Makeover Takeover: Backyard Redo
Country Living teamed up with North Carolina–based Victoria and Marcus Ford to update their 1970s Dutch Colonial–style home, one DIY-filled endeavor at a time. This installment: beautifying the backyard!
“Wild.” That's how Victoria Ford (@prepfordwife) describes the state of their backyard when she and her husband, Marcus (@marcsford), moved in last year. “Everything was so overgrown,” adds Marcus. While they loved the slightly rustic feel of the tree-filled space, it was far from the park-like setting they envisioned for hosting backyard movie nights and playing with their dogs on the lawn. “We spend a large portion of our time outside, so rather than bringing the outdoors in, we aimed for the opposite, by pulling the indoors out, to create a green extension of where we already live,” Says Victoria.
Related: Take a tour of the rest of Marcus and Victoria's house and see all their amazing room makeovers: the front exterior, entry, and dining room; the bedroom, bath, and laundry; the living room; and the kitchen.
Before
A large but overgrown and uninviting backyard
After: A Lush and Orderly Landscape Plan
To tackle the overgrown yard, Victoria and Marcus consulted with online landscape design company Yardzen. “They gave us this fun quiz and asked about favorite plants and how we wanted to use the yard. Then they spit out this really nice design and rendering that was like, ‘Aha! Yes, that is exactly what we want,’ ” says Victoria.
After: A Pretty and Welcoming Yard
Pea gravel paths meander neatly through the yard, edged with ‘Minuteman’ hostas, Baby Gem boxwoods, ‘Shamrock’ Inkberry shrubs, and Endless Summer hydrangeas. “The more hydrangeas, the better!” says Victoria.
Get the Look:
Landscape Design: by Yardzen
Before
An unattractive concrete pad sat unused behind the garage.
After: An Inviting Seating (And Movie Watching!) Area
For the Fords, any night is movie night, so an established spot for movie-watching was high on the backyard wish list. To turn the wide-open area behind the garage into a comfortable “room,” the couple started by defining the space. A large water-and-stain-resistant braided rug woven of Sunbrella yarns provides the space-defining base, while a chambray blue Sunbrella retractable awning cozies things up and shades the pull-down screen. “The scalloped awning gives it this very preppy and chic feel, yet it’s still casual,” says Victoria.
Get the Look:
Retractable Awning: Sunbrella "Lapis" by Eclipse Awning
Rug: Sunbrella "Southport Stripe" in Ash by Colonial Mills
Sofa and Chairs: "Capistrano" (upholstered in Sunbrella's "Canvas White" fabric) by Serena & Lily
Striped Pillows: Sunbrella from Terrain
Patterned Pillows: Sunbrella "Floral Diamond Navy" from Terrain
Coffee & End Tables: Chesapeake by Universal
Exterior Paint: Alabaster by Sherwin-Williams
Movie Screen: 120-inch Pulldown HD screen from Amazon
Landscape Design: by Yardzen
A Table Ready for Entertaining
An old wooden work table becomes a movie-night concession stand when filled with a nostalgic self-serve spread of popcorn, lemonade, a cooler full of ice-cold Cheerwine, and all the candy classics (including Victoria’s favorite, Raisinets).
Get the Look:
Popcorn Machine: Tabletop Popcorn Maker by Nostalgia
Popcorn Boxes: Red & White Popcorn Boxes from Snappy
Basket: Woven "Beachcomber" by Pottery Barn
Outdoor-Friendly Fabrics
A mix of patterned pillows atop the rattan furniture’s crisp white cushions—all made of outdoor-friendly, indoor-pretty Sunbrella fabrics—brings practicality without sacrificing style.
Get the Look:
Rug: Sunbrella "Southport Stripe" in Ash by Colonial Mills
Sofa: "Capistrano" (upholstered in Sunbrella's "Canvas White" fabric) by Serena & Lily
White Patterned Pillows: Sunbrella "Anais Indigo" from Ballard Designs
Navy Patterned Pillows: Sunbrella "Floral Diamond Navy" from Terrain
Before
More disregarded concrete pads sat unused at the rear of the wild and overgrown yard.
After: A Sunny Garden House
A couple of old windows used as decorations at their wedding got Victoria’s design wheels turning. It was Marcus, though, who lovingly mapped out and hand-built the 9-foot-square conservatory from 33 salvaged—and differently sized!—windows Victoria gathered from Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace. “Unlike me, Marcus is really good about actually measuring four times and then cutting once,” says Victoria. The finishing touch is a blue Dutch door that was scored years ago.
Get the Look:
Landscape Design: by Yardzen
Exterior Paint: Alabaster by Sherwin-Williams
Dutch Door Paint: Smoky Azurite by Sherwin-Williams
Before
A messy, sprawling yard with no usable space for storing yard and garden equipment.
After: A Chic Storage Shed
Coordinating with their home’s color scheme, a new bespoke, Cape Cod–style storage shed by Tuff Shed satisfies a little of Marcus’s longing for life in New England and a lot of his desire to keep stuff out of the garage.
Get the Look:
Shed: "Premier Pro Tall Ranch" by Tuff Shed
Exterior Paint: Alabaster by Sherwin-Williams
Door and Shutter Paint: Dard Hunter Green by Sherwin-Williams
Outdoor Sconce: Hubbardton Forge's "Mason" from Lightology
Landscape Design: by Yardzen
Bicycle: from Public Bikes
Jennifer Kopf is the Executive Editor of Country Living. She also covers antiques and collecting.
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