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Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Outdoor fireplace!

Hi everyone! I know it has been a very looooong time since I have blogged. I have really missed it! I've had several messages asking for details on our outdoor fireplace we had installed two years ago. When we bought the house 4 years ago, it was a brand new home that was just built. We loved everything about the house except the back yard! It was nothing but a big hill!


We had originally planned on putting a pool in. We had a couple of pool companies come out and draw up some plans, but found out we had a big easement on the back of the property. We also found out that the pool has to be several feet away from the back of the house... Our pool was going to be really long and skinny. Not what we were wanting. We went back to the drawing boards and decided that an outdoor fireplace would be perfect! We absolutely love it!

Here are a few pictures of the "backyard hill" we had to work with. Yikes! As much as my husband and I love to do DIY projects, we quickly decided this one one we needed to leave to the professionals! We hired a great company to do all the work from start to finish.





Our covered back porch was great, but we wanted to extend it by adding stone all the between the fireplace and the patio. My husband & I brainstormed our ideas for the space, put a few things on paper & met with the company. They loved the ideas we had and followed them exactly!


I thought I had some pics of the first days of work, but couldn't find them. They basically dug out of the hill, laid a concrete pad with giant rebars to support the weight of the fireplace, laid the stone pavers, and created a drainage system behind the fireplace & rock seating area.






The fireplace was brought in three pieces. I was jumping for joy the day it arrived! It was exactly how I wanted it to look like.




Once it was set in place, they began building the wood storage boxes. We had tossed around the idea of having a waterfall on each side, but decided on the wood storage boxes in the end. Glad we made that choice. Love how it looks when it is full of wood!





Next came the sod, adding the outdoor furniture we picked out and decorating! They were still cleaning up their messes and washing down the patio when I was decorating for Fall! I couldn't wait! 



One of my favorite times to enjoy the patio is at night, fire going, happy lights on, music playing... Ahh... So relaxing.









Now, we need to start thinking about phase 2 of the project. We would love to add landscaping all across the back fence. Thanks for stopping by! Maybe it won't be as long between posts next time!