So much progress is being made in the backyard every day, I’m having a hard time keeping up! Last week I shared a bunch of progress photos in the backyard and compared this yard with other outdoor spaces we’ve had. We’re just getting started with our yard here but it’s definitely going to be our best one yet. With the artificial turf installation, and especially after sharing our Reel, a lot of you were curious about what the process was like! So today I’m divulging all the details about the stone pavers and artificial grass!
While the original backyard was beautiful, it was really limited to just a small little courtyard barely big enough for patio furniture. It was overflowing with mature shrubs and plants but we were only using about 1/3rd of what the yard really is! Expanding and using the most of our property was such a huge priority.
Funny enough, the diamond paver look was part of the original courtyard and I really wanted to honor that. I remember in the beginning of our designing phase, I always wanted to incorporate turf with pavers. With so much hardscaping between the pool deck and fire pit, breaking up the stone pavers with something soft and organic was so needed. I also just love the timeless and luxurious look of pavers and turf.
We considered using real vs synthetic grass, but luckily Shea McGee advised us to go with the latter. She did real grass in their yard first but between the hot pavers, the grass burnt up so they ultimately went with faux grass. Luckily here in NC, the native grass we have (blue fescue) stays green year round so there’s never going to be a time where our real grass is brown and the artificial is still green. Just one of the many things I love about living here.
The fun part about using turf? Checking out the samples.
Turns out artificial grass has come a long way from the cheap, plastic looking turf at your local mini golf course. The best way to choose your turf? Bring it outside and match it to your real grass. The one we ultimately chose looked like our blue fescue the most, and we loved the variety in coloring and tone. Those brown little pieces make it look so realistic!
The clear winner was this Field Green, Olive Green mix.
We were warned by a lot of you that bluestone gets really hot but it really stood out to us as the favorite. Our contractor told us that almost every stone will be hot in the peak of summer so we should get what we want. Although we did install some irrigation beneath all the stone to help keep it cooler during the hot summer months and I love that blue tone with the warm red brick. It’s downright patriotic! If you didn’t know, blue and orange are complimentary colors so the blue against our warm red brick really bring out the best in each other.
Per the stone yard’s recommendations, we went with the 24″x24″ pavers. Apparently it’s a very comfortable size for the average person’s walking gait. It also gives more surface area, which will allow all the table and chair legs a better chance at landing on a hard surface. The scale is chefs kiss, especially with the 4″ spacing for the artificial grass in between.
Since we’ve never seen this done before, we didn’t know what to expect as far as installation, but we watched out the window every single day and asked the crew lots of questions so we could fill you in here.
First thing they did was install the bluestone. The crew went above and beyond to make sure everything was perfectly spaced and level. They really knew what they were doing. Once all the stone was in, they filled the spaces with some sort of gravel or sand to make it all level.
The artificial grass installation was only a day’s worth of work! Not saying it looked easy, but the crew was so efficient and speedy, you could tell it wasn’t their first time around the block. They used a razor blade to cut and they were able to use the lines on the back as guides!
They set all the long strips in first before moving onto the short strips in-between.
Absolutely beautiful to see come together.
To give the shorter pieces something to grip onto, they slipped these little black material strips beneath and applied some sort of adhesive before laying them in.
To secure the turf down, they hammered in about 2-3 stakes along each paver side.
The last and unexpected step? Pour sand on the turf and use a push broom to settle it in-between the pile. Since the turf came on a big roll all the synthetic grass blades were laying kind of smooshed. Apparently the sand is going to help it stand up a bit straighter! Who knew artificial turf installation had so many steps!
So in love with how this turned out!
Our wood grain Shaker cabinet fronts were designed for busy, high-traffic homes like ours. Clad with durable textured thermofoils, this line is compatible with Sektion, Akurum, Godmorgon, and Besta cabinets from IKEA. It's the perfect, practical way to add the warmth of wood to all the rooms of your home.
We have teamed up with Loloi to create a line of rugs that are as affordable as they are beautiful. This collection houses a great mix of traditional and modern rugs, in cottage-y colorways, as well as vintage-inspired beauties that you’ll want to roll out in every room.
We partnered with Stuga on a line of hardwood floors — The Ingrid is really livable, and the color is very neutral. It doesn’t lean warm or cool, it’s that just right in-between. We have really loved putting it everywhere in our house. It’s the best jumping-off point for design, no matter your interior style. In addition to being beautiful, Ingrid is really durable — we have three kids, and we always have a home construction project going on. Ingrid stands up to it all.
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The next project we’re checking off our 2023 project list is the mudroom! This used to be the laundry room until we built out a much bigger, better laundry room upstairs. So, in the meantime, this space has been exclusively Cricket’s room. Cricket will still have a special space here, but we’re transforming this dingy […]
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looks amazing!!!
Pretty.
Were you not able to reuse/repurpose the original diamond pavers? That sounds like kismet to me.
It was one big chunk of concrete
Absolutely love! Thank you for your beautiful ideas’s and creativity!
Thank you!
I was very sad and disappointed when I realized my IG account was blocked for simply saying what a lot of your followers said about your artificial turf. We are just trying to bring awareness to the need to go back to nature and avoiding plastics and over consumption… I’ve followed you for a long time and you brought a lot of inspiration through the years. I’m just sad 😞 @thornandoak
I don’t block anyone that’s following me. If it looks like a spam account that’s not following me with zero everything–then I don’t feel bad blocking someone. I see you’re not following me.
Gorgeous!!! Is the bluestone surrounding the pool “mixed color/full color” bluestone or “select blue/true blue” bluestone? Cleft or thermal? I want the same thing!!!
It’s blue blue
Mine are being installed today. I’m worried about the transition between the stone as nd turf. I’m doing 6” in between (like Shea’s) and 4 24×24 pavers to make it 4 ft…and it feels like it will not be easy to walk on (praying your walking video will be our same experience) I hope
the sand lifts up the base somehow. Yours has been an inspiration. 🤞🏼🤞🏼
Absolutely gorgeous!!