We first came across Aussie Outdoor Living when they did a transformation of my parents place a number of years ago, turning their scorching hot outdoor area into a more welcoming place where you could sit outdoors without being sizzled.
In the meantime, our own backyard was looking rather sad. A small square of grass, an old timber fence hanging on by a thread and weeds everywhere. Like my parents place, it was also scorching hot in summer, and miserable in winter. The result was that this space was rarely used.
My parents happened to mention to Chris that we were thinking about doing something with our yard, and without any prompting he was onto Google Maps and having a look at the layout. The timing was not quite right, so we never actually had him come around for a look.
Late in 2018 we decided that we could not look at the mess in the backyard anymore and decided to do a makeover, especially with the two kids growing up and needing more space to keep out of each other’s hair. Based on the work he did on my parents place, we didn’t even bother calling anyone else. Chris was at our place almost straight away having a look at the site. With a backyard that sits over 1m above the house, and with an adjacent swimming pool, we really had no idea what was even possible.
We gave a Chris a rundown on what we wanted as an outcome, which was a fairly basic brief consisting of having a new pergola in the backyard where we could entertain/BBQ, where we wouldn’t get wet and which could be used all year. He was measuring and looking at the site from every possible angle, and it was as if he’d already built the whole thing in his head. We had been concerned that our yard just wasn’t suitable for anything, and that it just wouldn’t feel right.
We needn’t have worried. Chris put together a proposal that just blew us away. What started out as “just a pergola” actually turned into a total backyard transformation. Aussie Outdoor Living took care of everything. They put us in touch with a fencer to fix our dodgy fences, he handled all the Council DA process and made it as painless as possible. Through his contacts we also put in a full custom outdoor kitchen.
With a construction team lead by Matt, we watched the transformation begin. When we hit an issue due to some unforeseen site challenges, Chris & Matt were straight onto solutions, updating the design and getting new approvals done without any delay to construction.
The end result is so far above my exceptions that I can’t actually give enough stars to reflect what we now have. The work is top quality, right down to the finest details. Nothing was too difficult for the team. They always left the site clean every day and the disruption was minimal.
The finished product is simply spectacular. To call it a pergola is not accurate. It is an entire Outdoor Living Room, and we now spend most of our time out there! In fact, this year everyone is coming to our place for Christmas!
If you are looking at doing a backyard makeover, we have no hesitation in recommending Chris and Aussie Outdoor Living Team. In fact, we’re already thinking about a Stage 2 ourselves!
Paul & Lisa
