Patios have become one of the most important gathering spots in the home … a defining element for outdoor living.
Today’s patios are so much more than just a place to grill and eat. Whether you’re stretched out on a lounge reading a book in quiet solitude, sipping a glass of wine by the warmth of a fire or conversing with friends while dining al fresco, a patio is a welcoming portal to your life that brings the indoors outside. Creating the perfect patio consists of well-considered exterior design. Patio additions add livable square footage to your home, enhance your home’s value and create an inviting destination for entertaining and fun.
To make the most out of your outdoor space, you need all the right elements in play. While there are merits to the DIY crowd to patios, The Art Quarterly turns to professionals to do things right. Here are a few keys to the Art of Outdoor living provided by the luxury focused, Colorado-based team at Designs by Sundown.
- Fire Element: A fire is the focal point of the living space in many homes and now it’s one of the most desired elements outdoors. Fire adds ambiance and warmth plus it provides you and your guests a place to gather. It also serves as an anchor to help lay out your space and arrange outdoor furniture. Best of all, you’ll find yourself spending more time outdoors and in all four seasons.
- Shade: Some well-groomed landscapes may be beautiful to look at, but when it comes to actually sitting and using your patio space, you might quickly learn the importance of providing shade. Whether it’s incorporating shade with trees, a shade sail, awning, pergola/structure, drapery, pull-down shades or even an umbrella, you’ll find that your property will be beautiful, practical and inviting. It will make the experience of being outside more enjoyable when you offer guests a little relief from the sun and elements.
- Outdoor Kitchen and Dining: Modern outdoor design takes the elegant style of your interior living space and continues it into the yard, thus creating the same functional living space outside. The kitchen is the focal point for entertaining within the home so it’s only natural that people are mimicking this space outdoors by installing fully-equipped outdoor kitchens and dining areas. This area will become one of your favorite spots to enjoy dinner and the company of family and friends after a long day.
- Seasonal Color: Who doesn’t love colorful flowers? Flowers are capable of many things. They calm and soothe and invoke feelings of warmth and joy. They inspire, excite and motivate. Colorful, living flora in the garden is the perfect way to soften and define your outdoor space and make it flourish with color, texture, foliage and scent. Fashionable pots are hot and modern and the perfect accent for the finest, most colorful patios in town.
- Patio Furniture: Finally, the element that ties everything together and makes a patio functional, livable and organic – it’s the furniture! It’s what makes a patio truly a patio, where people gather and live.
Don’t be afraid to mix and match furniture. By incorporating different patterns and fabrics, it will make a huge difference but be cautious to only integrate two – three different pieces. Ask yourself the question: “How do you want visitors to congregate on the patio?” Consider arranging the furniture so that it naturally encourages gatherings, places where people can look at each other while conversing and enjoying each other’s company.
By following these suggestions to create the perfect patio, many of life’s finest memories will happen outdoors. Your new outdoor living space will speak volumes, not just about your home but the owners as well.