Our Roof Deck Reveal with CB2

At long last…. drum roll please… the full reveal of our Chicago roof deck escape! Why did this take so long, you ask?

A few reasons: cranky plants. Pregnant me. Rainy June.

Behold what you see here is actually round two of a few of the planters, but we’ve even been struggling with these too despite getting what the landscaping store suggested.

Alas, our full roof deck makeover project with CB2 was so fun and turned out even better than we expected. The sectional is nap-worthy, the rug is durable and beautiful, the dining table is the perfect size for entertaining guests, and the oversized lounge chairs make additional extra seating.

As a refresher, here was the before from last winter – we had placed a hodge podge of outdoor pieces we owned up there but we were not using anything:

 

THE BEFORE

The deck is quite spacious so we had a lot of room to work with! I knew I wanted to create an outdoor family room, dining area, and play area – after basically a 7-month long winter, I was so eager to have a space where we could be outside with Henry a lot!

And a big pain point was the view behind us of other apartments and the alley – I really wanted some sort of privacy wall but also wanted to bring greenery and natural beauty to the otherwise urban environment. CB2 had the perfect solution option with their low galvanized planters but I’ll share more on that below…!

Another goal was to brighten up the space with light, warm color palette. The grey and brown exterior was a bit darker than I would have chosen for exterior paint but fortunately CB2 had a lot of light furniture and planter options to choose from!

 

THE DESIGN PLAN

Shop the design from top left:

low box charcoal planters (size 36 x 16 x 16)

Edison bulb string lights

chaise sectional sofa

reversible striped throw pillow

woven throw pillow

shroom coffee table

smokey glass candle hurricanes (shown on coffee table)

8×10 outdoor rug

woven sunburst wall art

oversized black cushioned chairs

oversized black metal ottoman

mushroom side table

tall narrow pod textured planter (shown w/ grasses, 2 of these, size large)

low textured planter (shown w/ hydrangea, size large)

oversized stripe texture planter (shown next to standing cooler)

standing cooler

whitewash dining table

woven dining side chairs

black cushioned dining end chairs

 

And here is the after!

THE AFTER

The cozy sectional faces our view of the city skyline which is a treat – and if you recall, we use the curtains to create an outdoor movie screen and used a projector which was really fun!

The sunburst wall decor really livened up the otherwise bare wall.

We moved the palms in their tall planters along either side of the sliding doors since they require shade.

We originally had the dining table running parallel to the rug but turned it this way to make room for a play pool and water table in that fourth quadrant of the deck for Henry.

It really became an amazing an amazing outdoor living area, just like we wanted! Most of our upholstered pieces stay safely covered from all of the rain we’ve been having and it’s easy enough to bring the dining chair cushions in when rain is coming. We of course have covers for everything since we all know… winter is coming and it’s the best way to keep them safe! The light-colored cushions have held up remarkably clean despite being outside and dust circulating.

I have received a lot of questions about the black iron Briton chairs (which also has a sofa) – I cannot say enough good things about them. They are amazing quality, the two lounge chairs are huge and large enough to hold two adults. They’re a favorite spot to sit and work with my feet up on the ottoman when I work from home.

Anyone who lives in the Midwest knows the importance of being outside as much as possible since we only get a few months a year of it – and this truly became the best escape. We have three outdoor spaces to enjoy + a front yard but we basically just live up here. The CB2 pieces were the perfect mix of warm and modern that our urban roof deck needed and I just love how it turned out!

Let me know if you have any questions!