Tuscan-Themed Deck

When Sheila and Stephen Rossi went to Europe for a vacation a few years ago, Sheila missed out on all the sites in Italy due to strep throat. As a result, Stephen would like to do something special for her, especially since she's always putting their kids ahead of herself.

Before

Jerry Hritz's plan

After

With the help of Susie Coelho, the Outer Spaces team and landscape designer Jerry Hritz, the Rossi backyard deck is transformed into a Tuscan-themed alfresco dining room.

Jerry Hritz's plan includes a table with a copper top, a fire pit, a fountain framed by an arbor of flowering vines on the garage wall, hanging candle lanterns from the trees and a fun sandbox just off the deck. The boring garage wall will get a plaster treatment to replicate aged limestone.

To give this plain deck a passport to style, the faded boards are stained, supplying a warm background for a copper-topped table, teak chairs, a potting bench and lots of lush plants that combine to create an Old World Italian theme.

Using an age-old Venetian plaster treatment, artist Fabio Losurdo applies layers of plaster with limestone in it for depth, then uses wax to enhance the color, speed up the aging process and bring out the distressed areas for an even more interesting fountain backdrop.

tableware items, lanterns, chairs (Cost Plus World Market)