Tropical Outdoor Dining

In our backyard, we have an upper and lower deck. Last year, my husband and I renovated the lower deck. which you can find HERE. We absolutely LOVE that space. Its a relaxing tropical lounge space where we can hang out with friends and feel like we are on a tropical island. This year, we wanted to complete the upper deck as a tropical dining experience. Somewhere we can eat outdoors in a comfortable, tropical-like setting.

With that said, let’s see what we are working with. Here is what our back deck looks like at the start of the project.

THE BEFORE

It was pretty much a blank space that we simply had to scrub and deep clean. There were no big hurdles to overcome to get started. Usually, I create a mood board to help with ideas, but this time around, I used my previous back patio project as inspiration.

With this space though, there were things that I HAD TO have to complete the look that I wanted. (We will revisit this list when I break down the completed space.)

1. Fabric. Because Im a lover of fabric, I had to add some sort of fabric texture in this space. When you are working in an outdoor space, you need to be aware of the outdoor elements such as the sun and water.

2. Warmth. We needed a large enough rug to cover about 70% of the deck to lay the foundation of the design and for warmth under our feet.

3. Distraction. I wanted to create some kind of distraction from the gray siding of our house. Gray does not say tropical so we need to distract from that somehow.

4. Plants. Ofcourse we needed plants. Nothing says tropical like beautiful, summery plants.

5. Drama. In every space I design, I like a good focal point to create some type of drama.

6. Furniture. A tropical dining table and chairs. It obviously wouldn’t be a tropical dining table with it. Right?!

7. Vibes. I wanted this space to feel like we were at a tropical resort. I want this space to feel peaceful and relaxing.

THE AFTER

TA DA!!!! How incredible is this transformation?! My family and I absolutely LOVE this space. It’s giving us all the tropical vibes. It’s feels great to come out here and enjoy meals with our family and we love entertaining our friends in the space as well.

Let’s talk about what we did in this space!

1. Fabric. There is no better place for fabric than Joann Craft Stores. The seat cushions in the space was literally the cherry on top. It had a black background and the tropical leaves and birds of paradise print was perfection!!! Joanns has an array of outdoor fabric that’ll fit your needs. Whatever your style or color, trust me, they have it. My cushions gives the space color, fun, the tropics, and drama. You know the vibe of the space as soon as you see them. It ties the whole space together perfectly.
   The chairs I purchased already came with seat cushions, so I simply used the cushion cover as a pattern and recreated new ones.

2. Warmth. The deck is quite large so we had to use two rugs that are now sold out, but I found a similar ones here and here. I love the neutral color and tribal design of this rug. It sets the tone for space and pairs well with any color you layer onto it.

3. Distraction. I found some planters online but none of them came in the length and height that I needed to cover most of my house. I have an incredible husband that custom builds things for me when I need him to, so he created this custom planter for me. How beautiful does it look?! Good right?! Inside the planters, I needed something tall in height so I picked up some tall grasses. Tall or short It gave me a beautiful color that this space needed, and it was the perfect distraction from the house.
   NOTE: Yes, the grasses I used were faux. Placing them up against the house, there is no sun hitting them. If you are using these outdoors, pay attention to the because you don’t want your grasses to fade in color.

4. Plants. When it came to plants, we visited our local plant nursery and found tropical plants to complete the space. One of my favorite plants in this space is my lemon tree. I cant wait for it to bear fruit. To keep with the aesthetic, I wanted to make sure that the pots were just as beautiful. I bought pots in random places but I love this one and this one. When adding plants to your space, make sure to use varying heights and sizes to keep the interest visually appealing.
   Note: During the colder months, bring all of these plants inside to keep them alive.

5. Drama. To create drama in a space you can’t just have one patio umbrella. You have to have two! The tassle detail on this umbrella brings it home for me. Its so beautiful! This particular one is sold out, but I like this one or this one or this one and dont forget the base.

6. Furniture. Teakwood or Acacia wood is perfect for a tropical outdoor setting. My dining set was found at Homegoods but I love this set with these chairs or this set

7. Vibes.As I mentioned early, these space s peaceful and relaxing. In the morning, we hear the birds and insects in our backyard. The wind rustling in the trees evening breeze is so nice. Its such a great place to be.