Today the trend is creating outdoor spaces that include the comforts of home comparable to indoor living areas. First, ask yourself where you want to spend your relaxation time; a well-designed outdoor room requires some homework. Take time to discover where you feel most centered. When you locate the spot, plan for your outdoor room to be surrounded with wonderful shade trees and comfortable seating.
When I am designing an outdoor living space, I define the patio as I would a room inside the house to include some or all of these elements: exterior walls, perimeter bench seating, fireplace, armoire, wall niches, and seating for dining .
For patio surfaces, nothing is better than old brick or flagstone. Each creates a timeless elegance. Brick can be designed in a curvilinear shape, adding dimension to the patio and actually making the space seem visually larger. Another advantage to using old brick is that it hides dirt really well, which means that maintenance and cleanup are minimal.
For the patio ceiling, I personally prefer very large trees. Deciduous trees add the garden element to the patio, provide great shade in the spring through the fall and when needed, allow warm sunlight through in the winter. My favorite patio trees are the Honey and Chilean Mesquite trees. Both have heavily textured bark and very charismatic growth habits. If you choose a Mesquite be aware that they can be messy when they drop their seedpods, but I do not know of a prettier tree, especially when accented with night lighting.
When choosing the hardscaping to define the patio, I first work with the homeowner to create a connection between the outdoor rooms and the inside of the home. If the home is a southwest stucco style, in most cases, using flagstone, boulders, and a more southwest scheme provides a synergist appeal. For more traditional stucco or brick houses, I might use brick as the basic theme to build raised planters, borders and patios.
When the barbecue is used as a defining element, there are a few important design components to remember. First and most importantly, you can never have enough counter space. If you are adding a sink and/or a side burner, you will need a long barbecue structure to ensure enough counter space. Most of the barbecues I have built are usually twelve to twenty feet in length. Design your barbecue to include the same materials as your house or patio. I like to raise the plant material behind the barbecue, which provides a natural wall and extends the
garden to your eating space. For another added touch, try planting climbing fig ivy on your barbecue, which is evergreen and will look beautiful year around.
Lighting is as critical an aspect of the outdoor room as it is with any room within your home. Do as little overhead lighting as possible. Any lighting at eye level or above will tend to blind you and can add glare rather than ambience. I like to use seven-watt to twenty-watt low voltage accent lighting to accentuate interesting plant materials or focal points like built in benches, fireplaces or niches that display your favorite artwork. This technique not only adds an artistic appeal but also provides a much-needed gentle glow to the night patio.
I generally use fifty-watt well lights on shade trees. The reflection off the tree will be enough light to facilitate safe passage through your outdoor room. If there is a water feature, I make sure to add safely-submersible lighting. I will even add lighting to a potted plant, which creates an artistic reflection against the outdoor wall and is a great conversation piece.
After determining the elements of the patio, I like to add some entertaining features. These features may include waterfalls, Koi ponds, fountains, outdoor aquariums, sculptures and music systems. Any of these features will lure you to the outdoors and you will find yourself spending more time in your outdoor room.
Finally, attention to detail is an important part of creating ambience in your outdoor living space. It is easy to find great looking, colorful outdoor tablecloths and dinnerware. Using candles, hurricane lamps and floral centerpieces all help in making that patio feel like an outdoor room.
|
