Have u thought of putting some thought of putting some type of screen up on that end of your patio area?

Ideas

I have a similar situation but the entire fence is made of old pink block "bricks" (1950). My neighbors have a shed and several plastic tents and an overgrown figtree for me to feast my eyes on. I love the suggestions made for the Tottle family but I have a budget as low as the curb. The suggestions above are beautiful. How high do they come? I will follow this post closely to see what Houzz fans suggest for the Tottle family.

Or, get three BIG pots and put in lemons and lime trees there. It will hide the ugly and provide you lemonade - or limes for your margaritas. :)

PS...get "dwarf" trees so they won't outgrow the pot.

I like Darzy's idea of the potted trees. It would provide a lovely view. A note about lemon, lime, and orange trees: I missed the ones we had in our California yard so I have a lime and orange tree now in pots. Dwarf won't get tall enough and citrus are not fast-growing trees in my experience.
Check with your nursery or garden center to see if you can order trees like the photo. If you buy a new little thing you will be waiting years for it to provide this kind of height and fullness. Maybe a landscaper will comment on that here.

I do, however, think it 's the option I would choose if you can work out the details. Great idea Darzy! Check your climate too...can't survive winter outdoors.
By the way, nothing is more heavenly than orange trees when they flower. I think it must be the perfume of angels.

We have considered a screen but wondering whether or not it should tie in with weatherboards or be made put of teak/ pine as you suggested. It would require another pole as I can't block off the back door... Hope this makes sense?

Ps just loving the lemon, lime, orange trees for margaritas!

Thank you to all taking an interest... It really is an ongoing dilemma for us.

Bamboo works wonders for this type of issue too, you would need to contain it into pots though as it can take over an area pretty quickly.

Thanks Susanna...there is also a "semi-dwarf" variety as well. True, we are in Northern California and if it's freezing, if the trees are young, we cover them up during a freeze.

We just don't freeze down here in Australia so the plants might be ok

Have a look at the Ideabook from a few days ago titled "intimate garden nestled on Manhattan rooftop", where they have a " roofing type" trellis overhanging... Hard to explain...have a look, quite ingenious.

A cavida would be a great option. Our vertical garden begins and ends with the basic Cavida wall planter. From the basic planter a Cavida Vertical Garden can be built into multiple shapes and designs.

Each Cavida wall planter is made of 20 gauge galvanized metal with a baked on powder coating, giving it a seamless finish that will last for years. The Cavida wall planter is 48 inches wide, 7 inches tall at the wall mounting, 5 ½ inches of planting depth. There are two drainage holes located 10 ½ inches inside each end of the planter. The planter has two unique leveling guides. These guides are positioned so that once you have one planter level and mounted, the subsequent planters can be placed on the guides and will be automatically level. The drainage holes are aligned so that when all planters are positioned onto both leveling guides of the planter below it, the wall drains down through itself. This allows for maximum efficient use of water and the ability to recapture your runoff to be recycled and used again.

The Cavida planter weighs approximately 26 pounds when filled with potting soil and watered. When deciding where to place your Cavida Vertical Garden, it is very important to determine that the wall you will be using can bear the weight of your planter or grouping of planters. The Cavida planters are delivered ready to be installed on any wall or fence using the appropriate anchors. The anchors are not supplied, because each wall surface is different. Each wall surface should be evaluated independently, to determine the appropriate anchors to be used.

Because drip irrigation uses less water, the Cavida Vertical Garden has been designed to be watered with laser drip irrigation tubing. Although sold separately, drip irrigation is the most efficient way to deliver water to the plant’s root system. The Cavida planter is designed with 3 mounting brackets which are offset from the planter allowing ¾” between the planter and the wall surface. The offset is for two reasons, first to run the irrigation supply hose up and behind the Cavida Vertical Garden and second to allow airspace between the Cavida planter and the wall surface. This keeps the wall surface dry .

To connect your Cavida Vertical Garden to a water source, simply use a standard water hose and spicket or install your system directly into an automated irrigation system. Hand watering the Cavida Vertical Garden is wasteful and is discouraged. Hand watering will not allow the plants to grow and develop fully into a beautiful engaging wall for you to enjoy.

The Cavida planters are available in black, bronze, galvanized and clasic farm rust.

Here is a very inexpensive option. Outdoor plastic blinds that look like bamboo. I think I'd install a board across the top first so the blinds will be level. Then, all you have to do is install a hook at the top of the board (or on the back side a nail) and attach the blinds on the nail in the hook they provide.

Thanks Darzy and everyone else who contributed their ideas. My husband has agreed to make the screens. To you think we should match screens to dining setting or cream like the house and shed?

I like the teak look idea best. Seems more elegant..like your pretty teak furniture. Plus, it may look like a feature wall, instead of "trying to hide the clothesline". :)

The easiest, and fastest fix would be build as big as you can fit cedar planter box and plant it with fast growing tidy shrub that can keep pruned easily. the greenery would look cool and balance the space and give it more of private zen oasis feel

Can you paint the neighbors fence on your side? For me, the space lacks color so of course you would notice all those things. If you bring the focus to your space with color then the other things won't stand out so much. I would still use some plants on the back fence in pots . The teak furniture is so nice but I would put outdoor cushions on the seats and make that area by the clothesline a serving area. Do you have a barbeque area? I would dress up the area with colorful pots and get a nice outdoor centerpiece for the table. Maybe two big glass jars filled with sand and candles in the outdoor colors you choose. Can you take a picture of the other side. I would even paint the dog house.

Continue the horizontal fencing around. It doesn't need to be one flat piece. You can stagger it, covering what needs to be covered.

Thank you so much ... Your ideas are soooo great. I thought I would add a few photos to give a bit more of an idea of what we are dealing with. I agree we lack colour!

Ps the table tennis table goes away...

I think the out door curtains would be the most cost effective. Teak wood screens are big bucks with the curtains you can add color and block the veiw save up some money then do the trees in big pot. The pots and trees big enough would run around $2000 .ngood luck your space is beautiful.

The other pictures helped but Ill say it again after looking at all the pictures. I noticed your space more then the neighbors, however, you do have a point. If you make your space more of a WOW , then your neighbors space won't be nearly as noticable. You need color. I would take those trees in the pots and put them on the left of the clothes line. I would spray paint them in one color or get all new pots in the same color after you get outdoor cushions for your chairs so you can pick a color. I think that will make a big difference. I would get outdoor curtains and try to attached them to the posts and not the fence. Ask your neighbor if you can paint your side of his fence. I would get another buffet table to use instead of the clothes line so when you come out the door and you have company, you can put the food on that table. I would make your space more colorful so you notice the neighbors eyesore less. Maybe even an outdoor fountain by the fence. You have a nice space to work with.

Thanks so much ,'tennisanyone' I appreciate your ideas. We can paint the fence and have decided to relocate the clothesline down the side of the house put of sight. I agree we need to make more wow factor in our area in order to draw attention away from the eyesore! I just hate looking at that awful grey shed next door! Husband suggestion was to turn my chair around!!!!! Thanks for your ideas and advice.

Nicole, I know what you mean, last year, I decided I too needed color on my deck. My furniture is neutral like yours. My inspiration were pillows in the teal/blue and lime green family. I have lived in this house for l7 years and I never painted my ugly shed so last year, I decided to do that in those colors with tan being the color of my house. It is not near my house, more near the pool area but you can see it from the deck. I can't believe I waited l7 years to paint my ugly shed. We never see what can be done in our own homes because we are too close to the situation. Once I did the first stroke of paint, there was no going back. I also spray painted a tea cart that I got at a garage sale in teal color and then used lanterns that I also sprayed in green on the deck. I just spread those colors around the deck and of course flowers in pots. and I kept the flowers all the same color for drama. I love it and so does my husband who was not sure about doing it but he lets me do whatever I want. He even hung a birdfeeder on the shed for me that I painted and a little bench that sits right outside the shed too. I can't wait to take everything out again this year and when in a few years, I get tired of it, I will paint again. It was just a few hours of my time. I say, you can do it, just start with cushions you like and go from there. An update would be fun to see.

Well, Nicole, you can start thinking about it now because I just got in from shopping and most of the stores I visited have their lawn furniture/cushions out already. Its too cold where I live to think about it yet. I like Darzy's idea of using the curtains on the white posts too. HGTV had a show on this morning about a deck/carriage house. They used a bright blue and lime green as the colors on the deck and cushions even painting a wide band of blue along an area. Have fun with it.

Buy a few metres of fence extensions (usually about 1/2m high) from Bunnings and attach them to the fence (I'm sure neighbour won't mind - it's behind their shed) and then paint it all. This will add the height to hide the shed next-door and the colour to brighten it up. Then plant something where the clothesline is at the moment.

Darzy's suggest is effective, attractive, and inexpensive.

Of all the comments thus far I think economically the outdoor curtains or bamboo shades works for your immediate resolution and then I like both the cedar boxes with fast growing hedges that you can keep trimmed back, or the potted plants, especially since you already have them in front of your patio area. Keep updating us on this project - that's how we all learn.

I'm so excited each time a new reply chimes in! Thanks everyone! I'm thinking large pots of Bamboo at this stage. Would love curtains but the rain comes in from that direction and I think they would be ruined before long. I'm investigating getting 2 metre high bamboo plants which have bushy foliage all the way down thus disguising fence and grey shed next door. I also love the greenery! Waiting for end of summer when outdoor accessories go on sale before I invest in chair cushions etc ( they are about $80 a chair down here). Will keep you posted...

I live in Florida and outdoor roller shades, curtains are not practical.

Aja and Nicole, check out my design problem in Shed and Fence (should I paint). Nicole, I am thinking about my outdoor project too.