Last week, I shared a sneak peek of an in-progress, outside project. The work was completed on Thursday, but with the holiday and out of town guest, I wasn't able to post at the end of the week as I had hoped to. I'm excited to share the reveal today, but before I do, let me explain why this outdoor area has been a thorn in my side for a long time.
This area by our side door, is also the main entrance to our house as seldom does anyone ever walk around to our front door. There wasn't anything really wrong with the space, except that the asphalt and concrete were not even AND everyone would literally pull right up in the doorway. How about Miss Mittens in the door along with the reflection of me taking the picture in my nightgown. Ha!!
The uneven surface presented lots of challenges as I was always having to prop bricks or pieces of wood under the planters so that they would sit evenly. Anything I put in this space had to be propped up.
Because the asphalt ran almost up to the door, everyone had the tendency to pull as close to the door as possible. The last function I hosted, I resorted to putting out the orange traffic cones so that there was not a big SUV in the doorway for the other guest to maneuver around. Trust me, it was not a good look. Again, not the worst challenge I have faced with this old home, but still, annoying.
I looked to Pinterest (as always) to gather ideas for an aesthetically pleasing solution, and came up with this inspirational picture. I liked this idea because of the brick and also because I knew it would sit above the asphalt separating the driveway from the doorway.
With a design in mind, we gave the mason a call. He was between jobs and was happy to give us a bid with a quick start and end date. It's so nice when a project moves with rapid speed. Rare, but oh so nice.
Once we decided on the size, he came and tore out the uneven asphalt and concrete. This step took only a couple of hours.
The next day, he poured and leveled the concrete. This step took about 1/2 a da, however the concrete had to set and harden for two days.
In the meantime, Lovey and I went to ACME brick in Denton, Texas to choose and purchase 700 bricks. I took paint swatches of the body, doors, and shutters of our house, to assure that we picked a brick that would compliment the exterior. We chose the Old Chicago as it has reds, a bit of white, black, and pale yellow in it.
Once the concrete was set, Carlos began laying the bricks. I decided to skip the herringbone pattern as I thought it would be too busy. This part of the project took an entire day.
I am so pleased with the design as well as the color variations.
And no more having to prop up one side of the planter so it sits evenly!!
The whole job took 5 days and was completed just in time for the holiday weekend. I have not had the opportunity to really fluff this area as I would like. I literally plopped everything back into place just hours before the company arrived. I'm thinking I might want to add 2 benches that face each other?? What are your thoughts??
The whole job took 5 days and was completed just in time for the holiday weekend. I have not had the opportunity to really fluff this area as I would like. I literally plopped everything back into place just hours before company arrived. I'm thinking I might want to add 2 benches that face each other?? What are your thoughts??
Thank you for stopping by and I hope you will check in again soon!!