After finishing up the floor, we moved to creating some large planter box features for the sides. These are essentially the same design as the boxes in the backyard, just a bit taller.
For these I decided a different look was in order -- two coats of polyurethane clear coat rather than the darker brown stain:
In the back is part of the new furnishings -- a futon / couch. Found the solid-wood frame at Goodwill for $25. It was a little rickety in the store, but really it just needed all the bolts tightened up and it was good as new. A great find. I grabbed a decent mattress from craigslist for a few bucks then ordered the floral patterned cover from a slipcover shop on the internet. Here's Indigo trying it out when we had our backs turned:
One of the planters in its final position and planted out with gardenias (middle) and some type of orchids given to us around Christmas:
