A Colorful Fall Patio and Urban Farm Tour

Hi Friends!

Last week I refinished the floors on my front porch and decorated it for fall.  You can see that makeover here.  I guess you could say I am on a roll because I put some fall touches on my back yard patio and garden this week, and updated a couple of pieces using Old Fashioned Milk Paint. My urban garden has been slowly evolving for many years.  When we bought our home 12 years ago, the back yard was just grass, one tiny tree and a couple of shrubs.  It’s very small, so I try to make use of every square inch.  It’s a place where we eat, relax, play, grow food, and raise our 5 chickens.  I’d love to show you around a bit.

The spark that started my fall decorating was repainting a pair of teak chairs I have had for a long, long time.  I purchased them years ago, and then proceeded to paint them a horrible shade of yellowish green.  Totally ugly and I had no one to blame but myself.  I never liked the color, but I have always loved the chairs.  I gave them a milk paint makeover and now they are perfect at each end of my patio table.

Disclosure:  I have received products for this post, but all opinions are entirely my own.  This post contains sponsored links from Old Fashioned Milk Paint Company.

I started by giving the chairs a good cleaning with soap and warm water.  They weren’t very dirty, but I wanted a good surface for the new paint.  I rinsed them and let them sit in the sun to dry for a day.  I mixed up a charcoal gray using 1 part Old Fashioned Milk Paint (OFMP) in snow white and one part pitch black.  I brushed on one coat and let it dry.  I wanted a dark gray weathered wood look for the chairs.   To give them some dimension, I then applied a coat of OFMP using 1 part driftwood and 1 part snow white.  I made the consistency a bit thinner than usual and lightly brushed it on to give a streaked effect.  The driftwood mixture was perfect and gave the chairs that old weathered wood look I had hoped for.  I was laughing about this makeover with my husband because this is probably how these teak chairs would have looked if I had never painted them in the first place.  I’ve come full circle on this one!  But, it’s good to know the weathered look can be created using milk paint.

We are having a beautiful fall here in Seattle, and I decided to set a simple garden table for our dinner tonight.  It may be one of the last opportunities to eat al fresco for awhile.

The green urn behind the table is a water fountain that provides soothing sound and helps to mask the city noise.  Hummingbirds regularly visit it, too.

I built the farm table for my patio last spring and it has held up beautifully so far.  I kept it mostly uncovered for the summer and it still looks great.  You can read about how I made the table here.  I made the burlap runner and napkins last week.   Both projects were no-sew and so simple. For the runner, I purchased a few yards of burlap and cut it to the size I wanted.  For the napkins, I cut 18 inch squares from some ticking fabric I had on hand.  I used pinking shears to cut the fabric, washed them, and then trimmed the loose strings.  Easy as can be.  I like the relaxed feel of the fringed edges and twine tied in a bow. Some simple thrifted white plates – nothing fussy here.

I stopped by a local farmer’s market for the colorful pumpkins, gourds and dahlias.  The flowers are placed in vases and vintage milk bottles I have collected.  No fussing here, either.  I just trimmed the stems and popped them in some water.  The colors are so vibrant and they give a seasonal and rustic feel to the table.

I gave the chicken coop a little milk paint makeover, too.

We got our new flock of 5 hens last summer, so they are a little over a  year old now.  My prior flock consisted of just 3 hens, so I needed a bigger space for new gals.   I purchased the coop and run from a local business called Saltbox Designs.  The coop is made of cedar which is great for the outdoors and if left alone would weather to a soft gray.  I decided to give it a little color using Old Fashioned Milk Paint.   OFMP is eco-friendly and non toxic, which is a win in my book.

This was one of the quickest and easiest projects – with a big impact.  I painted the coop with a color called “Sea Green”  which is a soft greenish blue gray.  On the coop it definitely reads more blue with green undertones.  I wanted a semi solid stain effect with the wood showing through somewhat, so I only used one coat.  The great thing about true milk paint is that is absorbs into raw wood like a stain.  Since this is a chicken coop, I wanted the time worn and weathered look, and true milk paint is ideal for that.  Seriously, how perfect is that color on the coop?  When used on exterior projects and exposed to rain, OFMP can develop white water marks on the finish.  This is a chicken coop, and I’m not worried about having a perfect finish.  I am totally fine with any imperfections that might develop.  Just be aware that you could get water marks on exterior painted pieces with OFMP.

The brown and gold hen in the run is Sweat Pea.  She’s the leader of the flock, and was making so much noise when I was taking the photos.  I think she’s happy with the new coop color, though.

This is Sully peeking out.  She is the silliest and sweetest little chicken.  My daughter thinks Sully is related to Big Bird and I have to say, there are some similarities.

A blue vintage Schwinn Hollywood bicycle leans against the fence.

The little orange pumpkin is from my garden.  We grew small sugar pie pumpkins last summer in one of our raised beds.  Our garden is very small, and pumpkins can take up a lot of space.  We grew a smaller variety and trellised them to save space.  They make great pie and bread and are so fun to grow, especially for kids.

We grew some apples this year, too.  They are columnar apples and great for small gardens.  They grow well in containters and only get about 3 feet wide and 8 to 10 feet tall. But the apples are full size. Peppers grew well in containers, too.

Beyond the table and next to the coop are a couple of chairs with comfy pillows for relaxing.

Well friends, thanks so much for touring my little urban farm.

Susan

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