The Exterior of the Old Sauna

BEFORE PICTURES

This is a picture of the property when we purchased it. Buried in the overgrown yard was a little outbuilding (which I've circled) that the previous owners used as a sauna. 

This was the desert phase of our remodel! The renovations on the main house were mostly complete by then, leaving the arduous task of bringing the yard back to life. 

Here it is after we seeded the grass. I also had just planted an Endless Summer hydrangea under the little window. 

This is a closeup of the front facade, before we renovated the interior. 

You can see inside the old sauna here. 

AFTER PHOTOS

This is one of those projects that will probably be ongoing. But it's looking a little happier since we installed a new wood door (the old door was a hollow core laminate version from the 70's). 

Thanks to so many of your suggestions, we loved the idea of installing a Dutch door but it was out of our price range (over $1,000). So we went with a wood-paned door from Simpson (the same company that made the rest of our doors), which was less than $300. 

We also removed the metal awning, which highlights the building's desperate need of a fresh coat of paint (the ongoing part...). 

The front bed has an Endless Summer hydrangea and a climbing clematis. We planted a mature boxwood on the corner for some winter color, and a hedge of Limelight hydrangea along the side. 

In the top photo, you can see an Incrediball hydrangea at the left of the frame. There are three Penny Mac hydrangeas to the left of the Incrediball (out of the frame). 

The Limelight are very happy here. They were transplanted from a front bed by the house, where they received too much sun for their liking. Here they enjoy a mix of sun and shade.

We're so glad that we had this little outbuilding shingled when we re-roofed our house. It was one of those spur of the moment decisions that paid off - otherwise who knows how long it would have taken us to get around to it!