Summer Outdoor Ideas

 

Today is the last day of school, which means it’s about to be officially summer for us. I have a long list of outdoor projects, ideas and recipes that I have been collecting throughout the year that I can’t wait to try this summer. I thought I would share just a few of my favorite summer outdoor ideas on my list and maybe something will inspire you and go on your summer to do list as well.

There are so many fun ideas for outdoor entertaining and this garden urn turned wine chiller is probably one of my favorites from Southern Living Magazine:

 

 

In the past I have used smaller urns to hold napkins and silverware, but it never even occurred to me to use them to chill and serve wine and drinks.  I wonder if it would work well to fill a large fiberglass garden urn with assorted beverages? I think I’m going to try that as well.  There are a lot of possibilities with this idea, especially for serving food and drinks or for an elegant outdoor buffet.

Next up and at the very top of my list is to make these delicious looking cheesecakes in a jar.  They were created and shared by The Italian Dish Blog:

 

 

Don’t they look so amazing?  What a fun idea and the recipe looks to be so easy.  The jar idea is perfect for entertaining a large group and they look so pretty.  I simply cannot wait to try these!

We love to cook and grill, especially during the summer.  I have collected a lot a links to some amazing looking recipes on my Pinterest Food Board here if you’re looking for some awesome food and summer drink recipes.  I can’t wait to try this recipe for Blackberry Mojitos from Just Putzing Around the Kitchen:

 

 

How refreshing does that look?  What a great idea!  I love standard mojitos but adding the blackberry sounds like a fantastic combination.

I have been busy getting my backyard and patio all pretty-fied for summer and I just completed one project that I posted last week if you missed it.  I shared a little tutorial for turning an inexpensive potting bench into an outdoor bar:

 

 

A potting bench is a great piece for creating an outdoor bar or food station.  You can find that post here if you want the details on where to buy the potting bench and the hardware that we installed to transform it.

We are in the middle of a large renovation of our backyard/ patio pool area and we are almost finished.  Thank goodness!! This project has not gone quite the way we had hoped and was one of those projects that had to be done {resolve drainage issues}.  The good news is that eventually everything will come together and we have been looking for ideas and inspiration for outdoor furniture and landscaping.  I have found some great pictures and ideas but one of my favorite backyard inspirations is this patio featured on Better Homes and Garden:

 

 

I love everything about this patio.  The color combination and the how comfortable the furniture looks.  I also love the fence.  Long term, I think we are going to do something  just like this fence.  I also love the landscaping and I would give anything if I could grow hydrangeas.  Hydrangeas are my favorite flower but they just don’t do as well in East Texas soil.

To pull everything together in my backyard and patio, I am so inspired by all of the gorgeous pots and garden containers that I found featured on Better Homes and Garden:

 

 

 

I love the mix of plants, flowers and succulents in this picture. The color combos are so pretty to me.  Having gorgeous planted containers throughout my backyard and patio really makes me smile and they really add the perfect finishing touch.  I have already done a lot of container planting so far after I stumbled on a 75% off deal at Lowe’s on palms and grasses.  I bought $400.00 worth of plants for $100.00!!  It’s going to take me awhile to get everything planted but I am slowly getting it done.

By the way, Lowe’s regularly runs 50%- 75% closeouts on plants that need to be planted quickly, so check in often and ask if anything is getting marked down if you need a lot of plants.   My Lowe’s always has at least a 50% cart that I always go check out first.

So many amazing summer outdoor ideas, so little time.  Summer is going to fly by and I am making it my goal to at least get to a few things on my list.  If you’re looking for more inspiration and summer ideas, you can check out my Backyard Pinterest Board found here that has a lot of beautiful landscaping ideas.   I also have a lot of ideas on my Pool House Board found here for more fun patio and pool inspiration.

Have a wonderful Memorial weekend friends!

Cheers!

Cyndy