Adding a Simple, Skandi-Inspired Deck Unlocked a Whole New Outdoor Room at this Minneapolis House

Sam Weston, a communications executive, and his wife Christine, a human resources leader, moved to the Minneapolis area from New York for Sam’s work several years ago. After house-hunting for two years, they finally bought and remodeled a 1960s split-level in Edina, MN. But by the time they were ready to tackle the backyard, they had already spent a big hunk of their budget and were out of creative juice. Yet they knew they wanted and needed a more functional yard for their family.

“For 12 months, I spent all of my time just thinking about the next steps,” Sam says. “We had this huge space for the first time. It’s got enough space for the dog and the kids and anything we want to do with it.”

And though Sam had just spearheaded a major interior and exterior house renovation, he admits he had no clue how to design his yard. That’s when he bought a Yardzen design package. We created a plan to help Sam and his family make the absolute most of their backyard, even on a limited budget.

Sam came to Yardzen with the goal of adding a deck with space for eating, lounging, grilling, and entertaining. He wanted an easy flow between indoors and outdoors, essentially extending his living space out into large, grassy backyard—a feature he was thrilled to gain after years of city living. He also wanted to add easy-care landscaping and deal with drainage issues as well as preserve plenty of lawn space for the kids and dog.

To achieve Sam’s goal of effortless indoor-outdoor living, the Yardzen designer made a large but simple deck the centerpiece of the new yard. The single-level TimberTech composite deck extends two-thirds of the way across the back of the house, tucked into the L-shaped layout and accessed via a sliding glass door from the living room as well as a door from the primary suite. The warm, yellowy light brown color of the decking, called Tigerwood, mimics the tone of the existing wooden fence and contrasts beautifully with the dark gray house exterior.

The simplicity of the deck design meshes perfectly with the Skandi- and Japandi-inspired style that Sam had brought to the renovation of the house. “What was amazing about the design we got back [from Yardzen] was that there was an inherent appreciation for the design of the house. That’s what was so magical. I don’t remember asking for that by name, but I got that, which was just really cool.”

The fact that the deck sits just one step up from the lawn means it needs no railings so nothing blocks views or traffic from the house to the yard. The deck is large enough to accommodate both a picnic table with benches and a lounge area featuring a pair of outdoor teak loveseats and a coffee table. In a small but important design detail, the layout of the decking boards themselves subtly delineates the living space from the dining area.

In order to further integrate the deck into the yard, it is surrounded by multiple mulched beds containing plantings, large rocks, and ornamental grasses. “It just creates this amazing feeling when you’re eating out there,” Sam says. “You’re surrounded by flowers and grasses. They introduce so much movement to the landscape and make the whole experience feel alive.”

Another mulched bed, this one built into the deck, occupies a sliver of space between the loveseats and an exterior wall of the primary suite. Where most people might have just extended the deck all the way to the wall, the Yardzen designer cleverly tucked another planting bed into this spot. This built-in bed is a cleaner, more well-designed way to bring plant life and softness onto the deck than a bunch of planters would have been. This approach also lands a plant—in this case a red climbing mandevilla—right in front of one of the bedroom windows for a pleasing view.

To further ease the transition between deck and yard and to help with drainage from the slope of the yard, a path of angular trap rock gravel winds around the deck. (Sam DIY’d this part of the project, wheelbarrowing in every bit of the gravel himself.) The dark gray of the trap rock references the house exterior as well as some large boulders that Sam has added to the front of the house.

Behind the spot where the primary suite juts out, the gravel widens to a larger rectangle that hosts a pair of black metal chairs and a small table. The overall effect is that the blond wood deck looks visually balanced because it is bookended by dark gray.

Of course no project is as simple as it looks, and Sam’s was no exception. Due to the city’s drainage requirements, the backyard slope had to be regraded and a rain garden added along the side of the house to deal with runoff. (A rain garden is a shallow, planted depression positioned to catch and temporarily hold stormwater runoff from a hard surface, allowing it soak into the ground naturally instead of overwhelming storm drains.) “Real consideration was given to the climate and some of the constraints that we have here in this environment,” Sam says.

Sam and his family couldn’t be happier with their new backyard. They use their deck for dining, grilling, relaxing, entertaining, and even doing yoga. Despite the financial stretch, the unexpected slope regrade, and the elbow grease required, they’re glad they did it.

“It was a significant investment for us to make, but it’s been just so worth it, both financially in terms of the property value, but even more importantly in terms of our enjoyment and what we’re able to get out of the summers,” Sam says. “We talk about it as unlocking a whole new area of the house. This essentially extends the house that we worked so hard for into the yard beyond in a really fluid, natural, seamless way.”

The Westons spent about $60,000 to $65,000 on the project. That included about $15,000 to regrade the slope and deal with the drainage plus about $40,000 for materials and labor on the deck.

“I have no edits,” Sam says. “I’m just so thrilled with the product we got back, with the service from the team, and then with the payoff on the investment.”