We are building a redwood pergola in our backyard!
I am so excited about this project. We bought this fixer upper home specifically for the yard, so having a beautiful place to spend time in that yard is really important to us. We decided to build a pergola so that we can have a shady place to set up some comfortable seating and because pergolas are beautiful to look at.
As we have been researching and preparing for this project, we decided to use Humboldt Redwood instead of pressure treated lumber or plastic or metal. Here are a few of the reasons:
- Redwood is beautiful, durable and easy to work with.
- The wood is very strong but light, so it’s easier for us to lift and work with on our own.
- We can use our regular woodworking tools and don’t need any special equipment.
- I adore the look of redwood. It’s so warm and has so much character! It will blend in beautifully with our backyard.
- I also love that Humboldt Redwood is grown and harvested in a responsible, ethical manner with an eye for long-term sustainability. We took a family trip to the Redwoods a few years ago and it was such a unique and beautiful place that protecting this national treasure is especially important to me.
And for once we didn’t have to come up with our own design. Humboldt already had a pergola building plan that was perfect for our needs. You’ll definitely want to check out all of their redwood building plans. They have detailed and easy-to-follow instructions for outdoor furniture, pergolas, potting centers, decks, planters and all kinds of other outdoor structures.
This is the “before” picture of the area where we are building the pergola.
Yikes!
The old chicken coop was such an eye sore and since we never plan to have chickens, it wasn’t really doing much for us. Because it’s surrounded by trees and has awesome views of the sunset, we knew it was prime real estate for a pergola. We tore down the old structure and were surprised to find a cement pad hiding under layers of weeds, straw and chicken poop. At first we thought we could re-purpose the pad, but it was in bad shape and just wasn’t exactly right for the project. Since this pergola is something we know will last for years and years to come, we decided it was worth doing right.
So we tore out the old pad and poured a new cement pad. It was so exciting to have big equipment working in our backyard! Here are a few video clips I shot of the process:
And this is a picture of our current progress:
The cement is ready and we’ve anchored the metal footings to the concrete, so now we are ready to build!
It’ll be happening over the next week or two, so check back soon to see how the final pergola comes to life. It’s going to be so pretty… I can’t wait to show you!
This post is sponsored by Humboldt Redwood and The Motherhood. All opinions are my own.
Comments & Reviews
Nice work on the re-pouring the cement pad! We are so excited to see this project come together. Looks like a lovely location!