How to Design a Perfect Outdoor Seating Area
8 Outdoor Design Tips to Enhance Your Relaxation & Comfort
As weather warms up and days grow longer, indoor/outdoor living is a wonderful way to soak up the beauty of Sonoma County. It doesn’t matter if you have a tiny backyard or expansive acreage, a well-designed space will help you bathe in luxury and soak up the best parts of the season.
A well-designed outdoor seating area feels like an extension of the home. Blended seamlessly with the surrounding landscape, a mix of flowers, stone and comfortable furniture will help you to de-stress and unwind at the end of the day. As the weekend approaches, outdoor dining areas can be the perfect place to entertain and host a dinner party.
Read on to discover my top tips for designing a perfect outdoor seating space.
1. Work With Nature
Design your ideal outdoor seating area by working with the natural world that surrounds you. Embrace what you have. Start by discovering an ideal location for your outdoor seating. Pay attention to the sun and when you have shade in uncovered areas. Design around your existing outdoor spaces. Is there a view you would like to enhance or beautiful trees covering your backyard that can play into your design? If there’s a view, consider lining up some lounge chairs facing out. If you are working with a smaller, enclosed space, set up chairs to face each other for optimal social connection.
2. Personalize Your Comfort & Take the Indoors Outside
Create a consistent and relaxing vibe by matching your interior design with your outdoor furniture. Consider materials, colors and patterns as you imagine your perfect outdoor seating area. Add some throw pillows to outdoor couches or swings for a relaxed, comfortable feel. Consider adding an outdoor rug and lights.
3. Embrace Flowers
If you have fences or a shade structure, consider planting vines with beautiful flowers. And use potted plants to add elements of nature throughout your design to create a lush and vibrant feel. Love color? Add splashes of color, texture and patterns to your pots. Create a sense of joy by adding cut flowers to your outdoor tables from other parts of your yard.
4. Sweet Swings
Step outside and rock yourself gently as you take in the delicious fresh air. Adding a porch swing or hammock underneath a shady tree or shade structure will help you relax and let go of tension at the end of the day. Cozy up with your loved ones, or find comfort in your favorite book. Outdoor swings are a perfect design feature that add an element of luxury in even the smallest of spaces.
5. Set Yourself Up Under the Oak Trees
Sonoma County is full of ancient oak trees that offer beautiful shade in many backyards. Add a round table surrounded by comfortable chairs under your oak trees and sip your favorite beverage with your loved ones in the morning light.
6. Warm Up the Evening With a Heat Lamp or Fire Bowl
The best outdoor seating area is the one you use. The amazing coastal influence in Sonoma County keeps evenings cool. Warm up your space with a heat lamp or fire bowl for amazing ambience.
7. Light Up the Night
Add lights to your outdoor spaces to soften the mood and highlight your favorite aspects of your design. Consider using simple solar lights, string lights or investing in a low voltage light system. This will make the space ideal for evening gatherings and nighttime festivities. Start with lighting pathways and other hardscaped areas like patios and decks. Mini spotlights can be used to highlight certain features such as fountains or specimen trees. Use a selection of multiple dim lights (rather than fewer bright lights) to give your yard a soft glow and set the mood.
8. KISS (Keep it Simple Sweetheart)
Keep it simple and work with what you already have. The most important part of a perfect outdoor seating area is that you actually use it!
