This space for year-round outdoor entertaining includes bench seats with built-in planter boxes and a fire pit lid that doubles as a small table.
The project
Being a first home buyer, this was my first chance to build something and I'm surprised it actually turned out ok.
The bench seats with planter boxes were easy to make. I used H4 treated Pine sleepers with a height of four sleepers. The bottom two boxes measure 3 x 1m and the top two measure 3 x 0.5m
I pre-built all the pieces in my garage, added supports for the seat base and the base of the planters and then painted all the pieces.
I then stained decking boards.
And took it all out to the yard to piece it together.
After that, it was just a matter of creating a boundary to contain the pebbles, and put pavers and a fire pit in.
I built the lid for the fire pit so that we can use the area for entertaining year round as it doubles as a small table.
The area has already had a good workout as we had our wedding reception in the backyard and it was where everyone wanted to be.
How to build a fire pit
Experienced Workshop member Adam Woodhams shares step-by-step instructions for creating your own fire pit area with a removable rustic fire-bowl in this guide: How to build a fire pit.
More fire pit projects
Using Merbau screens as fencing and in a custom bench seat design, Workshop member lcooksey88 created an outdoor haven dedicated to gatherings around the fire pit.
Workshop member Ian added this eye-catching D.I.Y. fire pit to a paved area for outdoor entertaining.
