A frugal and crafty mum has transformed her boring and dull back garden into a tranquil corner in paradise - for just £500.
Lynda Chadwick's says that her outdoor space had lay abandoned for some time, with just a paved area that has debris strewn across it and a sun lounger on the grass.
The 54-year-old said that she loathed her back green and did not spend much time in it prior to the transformation.
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And at first she went to the professionals but the quote that came back made her eyes water.
However, inspiration struck when she saw posts of people transforming their gardens on Facebook group Gardens On A Budget, Yorkshire Live has revealed.
"It was [my friend] Sharon who pushed me into it, so we did it together," said Lynda. "I’m a single mum so had no help from men, and even though I have three sons, they didn’t help as I wanted it to be my project."
She added: "I’d had someone price it up last year and it was going to cost me £2,700 - I’ve done it myself for under £500."
It took Lynda and Sharon around three weeks and a lot of hard work to transform the garden.
"The first step was to dig up about five tonnes of soil and grass," said Lynda. "There was also a concrete post buried under the soil, so that had to come up."
They dug up all the paving slabs and killed all the weeds before putting black roll down and wheelbarrowing in three tonnes of stones.
"Next up, we painted the fence and replaced two panels that were broken," she said.
"I bought lights for each post and a log roll to edge it all. I also got hold of several plants and a palm tree for free - luckily, my dad was moving so he gave them all to me and that saved me a fair bit of money."
She added: "The project was definitely hard going at times. Halfway through, I did say I wish I’d never started it and I could see no end.
"But Sharon said, ‘come on, we can do this’ so we did. I’m so happy with the result and finally I have a beautiful space to sit out in after five years."
Lynda said she was happy to have saved thousands of pounds by doing the makeover herself.
"Several of the supplies I bought were cheap or free. This helped me with getting the most expensive item - the stones, which were £75 a tonne.
"I got three tonnes so I paid £225 in total. The log rolls were from The Range at £5.99 each and I only had to buy five - I got seven rolls free as my friend had them left over from her garden.
"That was the beginning of my motivation to start on the garden - getting these freebies."
Lynda said the fence paint came from B&Q and was £48 for two tins. She also had a look on Facebook Marketplace and managed to find some bargains there.
"I picked up a barbecue for £30 and a sun bed for £50," said Lynda.
"The other costs involved were two black rolls to go under the stones, which were £10.50 each, and I also paid £60 for someone to take away all of the topsoil I dug up.
"Overall I paid just under £500 - I had saved that much and I didn’t go over budget."
