This year, I've decided to finally create my balcony garden on a budget and I love it.
I have always dreamt of a beautiful garden and outdoor space to relax in but living in London my dream seemed impossible. Living in a flat with a small balcony was as far as it could get from a peaceful outdoor oasis. When we were moving from a house share 6 years ago, we were just happy to be able to live on our own. Having a balcony felt like a privilege.
I was very excited at first but it soon became a thorn in my eye. With the concrete floor bearing marks of former paint jobs and a massive collection of old flower pots taking up half of the space, we could not enjoy the great outdoors the way I had hoped. Instead, it was a storage for our bikes and a messy play spot for my daughter. On the plus side, at least I had a balcony unlike so many of my friends living in rented accommodation. So I looked online for inspiration for small balcony ideas on a budget.
When we first moved to London, we rented our flat with the idea that we would move after a year. when the year came up, we decided to stay for one more year. I really wanted to have some nice outdoor space but out balcony was too small and too cramped. But since we were planning to move, my husband convinced my not to spend money on a place that does not belong to us. Time went on, I got pregnant, my daughter was born, I changed jobs what felt like a million times but the balcony remained the same. Grey and boring.
Every spring, I have been promising myself that I would do something about it. But we were convinced we were going to move out and we did not want to invest in a property we are only renting. But after 6 years the time has finally come. In March, I have finally started to transform my small balcony into a garden on a budget.
To start with, I had to get rid of all the old pots, soil and unused rubbish bins cluttering the floor. My bike was no longer welcome there either. With a bit of space, it became the ground for my daughter's creativity. Literally. And it became a perfect spot for messy play. She really enjoyed having space where she could get dirty. But that was not the relaxing outdoors I was waiting for for 6 years.
At first, I wanted to put decking or tiles to cover the scratches on floor. I wanted to be able to wipe the floor dry after the rain - quite a common occurrence in England - and sit comfortably outside and enjoy dry socks :) But decided I did not want to invest into anything I could not take with us if we were to move.
After measuring and sketching my balcony in a notebook, I started looking for furniture. There were so many exciting pieces I would have loved to have! But with space being a premium I had to constantly ask myself: Do I really need it? What would be its purpose? This way I eliminated bean bags, lanterns, parasols, tables and other things that were tempting me enormously. Having a 3 year-old who loves to climb on everything, extra furniture on a top-floor balcony is just asking for trouble. A cabinet. I needed to have a cabinet. I decided I really wanted a unit with doors to lock away everything from my daughter. But looking for one, I came across a shelving unit in Ikea which offered way more storage space at a fraction of the price. So I added it to my sketch.
Living in a big city, we are surrounded by the concrete ALL THE TIME. I always imagined myself relaxing, sitting outside in the evening surrounded by greenery. Hence, my hunt for plants began.
I found my flowers in the most implausible of places - Lidl, offering plants that were beautiful and much cheaper than the same plants in the gardening centres. So I mapped them out on my sketch.
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| March 2018 - first plants appear in my garden |
Planting the seeds together, my daughter and I had a great time. It was also a fun learning opportunity. She really loved getting her hands dirty.
All that was left to tackle was the ugly floor. Solution was amazingly simple. A rug. Mine is made of cotton and is machine-washable which makes it super easy to clean. For only £12 at Ikea, it was just what I needed.
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| Little green fingers. -May 2018 |
This is how my small balcony transformed into my little city garden. Now, we all love spending time outside and enjoy the colourful space we created together.
By shopping around I saved a little fortune.
My small balcony garden came to UNDER £90.
Not bad if you ask me.
Hope this will inspire you to transform your balcony too :)
Please, share your small balcony ideas with me in the comments! I may try them next year :)
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