patio mood board - woot woot

As promised, I'm here today to showcase my humble beginner beginnings of a mood board. I'm a total novice at this, however I do have a clear idea of what I want for my sweetass summer hangout of a patio. It's just a matter of collecting style- and price-appropriate pieces. I've gotten a headstart on that too though, and have scoped out some prime cheapies.

Here's what got my wheels turning:

1. Absolutely love the colors in this post from Green Wedding Shoes. (The wedding itself was Dr. Suess inspired, which I deem a rather bold choice for such an occasion...nonetheless, the colors. I die.) Currently everything on our patio is destined for the dumpster or Craigslist or Goodwill with the exception of our bbq, steel-belted cooler and patio table. Our patio chairs are useless; I wouldn't even give those away. And in order to make the table livable, I'm sandblasting, power washing, painting, and weather-proofing the frame. The color I have in mind is close to the tablecloths in the bottom right photo.

2. This photo is from a Better Homes & Garden mag (that link is just to their site, not to this article, as I just snapped a photo right from the pages of their April issue.) I'm mildly-to-moderately-to-extra-spicy obsessed with BH&G, which I realize makes me a 90 year old woman clinging to her print editions, but I can't relinquish it. One of my fave past times - which I enjoy in the interim between getting off work and waiting for Sean and Jordan to arrive home (after I've dutifully seen to it that a 3 course dinner masterpiece is simmering away of course) - is to sit in the recliner with a tall glass of ice water and thumb through a new edition of BH&G. (Other fave past times: crocheting doilies and watching a good Bette Davis. Ok...I was trying to be sarcastic but come to think of it I actually do enjoy the latter.)

3. Oh look! This is kind of the shade I'm looking for for the table. It's called Ionic Sky by Behr, but I think I'm seeking a tad more robin's egg blue. I'll have to hunt around.

4. Oh, I already own these. I've always been attracted to galvanized items, and have something of a collection of buckets in various sizes. My first thought for new patio chairs was a set of these beauties

and then I caught the price tag of $139 and thought, huh, seems a bit steep for a set of chairs. Oh..no no Jess. Just the one chair. One chair = $139, let's be clear. Alright then, moving on. So I found/am going to purchase these from Ikea:

because, $10 each. Done. I'll need to weather-proof them but, easy-peasy.

Right, but anyway, galvanized things. You see that genius use of lattice in #2? Doing it. And I think I'm going to hang an herb garden, potted in galvanized buckets, from S hooks off the lattice.

5. There's an offchance that I'll finally dip my toes into a novice sewing project for this patio revamp. I was thinking this gorgeous fabric from Etsy would look super cute as patio chair cushions, and would tie in beautifully with the blue I have in mind for the table. Plus it would give that little red kick that I'm seeking, as inspired by the palette in #1. So how hard could cushions be?.... probably really hard and your eyes are all stuck in the rolled position on account of my stupidity BUT, I might give it a go.

And so! Summer 2013, hit me with your best shot. Not quite yet though, because I've got a bit to do. However, when it comes time to be summer, then you can hit me with your best shot, Summer 2013. Just please don't be a scorcher because I'll be pregnant right up til the bitter end of you. Thanks.