All posts tagged summer

Sunlight and warm breezes signal the season for outdoor entertaining. For some, those words conjure up images of lounging on the beautiful backyard patio with friends and family. But, for many of us, outdoor entertaining sets off an internal alarm, reminding us of tears in the canvas cushions and umbrellas, cracks in mosaic tables, and chipped or broken patio pots, not to mention the statue that has lost a few fingers. It all adds up to a slightly shabby look to our
outdoor paradise.

Outdoor living spaces can be your summertime getaway, but before you panic and spend too much money on design consultants and all new patio furniture, stand back and take a look around your backyard like you’re seeing it for the first time.

Decide what is too shabby to save and get rid of it, whether it’s that scraggly shrub that has never thrived or those faded and chipped lawn trolls that have gone from cute to tacky. Clean away all “trash”— that stack of empty plastic flower pots from the nursery, debris around the barbecue area or tools leaning against the house

Be merciless in getting rid of scraggly flowers and shrubs. Replace them with hardy colorful species that are proven winners for your climate. If you have a “black thumb,” don’t worry. Tucking some seasonal silk flowers or ferns in a few hanging pots can be very effective and, of course, care-free!

Now you are ready to transform your outdoor living space, armed only with your imagination and a tube of versatile one-part adhesive like Amazing GOOP Lawn & Garden.

Here are some ideas (with some inspiration from award winning landscapes, via HGTV… we can dream right? Click on each image for more information):

• Try re-creating your outdoor space as several intimate “rooms” by the way you group your furniture around the lawn or patio. Subtle lighting and colorful clusters of pots or curving beds with seasonal flowers or shrubs can make these areas irresistible

• Paint inexpensive chairs and tables in bright colors to add a touch of whimsy and fun. You can turn an old table into a beautiful mosaic with some broken china and a little Amazing GOOP Lawn & Garden. This adhesive also will easily repair tears in canvas umbrellas and chair upholstery; it won’t chip or flake off because it dries to a rubbery, flexible finish that moves with the material. In fact, a tube of Amazing GOOP Lawn & Garden that is formulated for withstanding temperature change and moisture is your best bet for repairing almost anything outdoors that is cracked, torn, worn or broken.

• Create a warm, inviting experience in your own backyard — whatever fits your taste. One woman created a whimsical touch for her children by “GOOP-ing” little ceramic fairies among the branches of a small Japanese maple tree.

With a little preparation and a tube of Amazing GOOP Lawn & Garden, you can have a backyard that will keep you entertaining all summer long.

Top photo by Mathowie, via Flickr