Maison Epperson: Courtyard Progress

By definition, a classic courtyard has walls on at least three sides and provides seclusion and privacy, even if is positioned in the center of a house. It is also an open-air space. It typically offers little to no cover from the elements. Buildings and homes are built up around an outdoor area, which is then outfitted with benches, paved areas, plants and other elements to create an aesthetically pleasing and functional design. Courtyards offer ventilation to create a cool, breezy environment.

“I live in California and really believe in indoor/outdoor living—the inside should connect to the outside and the outside to the inside. Most important, I believe that everything should be beautiful.” — Mark D. Sikes

My dream courtyard. How beautiful is the outdoor space of interior designer Mark D. Sikes? The style is easy and elegant living. I love everything about it: the greenery, the white arched French doors, the herringbone pattern brick pavers and the blue and white outdoor decor!

In Maison Epperson, we’re converting a corner of our front yard into our version of a courtyard. I have to give credit to my husband Tom for this brilliant idea!

So far, here’s what we’ve done:

Painted the walls. Our front yard has a huge tree that’s probably around 50 years old! This photo was taken a few months ago and we’ve painted the walls since. Tom, Aryanna and I all took a hand on painting.

Transforming this area from gray and drab to something fab, I hope.

Here’s how the walls look like now. We’ve painted it all white and it’s looking pretty good, if I may say so.

Layed the pavers. Tom prepped the area before laying the pavers

Mano-mano. Tom prepping the screed bed (a layer of sand that acts as the base for the concrete pavers)

My contribution to the project, haha!

Carpentry and cementing. We hired our tiler/carpenter Mang Nestor who worked on our home renovation project last year to help Tom build the courtyard. Tom is quite the handy man but when it comes cementing, he leaves it to the experts.

My husband designed the floating benches and the planter box with hardwood ledges that double as drink holders. So cool.

Recycle and reuse. We were able to save some of the hardwood from our renovation last year so we’ve reused them as benches. We love recycling!

Makeshift “payong”

Our little worker busy with his own “project” haha!

Dylan the young carpenter

Our pavers were finally delivered. Yay! It took a few weeks to get them but we’re so happy we got what we wanted.

We chose gray (it comes in different colors) concrete pavers for the flooring of our courtyard. They are affordable, easy to install, and can last up to 10 years.

We’ve laid down some of the concrete pavers already. We went with the diagonal herringbone pattern with borders.

We used nylon strings to align the pavers and sand as base. It’s amazing how many video tutorials and articles you’ll find on the net about how to lay bricks and pavers.

It’s going to take a few days to finish laying all pavers and building the benches and planter box.

So far, it’s been fun for the whole family working on our DIY projects at home and we’re all excited to see the final results. Our courtyard will become an extension of our patio for outdoor entertaining and also a hidden retreat for the family.

Tips on DIY projects at home:

• Be creative. Your home is your sanctuary so keep it organized and clean and personalize your space. It’s easy to think of cool DIY ideas when your place is clutter-free.
• Be inspired. Looking at home decorating books or websites can spark ideas.
• Start small. If you’ve never done DIY projects, choose to work on something that is easy to begin with. This will build your confidence and skills to take on bigger projects.
• Get organized. Do your research and try to get all the information you need about your project. It’s also important to get all the materials ready before working on a DIY project. Be sure to compare prices of the materials as you can save a lot by doing so.
• Commit to the project. Like anything in life, finish what you’ve started. And if you can’t do it, ask for help. Checking out YouTube tutorials and how-to blogs can prove to be empowering.
• Team work. Get friends and family involved. The more people helping out, the faster you can conquer the project.
• Have fun. Working on DIY projects at home can be frustrating at times. Don’t sweat the small stuff and commit to your vision. Sometimes, when things are not going well, you just have to step back and take a break (for just a few minutes to an hour. Don’t take too long as you might get lazy and ditch the entire project). Once you’ve cooled down, it’s easier to go back to working on your plan. From experience, finishing a project is rewarding and has big savings!

I’ll keep you posted on our DIY projects!

Follow our home renovations on my Instagram account: @jenniepperson or check out the progress of Maison Epperson at #TheEppersonsRenovation