Love drawers vs, cabinets and these soft grey colors and pedant lights are all beautiful.

So you know how remodeling becomes a slippery slope? We also need and want to replace the wood floors in the house and add wood where there is old carpet. The kitchen floor is beyond refinishing. It may even be more affordable to get all new pre-finished wide plank wood floors than refinish the very old wood here. At the same time there are two funky fireplaces that are on opposite sides of the same wall, but surprisingly not back to back.

This is one of my fireplaces which is classic. The other is white brick.

They are on the wall I need partially removed so I am thinking of replacing all of it with one two-sided fireplace that might look something like this..

There are a lot of good points to this home. It has a terrific living room with built-ins, and a good front house layout. We love our court and our yard. I just want to add to the enjoyment of our home without changing the charm. The very generic look remodels I see now is something I want to avoid. I like quirky, and I’m hoping with just with a few tweaks it will be all it is and a bit better. One thing I really care about is choosing quality materials for the updates done. That is always worth paying for and goes a long way making your house look and feel wonderful.

Our front door and entrance needs updating and that leads me to the curb appeal. Right now it has zilch!

We were forced to remove this beautiful, hut huge Sequoia from the front yard last year and it left a terrible hole. After that we knew we had to relandscape as the porch was lifted up and almost crooked due to the tree roots. The steps to the house were the same. It all has to come out so we are finally getting a new patio and we designed a mid-century kind of walkway with offset steps. We also are adding an olive tree which I have always wanted. Next to that will be gravel and native plants and still a small bit of lawn. Sort of like this..

I am trying to keep to what the house was. Cement with a small border is all I wanted as pavers or pressed concrete are a bit trendy for the style of this ranch home. Our house also has a very funky front. One side is stucco. One side has vertical boards. There is rock on one side too. I joke to my husband maybe our house was the model to look at and choose your options for your facade back when these were built in 1965. Lol. I want to match the boards so both sides look the same, keep the rock, and paint the whole house a off white or cream with oversized black lantern lights and add a sage green or a very light blue door with a big window. Some ideas I’m liking..

This color Colonial Verdigris by Ben Moore is wonderful with white or off-white.

Wonderful door, but I’d do without the mullions.

Love this color combo and the lanterns!

Our backyard has an interesting pool that includes a lap lane, but the plants needed some TLC. After firing my usual mow and blow gardeners, I managed myself for a while and had my kids mow. The upkeep was too much though with all the plants, trimming etc. I was spying on a guy who did the neighbors and spent hours at her home lovingly tending roses, using a broom and other things you never see gardeners here do. I finally hired him and slowly we are transforming my backyard to it’s former glory. When I bought the house many of the plants had died and we are replanting vines and redoing the drip and the borders. I’m hoping by summer it will look swell again. We put in natives like lavenders and such and love the bees, butterflies and hummingbirds they bring. My goal is to have all lavender over the pool edge. Kind of like this..

We have brick and the lavender will hang over the edge more. Is this beautiful or what? via Anthony Paul Landscape Design. I’d hire them, but they are in the U.K.

I also replaced some older yard furniture with outdoor wicker and I love it.

My yard before the paintings were put in.

I like these ‘cozy chairs’ as they are called because I can move them in any configuration. I was thinking a sectional, but for the size of my yard this gives me more options. I couldn’t believe the prices of yard furniture. So many of the sectionals were in the many thousands. I found this set at Orchard Supply and it was on sale at a much lower cost and is quality. Honestly as nice as Restoration is I don’t believe some of the prices warrant that much better of a product. Some people need to have name brands, but have confidence and look around there are high quality options for much less -and you can use the money you save for a nice vacation!

Speaking of vacations we just pooled all our frequent flier miles and are planning a family trip to Switzerland, Germany, Austria and a few days in London. I have no idea what we will do, but I know Munich, Vienna and Salzburg are on our list. My husband and kids want to take the Chocolate Train to Gruyere. Does that sound great or what? Seriously, that’s a real thing you can do!

Do any of you have any good hotel or other recommendations for these areas? We’ve been to Germany before yet know less about Austria and Switzerland planning.

I love to hear your home thoughts and idea. My wheels are spinning. I’ve been studying the book Habitat by Lauren Liess. She’s one of my favorite designers right now. Her blog is great too if you’re a design junkie like me. Her look is a very hip mix of natural materials yet a modern and almost eclectic aesthetic I really like.

A room in her last home is a great example of Lauren’s kind of look. This is cozy, yet chic and natural.

Can you believe I almost took a part time job starting this month? It was a great opportunity, but I decided I just couldn’t make it work now without having a breakdown. My father thinks I am nuts and he is right. Maybe next year.

Thanks for reading…you made it to the end!

Kim

p.s I really truly am still working on the Hawaii post! It’s almost done.

Images mine and via Pinterest.