The Decked Out Backyards Thriving During the Pandemic
Inside the exclusive women’s group that trades ideas on tricking out yards and patios
Home is a sanctuary. So when I recently bought and moved into my new one — a small Georgian-style house on Chicago’s South Side, the most immediate question was: What can I do with my backyard?
I knew the backyard I was blessed to grow up in was the kind of space I want to create now for me and my son: welcoming, relaxing, a bit luxurious. And honestly, I wasn’t sure how to even start.
“Have you joined that Facebook group yet?” asks my mama, who has one of the most colorful outdoor spaces I’ve ever seen, complete with a “she-shed” filled with antiques, a flower-covered mannequin she lovingly named Daisy, and two gazebos — one enclosed for TV watching and one open for doing puzzles. For 20 years, her backyard has been more than just a yard; it’s a relaxing oasis in the middle of our populated city, a perfect spot for projecting our family’s favorite movies onto a screen on summer nights or a birthday ice cream social on a 90-degree day.
She, all of her friends, and many of my own have recently found solace, community, and sisterhood in a trending Facebook group dedicated to making the most of your outdoor space, whether it be a high-rise…
