Digs

For someone that does NOT have a green thumb, I do appreciate all things related to outdoor living and being outside. Just don’t ask me to keep it alive and we are good. My mecca for beautiful outdoor living furniture, accessories, dining, planters, you name it, is Digs in Chenoweth Square.

I dig Digs.

The owner, Ben Palmer-Ball, spent a good bit of his professional life working as an architect in California and became addicted to outdoor/year-round living. When he moved home to Louisville in 1999, he noticed a void in the retail market that catered exclusively to quality outdoor living and gardening products. He opened Digs in 2001 in Chenoweth Square to fill that void.

The Old Digs–will now be the new Cheddar Box restaurant.

Later in 2006, he opened a store downtown on Market Street. The smaller, original St. Matthews location consistently outperformed that store on Market. In October of last year, both locations were consolidated under one roof in Chenoweth Square in the former Parallel 38 space.

Digs’ new digs.

This new store is staged impeccably. The store is anchored by an old barn door set smack dab in the middle of the store, with vignettes surrounding it. Ben says “I’m always keeping an eye out for vintage items that complement our outdoor living displays and doors always provide an instant association with coming or going outside. I live in an ‘old ruin’ out in Shelbyville, and found several doors in the old corn crib. I’m not sure if they were part of my home originally (the home was built in 1840s) or not, but they have found a new home and function in our St. Matthews store.”

Centerpiece door with boxwood fauna on sides.

Door not for sale, unfortunately.

Digs has top of the line outdoor furniture and carries several lines, such as Brown Jordan and Summer Classics. Their faux wicker and cast aluminum products are some of their best sellers. All of their outdoor furniture is highest quality. What I enjoy most about Digs is not the furniture, it is everything else that goes with the furniture. It is the outdoor mentality I appreciate.

Not to sound like The Sound of Music, but here are a few of my favorite things here:

Planters and planter ideas:

What a relief that you don’t have to put real plants in your planters! They have faux cypress, faux boxwoods, burlap sacks, pine needles and other decorative items in all these beautiful planters. Chances of killing any of these plants are zero.

White enamel planter filled with faux cypress.

My favorite color planters filled with pine needles.

Burlap sacks, pine needles, decorative bunnies all as fillers.

Faux boxwood in planters.

Wreaths:

Green apple wreath.

Large Boxwood wreath with smaller wreaths on side.

Real plants and accessories:

Chances of me killing these are high, however, with such a cute stand and watering cans, I might take a little bit more interest.

Plant stand.

Watering cans.

Try a terrarium in a glass apothecary jars. Two of these had birds on the top. Rumor is that you do not have to water these, that the condensation inside the glass allows the plant to survive just fine. Basically, it is entirely self-sufficient.

Terrariums in apothecary jars. Two of these have birds on top.

Outdoor accessories:

Outdoor art.

Birds, roosters, birdhouses..all for decorating outside.

From the placemats to the dinnerware, all for outside.

Digs has two signature pieces, in my humble opinion. When I have money to burn, I’m going to buy these. First are the fiberglass chairs and table that look like concrete:

These chairs are actually as light as a feather.

Second “signature piece” is the concrete table with a copper trough in the middle of the table. The bottom of the table is made of barnwood beams and the top is made of concrete. You can use this trough as a planter as shown here. Put ice in the trough and put your drinks in it. Or put water in the trough and float candles at night. So many options….

I mentioned above that the store is owned by architect Ben Palmer-Ball. He can come to your home to design a layout for your outdoor furniture. There is a fee to do this, but he will apply it to the purchase of a product.