Brownstoner Garden: Now We Can Eat
After being on the lookout for the past several weeks for a teak table for the garden, we stumbled across a great buy over July 4th weekend at this From The Source warehouse sale in Dumbo. The table plus four chairs ran us about $800. Up to that point, the only other tables we’d seen…
After being on the lookout for the past several weeks for a teak table for the garden, we stumbled across a great buy over July 4th weekend at this From The Source warehouse sale in Dumbo. The table plus four chairs ran us about $800. Up to that point, the only other tables we’d seen that we liked were $1,400 and up.
I agree with Hal. My Brooklyn garden IS my summer retreat. Working in Manhattan and living in Brownstone Brooklyn, I have the best of all worlds — including my outdoor table and grill, hammock, trees, flowers, and a relatively empty NYC on the weekends.
My wife and I learned quickly the quality-of-life value of our garden. Having a brownstone in Brooklyn is the best of both worlds: fast access to Manhattan for work, culture, shopping, and a garden retreat in the summer. We spent Independence Day preparing delicious food, cyling in Prospect Park, and entertaining neighbors in our garden.
We do escape on occasional weekends by touring New England to visit friends, relatives, go hiking or antiqueing.
I think some people have the misconception that everybody who owns a brownstone is automatically wealthy. Our levels of wealth vary greatly I’m sure, as well as what we choose to do with our money. Some of my homeowner neighbors live very close to the edge and are “house poor”. Others have more of a cushion and can afford home improvements, travel, and other luxuries. We also know a few people who bought many years ago and whose houses are paid off or very affordably financed, who live quite a bit more extravagantly than we do.
I think the idea of not hanging around on summer or holiday weekends is more of a Manhattan thing, whether one rents or owns an apartment. Certainly though, the issue is beyond such cut and dried generalizations.
We love our garden, and we’re going for a Mediterranean look so we feel like we’re on vacation all the time.
West Elm has some great stuff too. I have a friend who bought WE’s slatted patio set with the recliners, table, and end tables, and they love it, it looks great, and has held up well in all of the rain. They bought it last summer, left it out all winter, under a tarp, and it was in great shape for summer after only a cleaning.
What’s everyone into the pesonal decorating services at Saks, and IKEA and West Elm aren’t good enuf.
Guess West Elm is a badder word than IKEA
No one has said a word about West Elm. Are their prices too expensive?
Does anyone ever go to IKEA. What’s gonna happen when they come to Red Hook – are any of us going to go? I’ve never bought as I’m scared of the quality.
I owned those same chairs a few years back (threw them in when I sold the apt.). They’re pretty comfortable for quite awhile as long as you’re wearing pants. Sitting on them in shorts or a short skirt can get a bit rough. The problem is that you can’t really “sit up” in them as you are leaning away from the table, also watch that the pegs that hold things together where the legs cross each other don’t begin to slip out.
Does anyone have a summer home to escape to? Where’s the typical place for a brownstoner to have a summer treat.
Any beaches in NYC worth an investment in buying near?