In the past two homes we've lived in, we prioritized renovating the inside of the house before the outside. So when we made the move to North Carolina, where the outdoor living is outstandingly better than Idaho, we wanted to focus on the outside first. And I'm so glad we did it right from the start because now we get to reap all the benefits for years to come. It’s been two years since we traded our black Modern Cottage in Idaho for this North Carolinian Red Brick Modern Colonial, and it's taken us 15 months to get to this point, but the exterior is done! If you're interested in how much it cost, keep scrolling.
See our previous exterior home renovations below:
Modern Cottage Exterior Reveal
Backyard Reveal of Our Rexburg House
Front Yard
Before
After
Okay, eventually, we plan to do more work on the actual house exterior, but for now, we're calling it! The roof will need replacing soon, as well as the windows, and I would love to paint the trim while we're at it. We recorded a full walking video tour of the entire exterior for you, but we took a plethora of transformation photos jut for you. Enjoy!
I just did a side-by-side of the first video tour of our house, and the transformation is shocking.
I don't think we did a very fair reveal of the front yard in this post here because we were still in the season of the sticks and short on greenery. With summer on the cusp, the front yard is looking much fuller and green. Every morning when I return from the gym and pull up into the driveway, I get a little hit of dopamine. Isn't the best feeling "coming home?"
Before
After
Few of our projects are without controversy, and the front yard brought some feelings out for a few. It can be a hard thing for people to see “mature” landscaping ripped out for small shrubs and new plants. But this yard was overgrown and overshadowed the home. By simplifying and tidying the landscaping, both the kitchen and the study are flooded with natural light. And thanks to these Carolina rains, those cute Japanese Holly bushes will grow in no time.
Parking Pad
Before
After
This part of our property has scarcely been shown! When you face the house, it's around the left corner, and it's where our garage, guest house, and parking pad are located. We expanded the parking pad, built a retaining wall, and added the gate (requirements of having a pool). Oh, and we took out some of the trees and added a pathway into the back. Although, there's another gate entrance through the archway.
Pool Deck & Pool
Before
After
Shop our backyard
The backyard is heaven. Another controversial move: taking out so many shrubs and trees. But we can honestly say we have zero regrets (which is also the number of snakes we’ve seen on our property since clearing out all the dense greenery).
We get a lot of questions asking how we feel about the bluestone pavers and turf, and the honest answer is we love it! The turf has been a dream, and I think the way that some of the bluestone pavers are oxidizing adds so much character.
Umbrellas | Umbrella Stands | Chaise Loungers | Woven Planter | Faux Pine Tree
And as you know from this post, this post, and this post, we're completely smitten with our pool.
The girls swim in it for 10 months every year, and they have already made countless memories with more to come.
Shop this view
Fun fact! Chris and I have only ever had white outdoor furniture. I’m obsessed with that brilliant white in the outdoors. With so many colors in our outdoor space – our red brick house, the spa blue-green of the pool, the bluish-gray stone, and green grass – I knew our pool furniture needed to be black and white. Having a visual reprieve from all the colors is what really ties this all together.
The entire backyard is dripping with vacation oasis vibes.
Fire Pit Area
Before
After
The sunken fire pit might be the most underrated part of the backyard renovation! Usually at the end of a pool day, we change out of our wet clothes and warm up by the fire. We also try to keep s'more ingredients on hand at all times because you never know when you might need them.
For more details on the Adirondack chairs and a selection of even more, check out this post!
Outdoor Kitchen
Before
After
Pergola | Lantern Pendants | Barstools
The outdoor kitchen gets used about three times a week, and that's on a bad week. Chris cooks almost every night, and this time of year, he does the majority of it outside. This is his playground.
We recently added these barstools, which match the aesthetic of the kitchen so much and are surprisingly affordable for a set of two. I like that they have a low back so we can still serve food buffet-style without having to shift them out of the way!
Although we have revealed the total cost of the pool installation, we get a lot of questions surrounding ALL renovation costs.
Of course, sharing numbers is always tricky because everybody's budget looks different, but for the sake of transparency in sharing our renovation journey, here's the budget breakdown of all the landscaping changes front and back:
- demo
- clearing
- grading
- permitting
- plants
- parking pad
- pool
- pool lighting
- deck jet fountains
- motorized hardcover
- all the stonework
- retaining walls
- pergola
- outdoor kitchen materials
- appliances
- landscaping
- irrigation
- drainage
- trampoline
- outdoor shower (Shower system)
- sunken fire pit
- lighting
- contractors and landscapers
All of this for a total of $549,521. The exterior renovation was one of the projects we budgeted from selling our last house and took 15 months to complete, but we're so glad we prioritized it from the beginning. We'll be reaping the benefits for years to come.
Other posts about the exterior
Our Revised Backyard Landscaping
The Backyard Pool Installation
Our Backyard Exterior Lighting
The Pool Furniture in Our Backyard Vacation Oasis
The Start of Our Container Garden
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Thank you so much for sharing the cost! We have spent what felt like a fortune on our yard and pool and it’s good to see what it actually costs to do something this extensive. The backyard is gorgeous, beautiful job!
Wow. You guys have such a beautiful home! Love how everything turned out and I love how real you guys are! Keep up the great work.
For some reason the cost breakdown didn’t show up, could you do a recap for me?
Found it, for some reason my iPad blocks things out in the display, found costs when I read post on my iPhone…thx
This is the most helpful, honest and inspirational post I’ve seen in a long time. As high as that number may seem we just received a price for less work and twice the cost. We thought we were being taken advantage of but now we know. Thanks for your transparency. So refreshing!
Stunning design choices. Love it all.
As a landscape contractor I really appreciated your transparency about the budget! Sometimes it gets a bit frustrating to deal with clients that see all the beautiful images online but have no idea what it took to get there.
Okay that number almost took me out, LOL. I feel like we're still in a post pandemic price crush for home projects, but you did do a whole bunch and it looks stunning. The pool area in particular is amazing.
You've invested in yourselves and your family and I love it. The change around the parking pad and the extra gate are such a nice treat! When you host or have guests that extra parking space makes such a big difference! It really is lovely! Enjoy!!
Wow, that is a ton of money, but I think you have enhanced the property so much. As I was reading, I kept thinking about how much use you will get from this space in the years to come - pool parties, sleep overs, birthdays, graduation, showers. Not to mention just good old family times. It's beautiful and I'm so glad you love it and will have many years to enjoy it.
Congratulation, on the beautiful backyard just in time for summer
I really appreciate you sharing the real numbers! It helps put me back into reality --- this is what this costs, and it's ok if my renovations look different because I have a different budget.
100 % agree with this comment - thank you for your honesty
Agreed. I love that you are brave enough to share the real numbers. I am getting ready to design an add-on and backyard space for our house and it helps me to adjust my expectations. So often, influencers have these perfect looking homes but they don't admit the huge amount of money it often takes to create spaces like these. I love looking at it and getting design ideas from you while knowing you are actually honest!
This exterior is an absolute dream space. Every time I see the photos of the little patio and all the shrubs, it just blows my mind that you had all that glorious space waiting to be used. Such an amazing space for your family and I love the whole design and vibe. Well done.
So much inspiration!!! Watching your process creating this wonderland has been so informative. I hope your HOA doesn’t squabble with anything they see this time😉