Create a Stunning Outdoor Retreat with these Easy Upgrades

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Looking to upgrade the exterior of your home? It is sometimes the smallest and the simplest upgrades that can have the biggest impact. You want to make your backyard usable and beautiful. And that means looking at how you can improve what you currently have and add little things that can offer something transformative.

You can be as simple as you like with extra plants, or you could light up your garden with fairy lights. You could tackle that DIY patio door replacement or you could reinvigorate your decking with a good wash. No matter what you do, you’ll be able to make some simple upgrades that transform your backyard to make it the place you want to be, not the place that you are stuck with. Let’s take a look at some of these amazing simple outdoor upgrades that your backyard really does need. 

Image source: Pexels

1. Paint your own garden mural. If you have any plain outdoor walls, you can really light up the space and bring it together with a mural. You don’t need to hire an artist either, because a mural can be as artistic as you would like it to be. You don’t have to be the next Picasso to be able to Draw Something amazing, but if you have a natural talent for painting then having a mural painted on a wall outside is really going to make it look great. You can be as bright or as muted as you like with colors, and you can make it exactly how you’d want it to be. There are no rules here when it comes to a garden mural.
2. Go outside of tradition. You want a pool in the garden, but you don’t necessarily have the cash to be able to install your own one in ground, so use a stock tank pool instead. It’s an inexpensive alternative to a traditional swimming pool. Traditional could be quite expensive and it also requires a lot of maintenance. There are so many ways that you can use an 8 foot round galvanized stock tank to create your own swimming pool. You can even paint the exterior to match the aesthetic of your home, which can make a big difference to how you feel about it. In the end, you end up with a swimming pool, and who doesn’t want one of those?
3. Build your own outdoor bar. A simple outdoor upgrade can be in the form of a bar, but that doesn’t mean you have to go all out and actually build a bar. It just means that you can bring in an outdoor bar cart and put your favorite concoctions on a wire shelf with wheels. It’s a compact and budget friendly way to be able to have your own outdoor bar and in the summer months that can feel wonderful. Just don’t forget the buckets of ice to keep those drinks chilled as you go.
4. Hang some flowers. Having planted flowers along the borders of your garden is a great idea for colour and an injection of life, but hanging plants can make a big difference too. Adding a flare of colour and a lush look to your backyard is a great thing to do if you want to make an upgrade that is super simple. Your porch ceiling is a good anchor spot and you can even have a fence with flowers and plants hanging down. If you’re not looking to install any hardware or make any holes in the ceiling, you can hang them using S hooks. This’ll add that extra blast of colour you’ve been looking for.
5. Build your own bird bath. Creating a bird bath in your garden is going to be brilliant for the wildlife. Not only can squirrels come in and have a drink, but the birds can have a bath and have a drink as well. You can build your own with a large planter, fill it with some soil and then add the actual dish of the bath to the top. You can allow it to collect rainwater, or you can fill it with fresh water. It’s completely up to you, but a bird bath is a wonderful addition.
6. Have you considered adding a fire pit? You don’t have to have an inbuilt fire pit to have a wonderful place to sit around and make smores. You can make your own fire pit at a much lower cost by adding a metal fire pit bowl with cinder blocks or pavers. You can stagger them in their pattern to make it look like a nice stone fire pit. If you live in an area with a cooler climate than having a fire pit is an absolute must. It’s a DIY project and it gives you all of the benefits you’re looking for without a massive price tag that can make all of the difference to your garden and be transformative as to how you use a space in the evenings.

Image source: Pexels

7. Get the outdoor furniture upgraded. If you don’t want to have proper seating outside, you can invest in some colorful seated pillows. You can brighten up the existing outdoor furniture with bright pillows for spring and summer and earthy tones for the autumn and winter months. Pops of colour can really change the look of your yard, but if you don’t have actual chairs then getting giant outdoor bean bags can be a great addition to your decking.It’s somewhere that you can lay back, read a book and enjoy some delicious drinks in the sunshine. But don’t forget to have a cover so that you don’t get sunburn.
8. Add some plant pots. Having a potting station to help your garden to be more efficient is important. It’ll save you from back pain, but you can use old tables or scraps of plywood to createspace to hold planters, soil and gardening tools. Nice storage isn’t a problem either because you can hang all of your supplies on the wall. You deserve to have a beautiful garden with the right planters with herbs and spices planted as well, and you can only do that if you have the right plant pots out there.
9. Get a hammock set up. Setting up a hammock and adding pillows can really give you somewhere to relax in your garden. String the lighting in the trees around it, add some blankets and even a basket of food when you get hungry so that you can create somewhere that is somewhere you can sneak off and enjoy a good book. If you’re looking for a quiet sanctuary, you now have the tools to be able to add your own. 
10. Upgrade your lighting with Mason jars. Filling any Mason jars or other glass jars with LED battery operated string lighting can help you to really maximize the lighting that you’ve got and make it look quirky. It will look like fireflies that are caught in the glass, and if you have a snowy winter ahead, it’s still going to look beautiful then too.

The upgrades and changes that you make to your garden can be as simple or as complicated as you like, but the end goal is going to be the same. Maximizing your space so that you have somewhere to relax and somewhere you can feel proud of is important. Simple outdoor upgrades are transformative for a backyard space, and whether you’re looking to sell a home or you just want something more to enjoy, you can really enjoy your new backyard.