My Grown Up Tree House!

Alright Folks - I used the Labor Day weekend to actually get a few things done, including my new "wine porch" or "grown up tree house" as I like to think of it. I've been thinking about updating this area of my house since I moved in. It's just such a fun space and only has window access - so it feels kind of exclusive! So while I was out shopping last week at target I saw they had some really great deals on Patio items that were almost gone.  I told myself I'd wait til the weekend and if the pieces were still there I'd bite the bullet and buy away... What follows is my 6 hour adventure into "wine porch" heaven.

My Mom says people think I'm homeless...

Notice all the green CLEARANCE STICKERS! Yippee!

I started the day at target buying the following items: 4 Adirondack chairs, 4 outdoor pillows, 2 boxes of outdoor lantern string lights, (1) 60" x 90" outdoor rug, 1 can black metal spray paint, 2 hideous pink and blue metal side tables, 3 sets of picture hanging hooks, and some crappy metal tins from college and fake tulips. The original cost would have been over $400.00 dollars. Shopping on clearance I got the whole car full of loot for $143.97!!!! What a deal!

First item of business was painting over those hideous tables. That's what $5 buys you - something hideous! This Rust-oleum stuff was great - But I'd recommend a top coat to seal it off!

To Start...

 

 Now that the tables were finished it was time to start cleaning up the porch.  I quickly made my way upstairs to the "door" of the "wine porch".

  

 Here is the before of the Porch, it needed a good sweep and the cobwebs cleaned up!

Next up was getting the chairs to the second level. I had already found out at Target that the chairs were huge and only (1) would fit in my car. (Thanks mom for coming and picking them up for me!) Next was trying to wedge them through the window...no such luck.  My first thought was standing in the front yard and launching them one by one - slow pitch softball style to the second level.  I didn't think that would be the best plan so I headed to the garage to find some rope.  Being as though I collect a lot of crap - one thing I don't have any of is Rope so this retractable hose worked wonders.  (Mom & Dad - now is when you're going to want to close your eyes because yes I'm your daughter and yes I did hoist each chair one by one up the side of my house tied to a garden hose.) I thought it was rather inventive :)!

 

Classy I know! Now that I had all the pieces in place it was time to do some rework of random junk I found in my garage. A sharpie marker went a long way into transforming this planter, and even though I HATE FAKE FLOWERS - these nasty tulips will probably only last a few days before they're blown away so they'll work for now just for a little color!

Moving onto the picture hooks and lantern hanging - measure twice hang once...and perfectly centered! Each bang of the hammer dislodged crap stuck in my gutters and was all over my face ears and eyes...awesome! Pretty sure the neighbors think I'm crazy - but I'm okay with that. It was kinda fun watching them walk by wondering where all the banging was coming from! Here is the house before and one where the lanterns are all hung!

 

 Permanent marker flower pots and lovely fake tulips! :)
 

Before I brought out the 99 cent chest as a coffee table!

 And finally it was time to put it all together. 2 hours of shopping, 20 minutes of hoisting, 4 hours of cleaning, hanging, and marker coloring my "wine porch" was ready for it's finishing touches. Oh and a quick trip to the Dollar store for an extension cord to run out my window for the lanterns and the place looks like a million bucks...or maybe $143.97 but still I love it! I will admit the lights are a little bright for a romantic wine porch setting but maybe I'll rig up a dimmer switch one of these days :)! Enjoy!
 

And then it poured rain...GO FIGURE. You better bet I'll be having a glass of wine out there tonight though! :)