6 In Decor/ Projects

Outdoor Living: Ikea Applaro & A DIY Teepee

I recently posted about how the boys are ready for summer. I decided we needed to update our outdoor space as well.

We have a deck and a patio but we really haven’t done much with them since we moved in. Now that we finished our basement it seems like we needed to make the patio a little more livable since I figured we’d be going out their more. (I just realized I never shared what our basement looked like finished – whoops!)

Early this spring my husband added some soft holly bushes and landscaping rock to the edge of the patio. We don’t really want a ton of landscaping in the back of our house since the kids and dog are running around.PhotoGrid_1428621024870

I ordered some outdoor furniture from Ikea. I had looked around locally and anything comparable was WAY more than what we paid. I thought wood would be nice and hold up a little better than metal or wicker (plus there’s always the option to paint). We picked some pieces from the Applaro Series – since all the pieces were individual and could be rearranged.

I opted for shipping since it would have cost us in tax and gas what it cost to ship. When I ordered it said the estimated delivery date was about 3 weeks from when I ordered – which was fine I wasn’t in a hurry. So I placed my order, then I waited…and waited…and waited and panicked and looked up all the bad reviews about Ikea shipping. Yikes! After that I anticipated something would go wrong BUT we got everything in our order delivered on-time and the delivery people did in fact call like they said they would. Yea!

Each chair took me about 15-20 minutes to put together (depending on how much Evan was helping). So I got everything assembled and arranged in an afternoon. I hit the cushions with a solid coat of Scotchgard because I’m a realist…I know these won’t stay white for too long but I’m going to put off washing them as long as possible.

Assembled #ikea #patiofurniture - now we're ready to #welcomesummer
Yeah I totally stole our living room decor to style this.

I thought about some outdoor curtains to give us a little more privacy but I’m not too keen on having something else to take in/clean. An outdoor rug would be cute but not very practical right now. Perhaps I’ll draw one in chalk. 🙂

I also created this little Pinterest project for the boys. I’ve had this teepee Pinned for a while so I thought it would be a fun weekend project. Since I’m a craft hoarder it was around a total of $6 (and some tax).

#Exploring at home #nature #teepee #playtime #summerfun #hobbsboys

I ended up painting the end of the poles but took the pic before I got to that point.

It was SUPER easy, I basically followed the directions found on the site. I used six 1x2x8ft pine strips, drilled holes and used cord we already had to tie them together.

Then I raided my fabric stash. This was all left over from other projects since I usually over-buy. There are a couple of pieces of old curtains that I had hemmed that don’t fit windows at our new house and even some old sheets that were pilled. TIP: I laid out the fabrics in the order I wanted use them so I could make sure I had enough.

Taking a #creativebreak from page layout. Guess what we're #making ! #tribe #playthings #graphicdesignlife

I just attached everything with hotglue. After finished I realized I COULD have actually sewn it all but I wasn’t really looking for another sewing project since my sewing machine sometimes gives me issues (ever since Noah tore the tension knob off). This was supposed to be a quick project so I didn’t want to spend time measuring and matching up seams, plus I wanted the edges to be kind of rough and unfinished.

It folds up just like a patio umbrella. I’ve moved it 6-7 times so I’m glad to see it will hold up. This is one time when Pinterest didn’t lie to me. 🙂

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6 Comments

  • Reply
    Kelly Bentz
    May 29, 2016 at 10:12 am

    I LOVE THIS setup of the IKEA furniture!!! Can you comment the measurements? In looking at the ikea site, it looks like this set is only 28 inches high…..which seems SO small. Love the look!

    • Reply
      Christiana
      June 6, 2016 at 4:46 pm

      It is kind of short but I’m not sure if the dimensions listed for the chairs include the cushion height. The backs are not super high and come about midway up the back.

  • Reply
    Kelly
    August 21, 2016 at 10:21 am

    Did you use the Kungso or Hallo cushions? The backs look like Kungso. Looks great!

    • Reply
      Christiana
      October 24, 2016 at 9:07 pm

      Kungso! They have the piping around the edges which I think helps them keep their nice shape.

  • Reply
    Melissa Tullier
    April 27, 2017 at 8:04 am

    Hi, how do you like this IKEA set now that you’ve had it for awhile? I am thinking of purchasing this exact set, but a little skeptical since I can’t see it in person. I love the way you set it up!

    • Reply
      Christiana
      May 17, 2017 at 2:49 pm

      I still love it. I like that I can wash the covers. It is a touch short without the cushions (height-wise) but It’s nice to lounge on while the kiddos play outside.

    Leave a Reply to Christiana Cancel Reply