We’ve owned our house for 5 years now! And when we bought it, the backyard was SO neglected. So we’ve spent the summers working on the space. It’s not perfect, but it’s pretty dang magical. I thought it’d be fun to do a yard tour and show some fun before and after pictures.
House details- Location Logan, Utah. Yard size- a little less than an acre. Zone 5b and 6a. House age- 1905. Owned the house- 5 years.
yard tour
Let’s start with the video tour so you can walk through all the areas with me. Then, I’ll dive in with more details below:
If the video doesn’t work here, you can watch it on YouTube here. It’d mean so much if you’d watch the video! I’m trying to get better at my video skills so I can grow my YouTube channel. If you have a few minutes to watch this and/or subscribe, I’d so appreciate it.
front yard-
Our house was built in 1905 and so the bones of this little Victorian are beautiful.
Since owning it, the main things we did are-painting the house white, adding pink shutters, paving the driveway, and putting in a picket fence. The point of that is to keep our pets in the back, but it also added some charm and more garden space for more roses.
Every year we replace or add some fence. It’s made all the difference in the yard! We build and paint it ourselves. Fences are expensive, but by putting up a bit every year, we’ve slowly been able to transform the space. Don’t be afraid to break projects down and work on them over a few years!
This side fence was especially bad with the rickety fence and the weeds.
Last year we finally had the driveway paved. It was expensive! $8,000 I believe. The main thing that drove me to get it done was I had a vision that I could have a hedge of roses along the fence line. So after the driveway was done, I planted 15 David Austin roses. They’re still small, but in a few years this will be a big hedge full of Emily Bronte light pink roses. I can’t wait!
Work I still want to do in this area-
On the porch, I really want to brick the concrete. It’s painted and every year the grey paint chips off during the winter snow. I’m so bored in re-painting it and would love to add some character with brick. I think it’ll look very appropriate for our home.
In the garden bed in front of the house, I’d like to add more plants. I have a bunch of roses, which I love. But the house gets lots of shade there, but I’ve been planting for full sun. So I need to add the appropriate plants and fill it out with more than roses and weeds.
roses-
The main flower we have in the garden are roses. We started by buying a few and then they did great so we bought more. I believe we have more than 100 rose bushes now!
Tip- test out a plant before buying a bunch. I’ve had plants I’ve wanted to grow and then I don’t have luck with them. I’m glad I learned that with a few instead of a bunch. In the spring we have lots of tulips and daffodils. Like roses, they do great! Now that they’re tried and tested I invest in more each year because I’m confident that they’ll grow and work with my yard.
filling cabinet planter-
In the backyard, the first little corner you see has my filing cabinet planter. It’s held up great so far and I love picking herbs from it for seasoning my meals! I added a little rocking chair to the concrete pad and the vibes here are so good! If you’re wondering if reading is nice here, it absolutely it!
We used to have a sand pit which was really fun for my son! But he hadn’t used it in a few years, so it was nice to re-locate that to the chicken area and put in something that is prettier and more functional. It’s ok to pivot if something no longer works for you.
patio-
Our yard before was so sad and neglected! There was no where to sit and relax that was comfortable (those logs were NOT cozy-lol).
On the back of the house, we decided it’d be nice to have a patio so we paid to have one laid. That made such a difference! Once that was done, wedded a pergola with a seating area underneath and we added the rainbow pergola swags for shade.
I like to think of my yard like different rooms. The pergola area is the dining room. By the fire pit, is where we cook hot dogs and s’mores. We have a swing for relaxing. By giving each little area a function, it’s easier to break down a large space (our yard is almost an acre) and making it more cozy.
Another tip- try some art outside! It adds interest and is great when you’re outside during the summer months. I store mine. during the cold times of the year. But I love the unexpected touch!
garden swing-
I believe the first project we did in the yard was building a garden swing. At the time, this area of our yard was the only private one between the house and the shed. So the swing gave us a place to enjoy the outdoors without seeing or being seen by neighbors.
With the yard, we had no idea what we were doing. This is the first time as adults my husband and I had owned a yard. Instead of having a big vision for the space, we did one project that felt right. Then when another idea came, we did that. As time goes on, the small projects add up to make a beautiful overall space.
plate wall-
On the back of the house, there were a few different types of siding and paint. We slowly took down the siding and added wood panels so that the house is a uniform material and color. We also put in a bigger window for the bathroom.
From this view you can also see that a lot more of the yard had grass that wasn’t taken care of. Utah (where I live) has had many years of drought. So we removed the grass and added gravel. This is less maintenance and saves water. We still have a section of grass for playing on. But having a whole yard of grass doesn’t make sense for us.
This side of the house had a little overhang from the roof and barely gets sun so I decided it’d be the perfect place to put a state plate wall. I was originally hanging this in my kitchen, but outgrew the space. So we drilled holes in the plates and screwed them onto the wall. I have a plate from each state and LOVE how they look hung together.
Opposite from the plate wall, I have my zinnia garden. I love it so much! I started growing zinnias here last year and they were super easy. So now I think this is always what I’ll plant here! They’re annuals so every year I’ll have to re-plant them. They give such good cut flowers, I don’t mind. Plus it’s easy to save the seeds so I never have to buy them again!
It’s also fun because from my bedroom overlooks this area! So right outside the window I can see the zinnia patch which I love so much.
This brings me to my next tip- think about your sight lines from the house. What can you see outside the window? Can you plant something so you have a lovely view?
she shed-
We have a bunch of sheds on our property. When we first bought the house, they were filled with junk from the old owners (which was so overwhelming). One shed, after staring for it a bit, I realized was probably a potting shed! So I took it over and we really transformed it!
Now my she shed is where I do all my potting and it holds my gardening supplies. We also eat in here in the early spring and late fall when it’s too cold outside.
There’s a shelf on the window so I can start put my seedlings here in the spring before they’re ready to plant. This is my happy spot and I’m so glad I have this little space!
fire pit-
The fire pit that we have is where the old one used to be! We’ve upgraded the logs for two benches and some very comfortable chairs. This is where we cook over the fire and more of our lounge/living room space.
My husband has made tables that work for having a nice surface and for storing wood! I love that they’re multi-functional.
raised garden beds-
Every year for Mother’s Day, my husband builds me some more raised garden beds. The first ones were built from large garden beds that had been built but not used.
I now have 4 cut flower garden beds and 4 fruit/vegetable garden beds. I love that they’re raised because our chickens mostly leave them alone! It is a joy in my life to come outside and pick some veggies to add to our meals.
Besides art, I also like to add sculptural items to my garden. From vintage shopping I found a figurine and a little pillar that sit outside. There’s no purpose to them other than keeping things interesting and adding beauty to the space.
playhouse-
In the summer of 2020, our pandemic project was making Don (my son) an amazing playhouse! It’s two stories and the first floor has a lab for bones (he loves paleontology).
The second floor has a “spooky school” since he loves Halloween. I personally would’ve had a play kitchen and living room (like a mini house), but his ideas were much better!
I hope when he grows up, he has great memories of his little playhouse!
Fences-
A good fence is the best way to give a yard privacy. They also create the “walls” to the yard which helps give it visual boundaries. The first fence we built was the rainbow fence.
We have a little table and chairs sitting there with a chandelier I found at an antique shop. This little corner between the garage and she shed are one of my favorite spots in the yard!
The fence along the grass in the yard adds a lot too! We can no longer see our neighbor’s yard and we both enjoy that more.
One the fence and on a shed in our yard, I’ve had fun adding a mural. I know most people wouldn’t just paint something on those surfaces, but why not? I love it because it is a fun place for me to add my art. And it really makes it more fun to have some unexpected murals!
the wild area-
We have a fence separating the front of our yard from the back. This area I refer to as the wild area. We don’t do much to upkeep this area, but maybe that will change one day. The main draw to this section is the orchard. We have a peach, apricot, apple, pear, cherry, and plum trees. We love eating the fruit and our chickens do too!
There is also a trampoline in the wild area for my son. There used to be access to it from the front yard, but when we added the chicken wire, you have to go through the gate to get to it. The chicken wire doesn’t do the best job at keeping the chickens out so maybe we should take it down?
The rest of the back fo the yard is pretty wild- which is fine for our current time restraints.
chicken coop-
The last area I want to show you is the chicken coop. Last year our neighbors were moving and offered to let us keep their chickens! We love having them! And the fresh eggs are really nice too.
We have an area we built for them- there’s two coops and a fence to keep them safe. Most days they roam the whole yard.
One day, I’d like to empty the wood shed and create one big coop for all the chickens inside the shed. I have a grand vision for this! Maybe this fall we can make that come to life!
I hope you enjoyed seeing our yard tour! Please let me know if you have any questions about the space in the comments below. I’ve never done a yard tour before. Did you like seeing it? I’m thinking of doing this annually if this was of interest- let me know what you think!
I wanted to link some of the projects we’ve done through the years to get this yard looking so much better! You can click on one of the images for a full tutorial.
Yard Projects
How to make raised diy garden beds that are easy. A step by step tutorial for how to build these from wood for small backyard vegetable gardens
This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.
If you love it, pin it!
Ashley, thank you so very much for sharing your yard progress and projects! I love the spaces that you have created for peace and privacy for your family! You have inspired me to take a look at my own yard to find ways to add some peace and privacy for my family, too! ☺️