One of the garden design trends that has been growing in popularity, as of late, is the addition of a patio, or decking, to create some usable outdoor space. It can add a lovely aesthetic balance and help you better blend the indoor and outdoor spaces of your home, but how do you make sure that you actually make use of it? By determining what, exactly, it should be used for. Here, we’ll look at a few ideas and how you can design your space with purpose in mind.
A Space For Dining And Socializing
You can create the perfect patio for entertaining, whether you just want to have a meal with your family or want to sit back with some drinks when the guests come over. With a stable, level surface, your patio can host a sturdy dining table, comfortable chairs, and even a barbecue or outdoor kitchen for entertaining. Choose weather-resistant furniture for durability, and add cushions or throws for comfort. Make sure that your space is at least somewhat prepared for the weather to turn, with the right shelter to stop you from having to run inside when it starts drizzling, as well as ambient lighting so that you can keep enjoying the space well into the evening.
A Space To View Your Garden
If you have a gorgeously designed and maintained garden, then your outdoor space can be the perfect place to sit back and relax as you enjoy the views. Good placement of the patio is vital, making sure that you can see as much of the garden as possible with no trees or other features obstructing too much of your vision. Rather than traditional fences or barriers around the patio, glass balustrades can be a great choice for allowing uninterrupted sightlines while still maintaining some safety on raised areas. From this vantage point, you can enjoy watching seasonal changes in planting, children playing, or wildlife moving through your outdoor space.
An Extension Of The Home
There doesn’t have to be too much of a distinction between the indoors and the outdoors with the right patio design. If you want to blend and blur the lines between exterior and interior, then you can use similar materials, colors, and design styles between the connected spaces. You can also use large bi-fold or sliding doors to create a much better flow from the inside to the outside and vice versa. Retractable awnings and pergolas can add some shelter that helps it feel just as practical in more kinds of weather as the indoors, as well. Accessories like outdoor rugs, cushions, and planters reinforce the “room outdoors” effect, making the patio feel as comfortable as any indoor space. By blurring the boundaries between home and garden, your patio becomes a versatile area for dining, relaxing, and entertaining all year round.
Purposeful and intent-driven design is always much better for creating spaces that are not only practical and useful, but also aesthetically unified, as well. You might have a purpose for your patio that doesn’t match the examples above, but so long as you design it with that in mind, you can make it a success.
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