Color-Inspired Backyard Fire Pit Makeover

Summer is in full swing and I’m enjoying every second of it! Today on the blog I’m excited to show you how I gave an outdoor fire pit area in my backyard a makeover with a splash of color, some hard work, and a touch of magic.

I’ve been in my home for a little over a year now and I just realized (other than a picture or two) that I’ve never shared my backyard fire pit area here on the blog. I probably didn’t share this outdoor fire pit area with you because it wasn’t much to look at last year. However, I was recently inspired to give it a “mini makeover” along with adding in a dash of color and style. I’ve always been amazed at the transformative power of paint, so I’ve teamed up with my friends at Sherwin-Williams to add a punch of color and life to my backyard nook.

Color-Inspired Backyard Fire Pit Makeover

I suppose I should show you where I started. I was looking through some of the photos I first took when I bought this house and realized I never fully captured this particular area on camera. I suspect that since it was an area overgrown with trees and weeds, it didn’t seem photo worthy to me at the time.

Luckily, I was able to dig up a few images of the space. As I mentioned, this was just an overgrown area and included this weird metal cage – I’m assuming it was a batting cage of some sort. Late last summer I had the cage removed and hauled away and then got to work cutting down approximately ten trees. Using a chainsaw, I cut down most of the trees myself, but a couple of the trees were quite large so they had to be professionally removed. You can see in the image below that I was starting to visualize how the space was going to look and function. You can even see that trees, brush and weeds were removed.

Other than a bit of clean up, weeding, and raking, this is mostly how I used the space last year. It worked fine for what it was. I even crudely hung some string lights in the tree.

Up until a couple weekends ago this space was mostly ignored since last fall. Some weeds grew back and the area became a collection spot for brush clean-up, fallen branches, etc. It was a mess. See below.

While I have bigger dreams for this area in future years (a more level surface, stone work, building a fireplace, landscaping, etc.), I wanted to get it cleaned up so that I could start enjoying the space this summer and fall. I love an outdoor fire pit so it was a shame this one wasn’t being used.

Ideas for a Backyard Fire Pit Makeover

I never loved the temporary, plastic Adirondack chairs I bought on a whim last year so I decided to start there. I thought this would be a great opportunity to add a little color and fun to my backyard so that’s where my friends at Sherwin-Williams came into play. I decided to pick up some inexpensive, unpainted Adirondack chairs and give them life with a splash of fun color so that’s exactly what I did.

When deciding on the color, the answer came pretty quickly. I knew I wanted purple. I wanted this space to feel a little magical and I’ve always associated the color purple with magic. I also purchased a lot of purple annual flowers for my deck this year and so the color was just begging to be used in a bigger way. I used my Sherwin-Williams fan deck to find a color match to a particular flower I loved and ended up with Purple Passage SW 6551.

I found the Adirondack chairs online for a great price. I ordered them along with a little side table. Once they arrived I assembled them myself. They were really easy to assemble and the instructions were pretty straight forward. Each chair took about 20-30 minutes.

To make painting the chairs a bit easier, I decided to purchase this paint sprayer. This would be my first attempt at using a paint sprayer so I was a little intimidated. However, I’m pleased to say that the process was insanely simple and I ended loving the paint spray gun. I will definitely be using it again. (My only note is to be sure to read the instructions and follow your paint sprayer’s guide for set-up, diluting the paint if necessary, and clean-up.)

The chairs had were bare wood so I decided to apply a primer first. I wanted to give the wood a great starting point for the top coat. Sherwin-Williams recommends using A-100 Alkyd Stain Blocking Primeror Exterior Oil-Based Wood Primer. I used Sherwin-Williams Premium Wall & Wood Primer.I applied one coat with my paint sprayer.

For the top coat, I used Sherwin-Williams Emerald Urethane Trim Enamelin a satin finish. If you remember, I used this line of paint in my ORC Master Bedroom Makeover and have loved it ever since. Emerald Urethane Trim Enamel is designed for indoor/outdoor use and delivers a beautiful finish that will withstand wear and tear. It was perfect for this project.

With the sprayer, I applied about three coats of the satin finish paint. I had good coverage with two, but since these chairs would be exposed to the elements, I opted for a third.

As much as I liked the natural wood finish, I think this pop of purple is really something unique and special. Don’t you?

Now, with the chairs and table primed and painted, it was time to get things styled.

Before I was ready to style, I took some time to completely clean up the area. I had a big fire and burned up all the brush, twigs, and branches that collected over the past year. I also took the weed trimer and eliminated lots of unsightly weeds. Then I raked up all of the debris. I even purchased a new log rack to keep all of my wood off of the ground so it could dry out well and be ready for burning. Finally, I properly hung my outdoor string lights and created a circle of light in the treetops.

And with that, my color-inspired backyard fire pit makeover was complete! Let’s take a look around.

My Color-Inspired Outdoor Backyard Fire Pit Makeover:

As you can see the space is looking so much better. That pop of Purple Passage SW 6551 added the most perfect clean, beautiful, and magical touch. It really brought this space to life in the way I hoped it would.

The primer along with a few coats of the Sherwin-Williams Emerald Urethan Trim Enamel will also keep these chairs protected against the elements. It applied so smoothly for a really nice finish. I am so pleased!

I also like that these chairs are foldable. During the winter months I will be able to fold them up and easily store them away to keep them protected from those really harsh elements.

I’m glad I decided to purchase and paint a little side table too. It is a great spot to set the drinks and snacks. As you can see, I currently have it stacked up with supplies for s’mores. I mean, what’s a fire pit without s’mores?

Speaking of fire and s’mores, let’s light the fire.

I was also excited to finally finish my light installation. I climbed up a ladder and drilled a hole into each tree and then screwed in eye hooks. I then used zip ties to attach the lights to the trees. It’s hard to tell from my photos, but the light strands drape from tree to tree creating a circle around the fire pit. It’s really quite beautiful and lights up the space so nicely. I just have an extension cord running to the house for the electric.

I tucked in a few other elements including some lanterns, candles, and flowers for some extra special touches.

Now that the work is complete, I’m ready to enjoy this space for the rest of the summer and into the fall. Who’s coming over to join me? You bring the drinks; I’ll have the snacks ready!

I hope you enjoyed this outdoor backyard fire pit makeover and picked up a few ideas for your own outdoor space. Thanks for joining me!