With summertime now in full swing, an increasing number of homeowners are looking to improve their residences by creating the perfect indoor-outdoor living space.
Indoor-outdoor living spaces have exploded in popularity in recent years, with these trends in interior design booming in large part to the global pandemic that had kept so many of us at home. Wanting to avoid feeling “trapped” within their homes and looking for a vacation alternative within their properties, the rise of homes with an indoor-outdoor living space skyrocketed.
But what exactly is an indoor-outdoor living space, and how can you ensure yours is the best it can be? Here’s what you need to know:
What is Indoor Outdoor Living?
Indoor-outdoor living space are designed to have a more streamlined connection between our indoor spaces and outdoor spaces.
It is one of the many home exterior ideas that one can experience during the warmer spring and summer months, centred around relaxing, entertaining, playing, and creating family memories of time spent in the refreshing outdoors, all within a multifunctional outdoor space.
Benefits of Outdoor Living
Besides pure aesthetics, there are some great reasons to create an indoor-outdoor living space on your property. For starters, as the area is designed to be an extension of your home and treated as a room in the house, it provides you with extra square footage and an extra place to entertain or unwind alone without having to renovate your home’s entire layout.
Secondly, these spaces typically do not require any form of serious installations or renovations.
With their boom in popularity among homeowners, having a well-put-together outdoor living space can also help you create a unique selling point that increases the value of your home.
Finally, with their green interior design, these spaces can help reduce stress and help you relax! Multiple studies have proven that incorporating green spaces into your daily life can help you reduce stress, increase focus, and boost your mood – all great qualities for when you’re trying to relax or entertain! So, what are some indoor-outdoor essentials?
The Right Furniture
To have an outdoor living space, you will need the right furniture. Your décor decisions for one of these spaces are slightly different from simply choosing a patio set.
Indoor-outdoor design is all about creating a bridge between the inside of your home and the outside, so choosing outdoor furniture that matches the interior décor of your house, whether its style is modern, contemporary, traditional, or other, is important. By having a matching style of furniture, your outdoor space will appear like it is another room of your house.
Weather Appropriate Accessories and Décor
It is important to remember that while the idea of indoor immersion is the goal of this design, these living spaces are still outdoors; thus, it’s important that when choosing any décor, furniture, or appliances, they are all safe for outdoor conditions.
Stylish weather-resistant décor items such as rugs and pillows will help your space feel like less of a patio and more like a casual lounge. Gardening elements like large plants and privacy shrubs can help provide you with privacy and add that extra outdoor kick.
For an impressive statement piece, adding a stylish feature like a fire pit, fireplace, and water element like a fountain can all take your space to the next level. Fountains also benefit from creating ambient noise, which can help trickle out some of the quieter sounds of the neighbourhood.
Indoor Outdoor Living Suggestions
An outdoor living space can be customized and created to be any room you want, giving you total freedom to get creative and create a space that is unique and fit for you and your family.
Here are some of the most popular suggestions for indoor-outdoor spaces:
Outdoor Kitchen
With an outdoor kitchen, shuffling in and out of the house to get an ingredient for the grill becomes a thing of the past. An entire outdoor kitchen area can be installed in your living space, including countertops for any prep work and appliances such as a mini-fridge, pizza oven, grills, and sinks. An outdoor kitchen will allow you to remain outdoors in your entertaining space and avoid missing out on the fun while being back in the house during food preparations. Bar areas can be added to add an element of refinement to the space and avoid the need to run back inside to grab a new drink for your guests.
If you are adding electronic elements such as a mini-fridge, ensure it is designed to withstand potential outdoor conditions, and it is also advised to have some form of patio cover to keep the area safe in the event of any unexpected weather conditions.
Outdoor Dining
One of the most common forms of outdoor living space is an outdoor dining area. With nearly endless possibilities on how to arrange the dining areas, these outdoor rooms have great space for extra seating, allowing for plenty of fresh air and sunshine, and making dinner fun! Besides, summer barbecues are meant to be eaten outdoors!
Outdoor Entertainment
This type of living space saw a huge surge in popularity during the pandemic, as social distancing rules asked that gatherings not occur within indoor spaces. Creative minds soon put forward alternative options, transforming their yards and patios into proper entertainment destinations.
What entertainment means will vary from person to person. For some, it could be a simple display element such as a fire pit or fireplace and a few seating options. For others, full bars, televisions, and sound systems. Even items like hot tubs, saunas, and gaming areas have seen popularity amongst those looking for an alternate space for entertainment.
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