Where are my exclamation marks and my heart-eyed emojis?! I need every.single.one for this post. Seriously. I don’t know if it’s the hormones talking but I have never been so proud of a space before and I am so excited that today is the day that I get to share this with you.
SOooo….as you know, we worked with Rust-Oleum to bring you this amazing transformation. We took on this GIANT challenge of filming a commercial for their Rust-Oleum Restore deck product and we did this entire makeover in ONE WEEK. Yup. And I was 39 weeks pregnant. That’s right. We actually filmed the final reveal the day after I was due with Max. It was crazy. I know one thing for sure…we couldn’t have pulled it off without the massive amounts of help we received from the homeowners, family and friends. It truly was a group effort and we are so proud to say that we got to organize a successful makeover for a reader-turned-friend that gets to enjoy this space!
Speaking of which….here are our gracious hosts for this makeover. That’s Karen and Brian and their little daughter Maddie who is Sesame Street’s biggest fan 🙂 They are such a sweet family and they gave us creative license when it came to their outdoor space. We took over their home on three different days for filming and invaded their space pretty much every day in between so that we could get this thing done. At the beginning of our deck-journey, Karen told me that the deck might kill me (she obviously didn’t know that I eat decks like that for breakfast) and that they were saving up to tear the entire thing down and rebuild. We told them to let us do a makeover first! They said yes and the rest is history!
So the deck that we started with was in pretty rough shape. It was warped and worn and weathered. It had wobbly stair railings and they had never enjoyed the outdoor area because they didn’t have a proper spot to sit down. The landscaping was non-existent. The furniture was unusable. The boards would assault little feet and fingers and had never even been cleaned in the eleven years that Karen and Brian lived here. This thing DEFINITELY needed a makeover.
And now the space is fresh and clean and is safe for the whole family to enjoy….
The first and top priority was obviously the deck itself. The boards are very old and stain wasn’t the answer. Plus with regular deck stain, you have to reapply every two years. Talk about maintenance! Rust-Oleum Restore is supposed to last MUCH longer than that if it is applied correctly! Not only is it low-maintenance and all-weather, the Restore product created a more uniform surface that is much friendlier than splinters and wood shards!
After we did the process of prepping and applying the Restore product, we got to stage the space for the family to enjoy! Doesn’t it look so much better?!
First let’s talk about the dining area. Every deck needs a place to relax and if it’s big enough, having a dining set is a great way to entertain. We got this Home Depot set at a great price (more on that soon) and the red plays so nicely with the slate colored flooring.
Since the finish is darker, it will hide dirt well too! I have a love/hate relationship with outdoor dining sets that have glass tops (they always seem to get broken!) so this one is nice in that the metal top will last for many many years!
In the corner I added some inexpensive ‘art’. It’s a first-aid cross made of twigs and tacked to some fence pickets. It’s a nod to Karen who is a nurse at a dialysis center 🙂 It’s always a good idea to put in something personalized and I figured that this was the best way to pop in a bit of interest in the corner!
I love how the dark set also sets off the light gray wash colored railings.
I staged the table for a simple salad lunch and I grabbed a bunch of dishware randoms from my stash to create a more inviting scene.
Can you even imagine not being able to utilize this view? This is why people live in the country! For backyards like this!
Beyond the dining area, we also created a sitting area. I imagine this area is great for play dates and morning coffee.
Do you even remember this before? Messier than a three year old at an ice cream buffet.
The sitting zone…aka the chill zone…was created with inexpensive Home Depot Adirondack chairs (they are seasonal finds and each year they come out with different colors and are under $20 each) and a planter that I turned upside down to make a mini side table. I think the planter was also under $20 and at Home Depot.
We made the planter sleeve for the tall corner plant. It’s super simple and just slips over the regular pot (it has no bottom) and we made it for fence pickets. I think it cost us $8 and we stained it Rust-Oleums Kona.
The light fixture now looks a million times better….even though it didn’t have a light bulb for this photo 🙂
Pretty amazing makeover right? We are so happy that this family gets a space to enjoy and with a little hard work and the right products, they added value to their home. That’s the ultimate goal right? Enjoying where you live and making smart investments is what Bower Power is all about and I would say that this makeover is really exactly what makes us proud to be DIYers.
A couple more before and afters just so you can fully ooh and aww with us 🙂
So on Monday I have a very special post to share with you….the behind the scenes of the filming, shopping, and the Rust-Oleum commercial where my main squeeze kills it. Yup! Jeremy is the star of the video and I couldn’t be more proud of my bearded wonder 🙂
It looks amazing!!! I can’t believe those chairs are only $20… I’m definitely in need of a few chairs so I need to go look at HD. The rest of it looks great too and so functional now for their adorable family. Definitely a lot safer!!
Looks wonderful! You did it again…brilliant!
It’s amazing how much of a difference a home makeover can be. It looks great! I like the color scheme you chose. Everything fits together so well. I also like the planter you set upside down to make the little table. Is there anything else you’ve made into a table that people wouldn’t necessarily think to do?
Awesome makeover but one question, where is the grill now?
You guys did a great job! Looks fantastic and ready for family fun!
Getting a behind-the-scenes look is always fun so I can’t wait for the next post. Nice work!
Girl, that is some serious makeover magik! I love the palette, now the deck seems part of the house, like the extension it should be….not a warped old warf hanging precariously off the side. I used Rustoleum to transform counters within the past month and cannot rave enough about their updo product lines! Nice work, now go and have that baby LOL
Very cool. It’s screaming for a rug but I guess you can’t use that when the flooring product was the aim of the post!
The book on the side table! Where did that come from? It’s worth money. I search flea markets everywhere for those Betsy books.
I love the lighter colours of the new deck space! It looks so nice from the back of the house. What is that tall corner plant?
It’s beautiful, Katie. It’s so fresh and cozy looking. 🙂
Oh how sweet that you were able to help out your friends with their deck. I love the lighter color on the deck and the furniture looks great and sure beats the price of putting in a new deck! . However, I have to be honest and say that I am not really loving the way the coating looks on the deck. I understand that it was textured and thick and that it covers splinters (Yah for that especially with kids) but it looks a little sloppy with some of the spacing between the boards being filled in and others not so much. It almost looks like it was not mixed thoroughly before it was applied (but I know that ‘s not the case with how good you guys are..) Maybe it is the way it photographed?
Hey there! It looks GREAT! I love a good before and after, and this one looks phenomenal!
One comment: Is that an Oleander plant in the pot? If so, all parts of it are toxic to humans and pets. Maybe it goes out in the yard. But, a switcheroo is easy since it’s just the pot with the wrap.
Good job!
I LOOOVE the Betsy Tacy books! How fun to spy one in the shoot 🙂 The deck looks great, and I’m so impressed that you did all that when super pregnant. Pretty sure I was hardly moving at that point.
Hi Katie, what an inspiring makeover! Looks great! We have a similar issue with our deck and a grill that is on the ground in front of it. So I am wondering where the grill is going to go (looking for ideas for our own issue). Thanks! Violet
You might check out the tall plant in the corner it looks like an oleander to me and they are poisonous.
It’s beautiful! But on the practical side….where did you put their grill?
I love the pillows on the red chairs – where did you get these?
Wow! All of your hard work has paid off splendidly! It looks like a wonderful spot for the family to relax and enjoy their home. Any possibility of venturing westward? My home could use your touch!
One quick note, with a small child in the home, I would suggest replacing the oleander. It can be toxic if ingested or chewed upon.
Wonderful job and I’m sure that the family is very happy with their makeover.
This is a fabulous makeover! I love it! A warning that the white plant in the wooden box look to be an oleander and they are highly toxic. Every part of it is poisonous. Maybe swap it out with one of the plants down below until the little one can be trusted not to nibble?
What a great transformation! I love the gray color!
Wow! It came out amazingly! I ,ove the gray and red colors, and the two different zones of seating. What an inviting space!
Hello,
I apologize if you have already answer this somewhere else. We helped our friends do a similar project with this style of finish and it was really hot to walk on. I was wondering how this product held up to the heat and if you could walk on it barefoot with out cooking your feet:). I love your blog by the way, it’s always one of my favorites to read.
Thanks
That’s quite a transformation Bower team! What a drastic before and after. The family has to be so excited with having a desirable outdoor space now. I love the pops of red to make it fresh and bright. Can’t wait to see Jeremy in the commercial, now that he is famous on IG for the booty dance! Sky’s the limit for Team Bower!!
You know what I love most about this space? It looks really relaxing and like a place the family will actually be able to use. Sometimes design is gorgeous, but lacks function. You nailed it here! Great work.
That deck makeover is gorgeous. I wish You’d come to my house and help my husband refinish ours. Sadly ours is falling apart and needs to be completely redone. It’s going to cost us about $25K if we have someone else do it and probably 1/2 that if we do it ourselves. And I’m not handy so really it will be my husband doing it himself.
Gorgeous makeover! Just be careful placing an oleander plant in an area with small children or pets because the leaves are VERY toxic.
Looks fabulous! I love the colors. Where did the grill get relocated to? I don’t see it on or around the deck.
That looks amazing…I love how you totally reworked the space with maybe 75% pure hard work and 25% new stuff. That is true DIY! Great job!
Absolutely beautiful!
Looks great! Where did you end up putting the grill?
Beautiful!
Wow, great job! I love that you put the lattice on the stair risers too, that is a really cute touch.
Oh that’s so fun that you re-did someone else’s deck! It looks great, plus I love that book on the table! One of my childhood favorites 🙂
I got the fabric at a discount fabric store and sewed them myself.
xo – kb
They actually moved it back up to the deck but for the photos, Rust-Oleum had us remove it.
xo – kb
I think they moved the grill back up on the deck in between the sitting area and the dining zone…we just didn’t have them in the photos because Rust-Oleum wanted to show off the railing and decking more.
xo – kb
Yes I let them know and they promised to move it before Maddie started being mobile!
xo – kb
We moved it off for the photos but I think they moved it back to the deck after the pics 🙂
xo – kb
Yes thanks for the warning!
xo – kb
I’m not sure…I’ll ask Karen and get back to ya!
xo – kb
Yes, I texted Karen to tell her and told her! Thanks!
xo – kb
Thanks Amalisa.
xo – kb
I think they moved it between the dining and the sitting area. I’m not certain though. I’ll ask Karen!
xo – kb
With this deck, we definitely had spacing issues. It was definitely not the application but the structure of the deck was not perfect (they told us that a fireman who lived here before built it and it was done in weird stages and obviously not perfect) and so some of the boards were closer to each other than others.
xo – kb
It’s just one from my collection 🙂
xo – kb
Haha! That’s a popular question! It got moved off the deck for the photos but I think they moved it back on there 🙂
xo – kb
I love how this turned out! Such a great transformation. I would be tempted to add a little mirror with drinks station in the corner. Also yes oleanders ARE toxic and caution is of course sensible but they grow EVERYWHERE in Italy, mostly wild and pets and children are still alive today.
Looks great. You did a great job on it… and sewed the cushions too!!
You look beautiful Katie… and your hair is fab!
I’m curious as to how the rustoleum holds up on the deck. I’ve had several friends use the product & ALL have had disastrous outcomes. They all followed the application directions to the T too. It looks great initially but after 1 winter in RVA it ALWAYS flakes off. ALWAYS!
More importantly…Where did you get your dress?!?! I LOVE IT
Oh gosh, soooo much better! I bet they love it 🙂
Well done, friend!! 🙂
Love Love Love this soo much! We might use this on our new deck, since it might hold up better than stain since so high traffic! I love the light fixture but can’t seem to find on home depot. Could you share the maker?
Yes it’s Home Depot. It looks like they changed the price though on it…maybe because seasonal price changes? Here is the same one.
xo – kb
I’ve heard that too and I actually brought it up on the very first phone call we had with Rust-Oleum. They said the surface needs to be prepared just right and then the primer is new and it helps the product adhere.
xo – kb
Target! I love their maternity stuff 🙂
xo – kb
The tall corner one is an oleander (yes it can hurt ya if you eat it!) but they are super pretty 🙂
xo – kb
Where’s the light from? Love that feature!
The light is from Home Depot but it is listed at a different price now 🙁
xo – kb
Any chance we could get an update on how the deck survived winter? (did Atlanta get snow this year). We are planning on using restore this spring and are pretty nervous. Also how were the fumes? Do we need to ship the kids to the grandparents while we do it?
We only got a couple dustings this year but she told me that it holds up great! Also – we didn’t notice fumes (as we were outside) and we got it done in about a week so if the kiddos could stay off the deck for that long – you should be fine!
xo – kb
Thanks! I’ve heard lots of folks who had it flake off in less than a year, but I know they reworked the formula with the separate primer.
Random question on an old post alert!
We are helping our neighbor, a disabled veteran, and his family fix up their deck. It isn’t in nearly as tough a shape as this, but the big concern with his condition is having a non-slip surface (hello running to the storm shelter in tornado season!). I’m wondering if Restore will help with that? Thanks so much!
It’s definitely non slip. Usually there is a display at Home Depot that shows the difference between the 4x and the 10x and a normal stained surface.
xo – kb