Outdoor living spaces provide you the opportunity to enjoy the luxuries of indoor comforts in your own backyard. You can transform your outdoor areas into a lush landscape that radiates the modern beauty of nature.

Creating outdoor-style rooms like a dining area, fireplace, and living room offers you a more relaxing place to entertain your family, relatives, and guests. Moreover, it allows you to maximize every space in your property so you can utilize your land to its fullest potential.

If you are planning to develop your landscape, but don’t know what to do, then our guide to outdoor living spaces can give you the inspiration that you need to create the perfect design for your property.

Build an Outdoor Kitchen

Adding an outdoor kitchen to your property is one of the best ways to extend your home’s entertainment and living spaces. You can install a fridge, sink, gas range or grill, counters and a bar top, wine cooler, and other essential kitchen appliances, but outside!

An Architect's Guide to Outdoor Living Spaces

Every outdoor kitchen can be unique — you don’t need to have a ton of amenities to make it functional and fun. We’ve found that a grill, small fridge, and bar top and with stools are the perfect combination for hosting parties. If you’re big into cooking, then a gas range is a must-have.

Add a Sitting Area with a Fire Pit

Building a fire pit with seating around it can create a functional focal point. You can use this space to entertain guests, share stories, or simply enjoy an outdoor campfire experience. In addition to that, it can create a warm ambiance that will encourage your family members to go outside, breathe the fresh air, and enjoy nature.

An Architect's Guide to Outdoor Living Spaces

Not all fire pits have to be built in the ground too. You can have a raised fire pit so no one has to crane their neck to watch the flames, feel the warmth, or make s’mores. As an added benefit — the higher the fire pit sits off the ground, the higher the smoke will be too! This means you may be able to avoid annoying smoke drafts more than if it were seated on the ground.

Create a Beautiful Garden

A beautiful garden isn’t something that you just admire in magazines or on TV. You can build one for yourself so that you can enjoy the many benefits that it can provide. Raised garden beds are super easy DIY projects that anyone with a shovel and a few hours of time can create. All you need are concrete bricks to outline the raised bed! You can spice it up with wood, or have professionals do it for you too, of course.

An Architect's Guide to Outdoor Living Spaces

It will be your personal oasis of flowers, vegetables, herbs, spices, fruits, and so much more. Whatever you want, you can grow!

Install a Water Feature

Installing a water feature in your outdoor areas like a pond, fountain, or pool can create a more relaxing atmosphere and peaceful ambiance to your home. The sound of water that it generates can produce an environment that is both calming and comfortable.

An Architect's Guide to Outdoor Living Spaces

A water feature will surely add a touch of sophistication to your landscape. You can even customize it based on your desired style and preferences. For families, a pool is a great option. For adults without kids, a hot tub is wonderful, especially to relax at night under the stars. If you’re looking for a luxurious backyard, add a fountain near the fire pit seating area.

Construct Gazebos and Pergolas

Gazebos and pergolas add structure and shade to your outdoor spaces. You can use it to accentuate your outdoor dining or living area to create a more elegant look and design for your landscape. They also provide ample shade, which is essential during the hot summer months.

An Architect's Guide to Outdoor Living Spaces

You have the option to match these structures with the color scheme of your house or you may choose a different color that brings out the beauty of your property. Just make sure that you pick a style and color that is consistent with your other designs to ensure that everything complements each other to make it more aesthetically pleasing to look at. For example, if you have dark wood accents in your outdoor kitchen, use that same stain and wood for your pergola. It will really bring everything together in a beautiful and nearly effortless way.

Final Words About Outdoor Living Spaces

Developing your outdoor living space is one of the best things that you can do to improve your property and make it more fun and comfortable for the family. Any of the design ideas mentioned above can help you in creating a design and layout that would transform your outdoor areas into a more functional and beautiful place to live in.

However, if you are still having problems with creating your outdoor designs and layout then we recommend that you acquire the services of a professional architect. They’re trained to help you in achieving your goal of creating the perfect outdoor design that you have always dreamed of.