Oh, hi summer weather! Where on earth did you come from?
We are so lucky, living in central London, to have a big communal roof terrace. It is the full foot print of our building, minus the lift shaft, so there is tons of space and 360 degree views of London and the River Thames. It’s definitely not the prettiest terrace in the world as the developers chose orangey stained fencing to divide it into sections and red brick for the raised beds and in an ideal word I would love to do a total overhaul of the whole space but that’s really tricky when you don’t own the freehold and you share it with lots of other people. It is an amazing space though and great for parties, BBQ’s and sunbathing and PERFECT for this weather.
However, over the winter the terrace gets absolutely battered by the winds, especially because it is so high up, so when we eventually get back up here in the Spring, everything looks very sorry for itself and the furniture is knackered. So, I have decided to spruce up a little corner of the terrace now the weather is better, with a bit of help from Homebase garden furniture (and a less than helpful Otto who just enjoys climbing all over the furniture). I have tried to soften the edges of this urban space, which lacks lush grass and greens…
I chose the Peru bench and have given it a couple of coats of paint for added protection because it is so exposed up on our roof. I also really like white garden furniture, especially mixed with blues and enamel planters. I also chose the Kilo table, which isn’t supposed to be used outside but it is perfect for this spot so I treated the legs with teak oil, which will hopefully protect it against the weather and the top is metal so that should survive.
I really want my garden furniture to be as comfortable as my indoor furniture so I always heap it with cushions. I made the cushion cover on the right from an old grain sack.
I bought some lovely plants from Homebase to give my planters a new lease of life, as well as strawberries as we try to grow as much food up here as possible.
We now need to give the decking a good clean after the winter months as well as getting to work on sprucing up other corners around the terrace. What I really want to do is start growing climbers up around the perimeter wall so we are surrounded by green instead of rendered concrete.
We’re all set for long evenings, drinks and sun and Otto is looking forward to all of our neighbours giving him their BBQ leftovers.
Katy x
*This post was written in collaboration with Homebase but the views and opinions are my own.
It looks like a lovely space. And Otto is adorable – those photos make me want to give him a big hug! x
Author
Ha! It’s amazing that he won’t do anything I say other than pose for photos x
Love this, Katy! Your roof terrace looks ready for summer now. Time to relocate AptApothecary HQ for the summer months, yes? x
Author
Good idea!! x
Love how you’ve transformed a dull roof space into a little piece of France with those gorge striped cushions and vintage planters! Otto looks very chilled out, almost as if he’s asking ‘so whose going to bring me a nice cold beer?!’ 😉
Author
Thanks, Cate! Probably more like “bring me a bone”! xx
What a lovely space and amazing views! Love the white outdoor furniture x
Author
The views up there are amazing. Whenever anyone goes up there for the first time they always gasp – I’m very lucky x
oooo! Love that table a lot. This looks so lovely and French! x
Author
The table is perfect for drinks and a pot of mint perfect for summer drinks x
What a lovely place to relax in the summer. Love the cushions and Otto looks very happy x
Author
Thank you! Not being overlooked this high up is perfect x