Adding Fun to Your Backyard with Summer DIY Projects

Add Fun & Relaxation to Your Backyard

Summer is quickly approaching and temperatures are starting to rise. This is a great time to think about DIY projects that are easy, inexpensive, and add fun and relaxation to your backyard. We are sharing some of our favorite ideas that would only take a day to a weekend to complete that can add a lot to your outdoor pleasure this summer and year-round to your home and backyard!

Building Backyard Project that Provides Fun & Relaxation

We will give you some great DIY backyard building ideas to inspire you to have fun and relax in your own backyard. So many of our suggestions will make your home the destination place in the neighborhood for kids and adults alike! Each one of our suggestions we vetted with these things in mind: is it easy, does it create fun or relaxation, can it be built in a day or weekend, and is the project inexpensive to not too costly to build.

Add Solar or LED Lighting to Your Backyard

Solar lights are so convenient and have come so far over the last years. The cost has come down and lighting time has increased along with the intensity of light.

You can use solar outdoor lights to light a pathway, use solar lights as deck lights, or use solar lights as accent lights in your yard to highlight a beautiful tree or fountain.

There are so many ways to use outdoor lights that can totally transform a backyard into an oasis of calm and enjoyment. Whether you are using LED large bulb lights, mini-lights, or solar path lights, the options are amazing these days in selection and applications. In under an hour, you can transform the look of your patio, deck, or an entire backyard with the lighting options that are available today.

Stringing mini lights that are battery power under your patio umbrella creates a beautiful atmosphere to dine by or laze away in the evening. You can totally transform your backyard into a wonderland by stringing mini lights through the trees. Think of installing a swing in your trees that even adults can enjoy and looking up into the canopy to see the leaves and branches highlighted against the night sky.

Create Your Own Outdoor Movie Theatre

An outdoor movie theatre is something you wouldn’t have been able to build until a few years ago without a sizable investment. Technology has come so far along that this project is not only simple but is also pretty inexpensive for what you get. I think it would be so much fun sitting back on an outdoor sofa, eating popcorn with the kids, and watching some of our favorite movies this summer in our backyard. Roll down screens, outdoor speaker units, an outdoor sofa, and maybe a fire pit, and you instantly have transformed your backyard into a nighttime entertainment area!

Outdoor Showers & Bathtubs Are So Relaxing

Hot tubs can be expensive, but installing an outdoor shower is very simple and not costly. Erect a privacy screen out of latticework, plant some ivy, run your plumbing, and you have a wonderful outdoor shower. The first time I took a bath in an outdoor bathtub was up in mountains, the view was amazing, but being outdoor soaking in a tub was so relaxing and serene!

Some of the same preparation is needed, unless you live in an area where no neighbors can see your yard, you’ll want to erect a privacy screen, but the rewards of an outdoor tub are worth the work. The best tub for an outdoor bathtub is an old steel clawfoot tub which can be picked up at most antique stores or building salvage yards. You can also install a showerhead so that it serves as an outdoor shower and also a bathtub!

Build a Gazebo This Summer

There are so many different styles of gazebos, from rustic to very formal gazebos that would fit in an English tea garden. Gazebos can be very simple and a one-weekend project, to a more elaborate project that takes a few weekends. You can build bench seating into your gazebo, outfit it with a hammock, or hanging swing, or use it for a place to dine in the heat of the day and at night with lights strung from the rafters for a magical effect. Gazebos also add value to your home and make for an inviting backyard to enjoy any time of year.

Build a Tree Bench

Each day on my walk with my older dog we go by a property with towering trees and the most beautiful bench that is made out of two tree stumps and then a tree slab as the bench. The two stumps support the tree slab and the whole setting looks so relaxing and the best place to meditate or read a book. A simple and nearly no-cost project that you can add to your backyard landscaping to create a quiet spot to relax and enjoy your backyard.

Build an Outdoor Fire Pit

There is nothing like gathering around a fire as the evening cools down to enjoy the evening with family and friends. You can always buy a ready-made fire pit or outdoor fireplace, but it’s fun to repurpose items that can be used for an outdoor fire interest in your backyard also!  You can use an old fountain top, build your own with paver stones or bricks, old tire rims work, an old wheelbarrow bin, or a steel wok. a cast-iron pot, an old washing machine drum, and so many more items that can be used once again as the basis for your backyard fire pit. We suggest for any fire pit that you also have a heavy-duty wire that covers the fire so sparks are kept from causing a problem. Think of spending an evening at your fire pit roasting marshmallows with the kids and making smores. There’s no better fun to be had with your kids on a summer evening!

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