A SAVVY gardening fan has revealed the £12 buy that has completely transformed her grubby and tired patio.
Gillian took to IKEA, Tesco and Home Bargains for cheap items that would give her outdoor space a makeover.
And she managed to completely revamp the space without ripping up the existing patio slabs or doing any prep work.
Posting on the Garden Makeover Ideas on a Budget Facebook page, which boasts 625,000 members, Gillian said: “Patio upgrade complete!
“IKEA tiles and gravel from Tesco, dead easy.”
She added: “No [prep], just put the tiles on top. They just click together.
“They are quite heavy when they are locked together so don’t move.”
The Runnen outdoor floor decking in IKEA comes in six colours including a grass effect tile and range of faux wood shades.
IKEA bosses say: “Floor decking makes it easy to refresh your terrace or balcony.
“The floor decking is weather-resistant and easy to care for since it’s made of plastic.
“The floor decking can be cut if you need to fit it around a corner or a pole.
“You can easily take the floor decking apart and put it together again if you want to clean the floor underneath.”
At full price, a pack of nine will set you back £22.
But savvy Gillian joined the store’s Family club loyalty scheme to get a huge discount on the decking, paying £12 a set.
In total, she used 18 packs for her decking area, and lined the border around her house with gravel from Tesco that costs £6.50 for two bags.
She completed the garden makeover with an Aztec print outdoor rug from Home Bargains that lay below her table and chairs set.
And social media users are loving the DIY gardener’s transformation.
One gushed: “That’s a brilliant price! You’ve done an amazing job. Enjoy your new garden.”
A second wrote: “Wow, what a difference!”
“This looks absolutely stunning great job”. echoed a third.
A fourth said: “I love these tiles, definitely going to give these a go.”
A fifth chimed in: “Looks absolutely awesome, need to re-do my garden and patio area and haven’t got alot to spend.”
Meanwhile, a sixth commented: “I’ve got these tiles from IKEA. I love mine.
“Three years now and only did a small area to see how they stand up but so far, so good.”
Doing up your garden to enjoy on warm and sunny days needn't cost the earth.
Sun Savers Editor Lana Clements explains how to get a top deal on items for the garden…
You can bag big savings on plants, shrubs and flowers, as well as gardening tools and furniture.
Many retailers have flash sales across entire seasonal ranges – often these promotions tie into payday at the end of the month or Bank Holiday weekends, so keep a lookout.
Sign up to mailing lists of your favourite brands and you’ll be first to know of special offers. It can be worth following retailers on social media too.
Use a price comparison site to search out the best value items.
And keep a close eye on the specialbuys at Aldi and middle of Lidl drops which drop a couple of times a week and usually mean great value seasonal items for your outdoor areas.
If you are not in a hurry to buy an item, try adding it to the shopping cart online and leaving it for a couple of days.
Sometimes big brands will try to tempt you into the sale by offering you a discount.
And always check if you can get cashback before paying.
It’s especially worth using sites such as Topcashback, Quidco and app Jamdoughnut when buying bigger ticket items such as garden furniture as you’ll get a nice kickback.
