{unwinding at home with Starbucks + some deck updates}

I'm back with the final post in my series in partnership with Starbucks® flavored K-Cup® packs (see post one here and post two here) and today we're talking about the way that I like to unwind at home. By far my favorite place to unwind is out on our rooftop deck that is attached to our loft- you can see the before and after pictures of it in this post. We really poured our hearts into this one to make it a space we would be able to spend a great deal of time on whether it's a dinner party, morning breakfast or a lazy Sunday laying out. Since I work from home right now, I love to unwind in the afternoon with a little caffeine jolt to get through the rest of the day. Sometimes it just takes a little 15-minute break where I escape out on to the deck to enjoy a cup of coffee and distract myself with a little Pinterest or online shopping to become reenergized to finish out the day.

When I first starting drinking coffee back in high school, I used to order a mocha latte since coffee still tasted pretty bitter to me, so I needed lots of things like chocolate and steamed milk to distract me from the taste. While I certainly can't drink it black now, I have definitely graduated away from the more dessert like lattes and take my coffee with just a splash of cream. I was excited to try out the Starbucks® Mocha K-Cup® Packs for a little bit of a throwback to my original coffee flavor preference and was surprised to find the flavor quite enjoyable without overpowering the coffee.


Here's a few photos of some of the updates we've made over the past couple weeks out on our deck:

{we switched up the layout a bit since I first showed you the deck- moving the shuffle board to the center and the dining table off to the side}

 {I originally had a garden stool in between these chaises, but the top of it wasnt exactly level which made it obnoxious to try to rest drinks on.  I picked up this black metal table on clearance at Target recently along with the white hurricane from Home Goods}

{our next door neighbors moved out back in September and gifted us these three amazing (and huge) white planters which are now lined up against the back wall of the deck.  I planted ficus hedges in two of the planters for some added privacy and used the third planter for a orange tree, rosemary bush, lavender and a iceberg rose bush}

 {our lemon tree is alllmooost ripe!!}

I'd love to hear how you like to unwind at home?

The rich aromas and sweet flavors you love from Starbucks®, now brewing at home. Introducing two new K-Cup® flavors for fall, inspired by our café favorites.

LEGAL: Developed in partnership with Starbucks Coffee Company and their new Starbucks® K-Cup® packs. K-Cup® packs for use in Keurig® K-Cup® brewing systems. Keurig, the Cup and Star Design, Keurig Brewed, K-Cup and the Keurig brewer trade dress are trademarks of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc., used with permission.

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Starbucks Coffee Company, via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Starbucks Coffee Company.

{dtla loft rooftop deck before & after}

Do you guys remember the inspiration board I put together for the outdoor deck space in our new loft?  Well I'm not going to lie to you, but I think I pretty much nailed it.  I am so obsessed with how this deck turned out and am super excited to finally be sharing before and after results with you today.  Our moving truck was over a week and half late coming out from Chicago which was incredibly annoying, but also somewhat of a blessing since it allowed us lots of time to focus on sourcing, buying, assembling and planting all the stuff for our deck!!

The roof deck area is about 750 square feet which is a lot of space to cover considering the only piece of outdoor furniture we were coming into this space with was a coffee table.  The biggest concern of mine going into this was how to fill the space so it feels complete, but enough free space for us to throw big parties while still having an intimate feeling for smaller gatherings.  Some of the mandatory items were a large cabana for shade and privatization, a dining table big enough for 8 people, chaise lounges of some sort and a social game situation (all while trying not to spend a million dollars on this project!).  I have been mildly obsessed with Z Gallerie's Portofino Pavilion for years now and my parents bought it for us as a housewarming gift.  Since the pavilion is such a statement piece, I based the design of the rest of the deck around it.  The other "splurge" item on the deck was the outdoor sectional that sits under the pavilion which was a lucky Craigslist find.  Besides those two items we found most of the deck furnishings at Target, Ikea and Craigslist which helped keep the entire project budget friendly.  You can see all the sources for the items on the deck at the bottom of the post.

Similar to our last loft's deck, we planted mostly succulents here since they are so low maintenance and thrive in the California heat.  I did want to bring in some greenery besides succulents to give the space a more lush feel so we also picked up a small ficus and a palm tree at Home Depot as well as a few Italian Cypresses, a dwarf Eureka lemon tree and a 10 foot ficus from different sellers on Craigslist.  Just as a random tip- if you have the time the drive around, Craigslist is a great source for plants/trees since you get a great deal and the plants are already acclimated with mature root structures so you have less chance of killing them!

I apologize in advance for how picture heavy this post is, but I just couldn't narrow it down any more than this!!

 {I'll let you in on a little secret- for this hanging planter I opted to use faux succulents so that I wouldn't have to deal with the maintenance of watering it and having it drain onto our side table}

{I am so happy with how these DIY lights turned out for inside the cabana- especially since the decorative orbs were on sale for $15 each at Target!} 

{this amazing ceramic swan planter is actually from Chris' late grandmother's house and it definitely is our most treasured possession on the entire deck} 

 {the succulent on the left was actually on our old dtla deck two years and we planted it at Chris' parents house so they could babysit it for us for the past two years.  It really grew like crazy- have you ever seen one flower so much!?!}

 {dogs gotta get fancy too.}

 {As I mentioned, one of the mandatory items for the space was some sort of social game situation.  After spending some time on craigslist, I fell in the love with the idea of buying an outdoor pool table that someone was selling, but it unfortunately wasn't going to fit in the tiny elevators of our historic building.  The next best thing was inspired by a dive bar we sometimes find ourselves at that has a shuffleboard table so I started searching around for one.  Craigslist once again came to the rescue with a 9 foot long shuffleboard table (the limit of what could fit in the elevators) and
we scooped it up right away!}

SOURCES:

Striped Cabana: Zgallerie
Outdoor Sectional: Craigslist (brand is Terra Collection)
Throw Pillows: Custom upholstery at D&R Upholstery in Los Angeles, Palm Fabric from here, black sunbrella and black/white printed fabric from Michael Levine
Coffee Table: Wedding Gift from this post
White side Table: Nate Berkus from Target
Rug in Cabana: Mali Geometric in Black/Cream from Target
Lighting in Cabana:  Decorative Orbs from Target fitted with lantern chords from Home Depot
Macrame Holder: Macrame holder & gold bowl insert from CB2
Lanterns: Lanterns in various sizes + LED Candles with Remote from Pier 1
Various White Planters: Target, Home Depot, Michael's Crafts (many have been spray painted white)
Dog Bed: Home Goods fitted with custom upholstered cover from D&R Upholstery in Tommy Bahama Palm Fabric
Black Trash Cans: Two sizes from Ikea
Wood Bar Cart: Applaro Collection from Ikea
Dining Table: Applaro Collection from Ikea
Dining Chairs: Tabouret Chairs sold in sets of 4 from Overstock
Rug under Chaises: Durham Rectangular rug from Target
Chaise Lounges: Applaro Collection from  Ikea
Chaise Cushions: Pottery Barn
Chaise Throw Pillows: Ikea
Serape Blankets: Amazon
Garden Stool: Target
Umbrella: Stand + Sand colored umbrella from Pier1
Bistro Lights:  5 packs of clear globe lights from Target
Entrance Decking tiles: 3 packs of Runnen decking tiles from Ikea
Shuffleboard table: Craigslist, similar here
Fencing Panels:  Redwood panels from Home Depot

{new dtla loft lease + patio inspiration}

Last week we officially signed a lease on a loft in downtown Los Angeles and will be moving in at the end of this month (so long as all our stuff makes it safely across the country!).  Searching for a new place was somewhat stressful and completely painless at the same time.  I was incredibly worried I would be disappointed with whatever places we found since our last loft was such a lucky find and I loved it so much that it was likely nothing would measure up.  Outdoor space was one of my top wish list items for our new place (especially after living in Chicago weather for the past two years!), but it is very rare to find affordable units that actually have substantial areas of outdoor space in dtla beyond the ridiculous penthouse units.  Many of the converted buildings in the historical core will have maybe 7 or 8 units out of 200 to 300 that happen to have an outdoor deck just based on the odd architecture of the building which was the exact situation with our roof deck last time

I almost couldn't believe it when I got a call about a unit that opened up with almost as much outdoor space than interior space.  We put down a deposit on the newly available unit within 24 hours of that phone call! Our new place has about 820 square feet inside and while I was hoping for a bit more interior square footage, the fact that the deck will be almost 750 square feet more than makes up for it!  The big reason I wanted substantial indoor space was so that we have more than enough room to entertain and we are hoping to put a lot of work into the deck so that we can use it as a additional living space.  Here's some of the inspiration I have been gathering for the new outdoor space!

I absolutely cannot wait to get into the place and start putting it all together!  I promise to share progress along the way via Instagram and all the details once things are finished here on the blog!