We all could use a little summer oasis, don’t you think? A place nearby to get away from it all? To breathe a little more deeply and soak in the lazy days of summer?
I am quite smitten by Victoria’s (SF Girl By Bay) little backyard oasis. A secret backyard garden with a teepee? Yes, please.
On this porch, the striped summer curtains give a little privacy and whimsy while creating the perfect place for summer daydreaming on a porch swing or comfy chair.
This lovely pergola invites you to a quiet place to get away from it all! I adore this.
An adorable little cabana can set the stage for a secret little corner of the yard! So sweet.
Or, claim a quiet shady corner of your backyard as your own quiet oasis! I could not love this backyard any more. LOVE!
I’m working on my own little backyard summer oasis on my deck! I love sitting out there on a quiet summer morning with my coffee listening to the birds chirping! Bliss!
Do you have a carefree spot to slow down and relax this summer?
I love cozy backyard porches and decks with covered trellises or pergolas. I’m hoping to get our deck built this summer and that is what I”m aiming for too. Everyone tells me to build it big, but I don’t like big decks. I like cozy intimate decks surrounded by flowers and shrubs. I have to say that striped cabana you posted looks like an outhouse to me, but the rest of the pictures I love.
Ha, cutest outhouse I’ve ever seen then! :-)
Love those! I am currently working on my own outdoor oasis but would love to include some seating in it. Maybe some day it’ll have some. I do have a bright yellow garden stool for now but some day I’ll have a better oasis in my back yard. Maybe when a certain big dog quits digging holes! My parents have one of the best I’ve seen in real life. I have to get some pictures of it some day and blog about it. Shaded, surrounded by gorgeous plants, a little bit of water, and comfy chairs. They’re about to start a hot tub area too and will surround it by more plants. What could be better than a hot tub in a beautiful area?!?
We’re creating a little rest spot in our garden with a shutter privacy screeen and a couple of Adirondak chairs under a huge old maple tree. The hot tub will have to wait for another year.
Hi! I love the little tent..!
My sanctuary is a hammock in a serene part of the garden. I it use every chance I get, hopefully there will be many sunny days here in cold Norway :)
I loved the little tent, can´t wait until next weekend, when I put up my fairytale viking tent! I am going to the first of two markets where I live authentically (more or less) as a viking for a week. :D
Sounds very lovely!
Right now on this Sunday morning I am sitting on our enclosed back porch drinking coffee and having my dog jump up on me with wet paws. Almost relaxing. :) I plan to do lots of decorating out here this summer. This porch is one of the reasons we bought this house and right now it is half-decorated and the other half is a dumping ground for extra furniture, the pool bag, and other misplaced junk. I have to make this place prettier! Is that last picture of your deck? Wow. I love the colors and look.
…wish i could sit there with you…and tell you how many people you bless…hugs laney
Aw, well thank you Laney! That made my night.
Hi Melissa!
These are all so beautiful…I never could figure out how to comment on the post where you featured my craft room a few weeks ago…but all this time I’ve wanted to say thank you! very much!
♥ much love
You are welcome! :-)
The pergola (Southern Living) is fabulous!! Would love to do this to my brick patio!
Love it!
Hey Melissa,
I love the Coastal living porch with it’s striped curtains. I have a sun room that I love and I spend so much time out there and I keep telling myself that I’m going to add curtains to it one day. I ‘m lucky enough to have a front porch too, and that I just bought a outdoor recliner for out there. Now that’s my reading room, I can sit out there to read or just watch the birds and people go by.
I love all of these but especially the pergola. I have so many retreat spaces in the summer – my front porch, my patio, under a tree by our pool or in the corner of the pool deck in the double hammock swing. I think my flowers are the prettiest they have ever been and I just marvel that I get to live here!
Hey Melissa! Great inspiration pics. Just what I needed :) I just posted our yard tour and projects and now this week I hope to have the darn projects and decorating done outside! It’s fun though making the deck pretty :)
Melissa
You have been so sweet to share my daughters room and my boys room on your “Home Tours”. I just ran across this today and it blessed me! Thank you for sharing it. *hugs* to you!
p.s. we lost our little Westie McKenzie 2 weeks ago-we had to put her down and its been soooo hard. I thought of you & your Westie and hope he is doing well and still going strong.
Take care
Amanda Eck
Oh I’m so sorry :-( that just breaks my heart. So hard.
Winston is doing well for 17…thanks for asking.
If we ever get our pergola up I will have a great back deck to relax on. The back of our place faces the west plus we’re on top of a hill which gives us a spectacular view. I’d love to sit out there to have breakfast and whatever. The wind here (west of Grand Junction, CO close to UT border) is atrocious alot of the time. Having an umbrella just isn’t an option as the wind carries it off and destroys it. If we ever get our pergola up we’ll install lattice screens to help combat the wind and still be able to enjoy the view. We can see over two miles away and then some and we’re surrounded by mountain ranges, spectacular. It’s so hot out on deck in afternoon tho we can’t enjoy it in summer. We’ve lived in this house almost 6 yrs. and are still waiting for kids to help Dad put it up. He can’t get up on top to put the top boards up since he had a stroke almost 2 yrs ago and neither can I. Maybe someday we can get that up before we’re too old to enjoy it.
This is when I miss our house in KY that had a wonderful covered front porch and a nice deck on back. Not enough to live there anymore tho darn it.
Enjoy your deck.
reminds me that I need to go clean out the tree house before my grandkids get here….love a good hide away.
Happy Day
I have a lovely back yard with a covered porch, swimming pool and garden beds. A few week ago, I was devasted when the new neighbors decided to put up a entertainment center for their kids. When they told me about it, I thought a swing set or something. Nope – I have, right next to my property line, a deck area which is at six feet or the height of my fence (which I cannot increase due to local rules), a fort, a swing set, a zip line. And lots of kids, theirs and neighbors. I no longer have privacy in my own back yard. Or for that matter, in my house since the elevated deck and fort can be seen from my porch, dining room, living room and bedroom windows.
After much internal discussion, I decided that I will continue as I always have so if they don’t like the fact that I walk out in my pjs with my morning coffee to check on my tomatoes, TOUGH! I had the proper height of fences for my property; they are the ones who violated the rule. If it gets creepy, I’ll go to the HOA, otherwise, I’ll let it be for “good neighbors” sake. It’s still creepy to me…. am I wrong?
Other than that, I have installed rods, curtains, etc on my covered porch (like the second picture) and it is so cosier, mysterious, etc. I can still see the fort structure through the curtains, but it is not as obvious. If it becomes a problem, I’ll increase the number of curtains/thickness of the curtains.
So…the ideas are good if you have similar issues with neighbors – you get a cozier place and more privacy….
Oh dear, that would be irritating!! Glad you have a way to deal with it though!!
Have to say…so enjoying your web blog. Just happened by it one day while looking for cottage style ideas, and totally fell in love. I am determined that little by little I will transform our new little 2-story house into the most comfortable, relaxing escape house-cottage I can…a place where all can come and feel rest and relax ooze into their bones. That’s my goal…and you’re helping alot. My only problem? I have to put everything away first! I get very impatient with myself and want to get it all done yesterday. Budget and time and resources are my obstacle. New mission…work on one room at a time…Do the best I can with what I’ve already got… And let dream-dream-dream be my oasis for now…
these inspirations are so nice! i think doing a bunkie in your yard would be a great idea!
I honestly love this & am actually planning on using a little teepee for a photoshoot in the fall with my nearly-3-year-old! She’ll love it, I’m sure!