Miami South Beach-Inspired Garden Makeover*

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With all this gorgeous weather we've been having lately, it seems everyone is thinking about revamping their gardens, and how to create an outside area perfect for summer dining.

AXA Insurance recently sponsored the first ever Grand Shed Project at this year's Grand Designs Live at the ExCel Centre in London. The feature consisted of five beautifully transformed garden sheds designed to provide inspiration and show visitors how, with a little imagination and hard work, the often neglected and humble garden shed can take a completely different form.

The five transformed sheds included a Reading Snug, Sewing Shack, Miami South Beach bar, Boutique Bedroom and an Outdoor Room, showing the possibilities are endless!

For shedloads of inspiration and to see the final transformations, read more here. As part of the project AXA Insurance have challenged homeowners to recreate one of the five winning looks at home. Being a huge sun-worshipper my favourite design was the Miami South Beach Bar, which inspired me to recreate this look within my patio area, which has been crying out for a revamp for years.

When we moved into our home the garden was in desperate need of a bit of TLC, however we haven't really got round to dedicating any time to sorting it out. So this challenge was a great excuse to get stuck in! Below is a mood board showing the look I've gone for, and some bits I've spotted on the high street to create this.

I started with creating a comfy seating area perfect for lounging about and enjoying the sunshine in comfort. This four piece rattan dining set certainly ticks all these boxes, and I've jazzed it up with some bright and colourful cushions, which I think really inject some Miami-inspired colour. To compliment these I've added this gorgeous footstool - you can't go wrong with pom poms can you?! 

The Miami look involves a lot of the exotic, and I've incorporated this through some succulents which I've displayed in a cloche on the table and a large fern, which also works to distract the eye from that boring and rather un-Miami looking fence!

Lighting is a huge aspect of any garden revamp, especially if you want to sit outside after the sun goes down, so I've placed some of the most popular lights this season along the fence - these gorgeous festoon lights. I've added a candle (Pina colada scented no less!) for some atmospheric lighting and couldn't resist this cactus shaped light too! 

Part of the challenge also required you to put together a 'hack' style DIY piece, and I've gone for a bar cart/drinks trolley to house the all-important drinks to make your own Miami-style cocktails. because it's not a holiday without a cosmopolitan now is it?! I've written a separate blog post on how I made this using an IKEA trolley, which you can have a read of here. it took me less than an hour and a fraction of the price of some of the drinks trolleys I've had my eye on! 

I've styled it with a pineapple decoration, a tassel garland I made from some tissue paper, and some bits and pieces such as straws, mint leaves and pretty roses displayed in kilner jars. 

I'm so happy with the way this transformation has turned out, and can't wait to spend the summer in my newly-revamped garden! Thanks so much to AXA Insurance for providing the inspiration for this fun challenge! 

What do you think of my mini garden makeover? Which one of the five looks from the Grand Designs show would you like to recreate in your home? 

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Thanks for reading, 

Sam Xx

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