outdoor living has commenced!!!

that's right. that was me gettin Excited (with a capitol E). i love outdoor living and loving, drinking and eating, swimming and sleeping. i like doing that everywhere but in my own backyard.

it is one hot mess out there. and i do mean hot. we've had heat advisories the last 2 days.

i mean, i can do interiors. i get them. i feel like i know them and i have confidence and bountiful ideas. when it comes to the great outdoors, i have..... grass? and even then, i can't always promise you it will be lush and green in the middle of july. i do have 15 peony bushes lining my back fence (my favorite flower since birth, and they are about to pop open any day now!!) but i know they are only still around because the owner before me planted them.

if you have a couple seconds, i would delve into the collection of spectacular outdoor spaces i have gathered below. if you are anything like me, being without a green thumb... mine is red, or blue-- any color but green, then you'll find these drool worthy, and i wish my backyard was a collaboration of every single last one of them.

enjoy. (or be envious, your choice.)

megan mullally

elle decor

anthropologie

cynthia rowley

india hicks

elle decor

elle decor

elle decor

elle decor
elle decor

elle decor

coastal living

veranda

elle decor

flickr

photo by jose villa

trad home online mag

coastal living

via little green notebook

west elm

west elm

i don't even have a patio or deck. my sunroom walks down straight into grass. i love this idea i first blogged about here, with circular stepping stones. i think that would be insanely easy to implement (easier, i guess), and different than the norm. i just can't pull the trigger.

i vow to have a magazine worthy backyard with perfectly manicured lawns and shrubs. with a giant rustic wooden table mixed with modern chairs for dining. and even a small and glamorous pool (i die over cynthia rowley's petite pool plopped smack in the middle of nyc). perhaps some great lighting, and the perfect outdoor accessories (like those elephants)...someday. but i do want to start my path to glorious backyard living right now!

JILL