Outdoor dining room/pergola

12 years ago

Yesterday, Kevin and I finished building a pergola in our back yard, to serve as an outdoor dining/entertaining area. We started on it the Sunday before when Jimmy and Matthew (Jimmy's son) came to help us with the foundation. Jimmy is a civil engineering, and so I trusted him with this part of the job. We used concrete footings from Home Depot that we buried under the paving stones in the patio. Jimmy and Matthew helped us get it most of the way up, and then I had to straighten out a few things that were off, and I also got some redwood slats to make the roof. The main part of the pergola was a kit made by the Amish in PA, but some of their cuts were off, and I had to adjust them. The roof was my idea - I needed shade! We had a canvas topped gazebo there before, which we will give to Jimmy to turn into an aviary.

The space is a bit bare now, and I will put some potted plants back there eventually - probably some bromeliads that need a bit of shade. There is very little shade in my yard, and I had to build a shady area for my orchids, which I keep outside until they bloom.

I might copy this message over to conversations.

Lars

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Comments (9)

lpinkmountain
12 years ago
OMG Lars that is GORGEOUS! I have SERIOUS pergola envy! Congratulations on a beautiful addition to your yard!
claire_de_luna
12 years ago
Wow Lars, that is gorgeous! (I have one in my backyard, which is obscuring the same telephone pole.) The gazebo really helps draw attention away from the pole which is great, while drawing people to come outside and sit. If you can run some electricity and put up a low profile ceiling fan, you'd have the perfect mosquito deterrent. Do you have a fountain for some water sounds close by? I hope you share another picture with us when you get it all dressed up! Beautiful job; you should be proud of yourselves.
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I would definitely agree with all the previous comments. Pergolas not only make your patio look nice, but they serve a very useful purpose as well. It'll be much more inviting to sit in the patio during the heat of the day when it's shaded. My husband and I have actually been looking to get one installed this summer. Hopefully we'll be able to get it put in soon! Good luck to you, Mike! http://www.desertsunpatios.com/pergolas_and_hybrid_pergolas.html
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We had a free standing vinyl kit pergola from Costco installed three summers ago and we are very pleased-no painting and easy to clean. We are close to the ocean, so durability was important. Louvers close to a max of 45 degrees by design to prevent damage from any snow load, so in the event of rain, it is not water tight. We face south and this area gets very hot. We ended up installing outdoor roller blinds on two sides to provide more shade. I think a pergola would provide a nice focal point to your garden and more year round interest than a deciduous tree.
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How about a pattern you like with colors that match your existing solids. Then you can mix and match. Looks like you've pretty much got beige and brown there now. Do you want something subtle or bold? Dark red or blue would be an option. A bolder accent color would draw the eyes to the space and make it look more inviting. As would maybe some bolder accents on the tables or walls. Like a big metal candle lantern or flower pot or metal sculpture on the wall. We got some garage sale nautical art to hand on our porch wall, under the roof of course but not fine art that will get ruined by a little weather. We even have a sign that says, "Welcome to the porch" and then lists all the fun things you can do there. Kitschy but makes the space look inviting.
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If a small table is good for everyday, there are workarounds for occasional family get-togethers. Reading Sarah Susanka's books may give you some ideas for having your spaces live large. For example, she suggests 2 smallish tables that are the same height, that can be put together for occasional larger dining needs. For large meals we split people up between the kitchen and dining room tables, and the rule is that mid-meal you shuffle places so you have different dining companions for dessert. For holiday meals my MIL used to put tables end-to-end that covered the full length of living-dining room, such that the people on the far side needed to crawl under the table to get there. Obviously that was for the younger more nimble people. The kids loved it and still talk fondly about diving under the table. If your need is for a more elegant dining experience for couples, that obviously won't work LOL.
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annie1992
12 years ago
Oh, I agree, that IS gorgeous. My backyard has the pool and a deck, but nothing with any shade at all. I keep telling myself that I don't need shade with the pool, I need sun so the kids will stay warm and dry off, but that's one beautiful pergola....

Annie
Lars
Original Author
12 years ago
I do plan to get some electricity back there, by next year at the latest, as I want to have some decent lighting for the winter. Our weather is pretty much the same in winter as it is in summer, and so the lighting would be all we need. Of course we wouldn't use it when it rains.

I do have a fountain nearby - a wall fountain on the back of the house - you can sort of see it but I will post some better ones later. In the big plan, I will put a fairly large fountain in the middle of the back yard, and there will be a good view of it from the pergola, as well as from my bedroom window! I haven't seen any mosquitoes, and we generally get good sea breezes in the evenings, although it can get a bit cool on a summer's evening.

I'm hoping we will be able to attract more people to visit us - which is somewhat difficult in L.A., due to the distances and other distractions. I took this photo this morning before going to work, and so the sun was at an odd angle and really too bright. I forgot to take my camera with me when I went home for lunch, but I do need to get a few more things rearranged.

My night-blooming Queen of the Night epiphyllum is blooming tonight. I think it bloomed last night, but I missed those blooms. I have it on the front stoop now because it was getting too much light in the back yard. It used to be beside the old gazebo and was still getting burned. Last year I missed the blooms because I didn't realize that they opened only at night.

Lars
caliloo
12 years ago
That is awaesome! I hope you have many wonderful afternoons and evenings enjoying your handiwork. Great job!

Alexa
ann_t
12 years ago
Lars, your pergola looks wonderful. What a great addition to your beautiful yard.

Ann
claire_de_luna
12 years ago
Lars, your night bloomer is beautiful. I have a night blooming tropical lily in my pond, which isn't as intricate, but I look forward to it every year. It seems like you have it all going on back there with the fountain and shade. Enjoy your ''new'' space. I wish I was closer...I'd come to visit!
Lars
Original Author
12 years ago
Claire, I used to have a tropical waterlily in Venice, and it made beautiful blue flowers from June through mid January that had a fragrance similar to ginger root (not the ginger flowers, which I like better). Mine started blooming about mid afternoon and stayed open through part of the night.

I posted a picture of the Queen of the Night flower that bloomed last night. I'm going to put more photos on my Photobucket page eventually. I don't know how long the flower stayed open, but it was fully open (I think) at 10:30 when I went to bed. It may have opened a bit more, but it was open enough!

Lars
Lars
Original Author
12 years ago
We are starting to put orchids in the pergola now, partly because it is that time of year. We had already moved a few bromeliads there, as well as some orchid cactus and epidendrums, which are getting almost bushy now. I have some of the cymbidiums and an oncidium that is about to bloom in that area now, and so it looks less bare without being crowded. I'm still learning about how much light some of the orchids are going to need, and I still have to keep the phalaenopsis very sheltered from light. One of them has seven blossoms on it now and several more to open. I'll post a picture of it when more are open, but I'm keeping it in the house most of the time now.

Lars

Outdoor dining room/pergola

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Outdoor dining room/pergola

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