Create a whole new garden (tips with a difference!)
Gardens aren’t meant to be a chore. They are meant to be enjoyed. In fact, if you think back to the time at which you first bought or rented your property, one of the standout factors you probably picked up on was the amount of outdoor space (in the sense that more space was definitely a good thing).
If you now look at your neglected garden through a tainted lens, wishing you could pay someone to pave it over and remove all obligation to maintain your open space, you have probably lost sight of what a well-managed garden can do for you and your family.
Lift your garden with a lighting project
A seating arrangement or a permanent garden feature is nothing without lighting (see outdoor LED lighting from UltraLEDs). The summer doesn’t last long. There are four seasons to cram into each year. That means late evening natural lighting is sort of only guaranteed for a quarter of the year.
Granted, during the colder months, you are unlikely to wish to sit outside with friends and family in the evening. But a well-lit garden also offers increased security and much more pleasant surroundings than a pitch-black wall of eerie silence surrounding your home. Look into lighting your outdoors and enjoy your garden space whether you are sitting in it or simply looking at it.
Top tip: Be sure to pay attention to the IP rating on the product description. This is the rating that indicates whether the lighting unit is suitable for the kinds of conditions you expect it to experience. IP67, for example, is dust and waterproof.
Build an outdoor cinema
If you have ever experienced the pang of jealousy when viewing pictures on social media of people enjoying a home-built outdoor cinema, now is your time to shine!
Projectors and screens are widely available and the price is much more accommodating than you might imagine. One of the biggest hurdles you will need to overcome is the setup. You’re going to need a flat area on which to sit. Levelling your garden and growing grass can take time, but the payoff will be worth it.
If you’re looking for more immediate results, a relatively straightforward garden paving project can be achieved in a day (and you will have no shortage of volunteers to help when you tell them what their efforts are going towards!).
Install a bar
To build a garden bar you need an outdoor cooling system, some stools, a shelter, and, of course, the actual bar on which to serve the drinks.
It sounds like a bigger project than it actually is. You can make a garden bar out of unneeded pallets and a refrigerator, although admittedly that would be the most basic of beach hut looking bars imaginable (you may wish to follow a garden bar construction guide).
After that, all you need is people and drinks - and if you choose to operate a bring your own bottle policy, you’ll only need enough in the refrigerator for yourself (but be warned that your guests will probably expect to drink you dry of your cold supply!).
