Enhance your lifestyle and extend the useable space of your home by creating an outdoor entertaining area that is an extension of your indoor entertaining area (extending indoors, out) Not only will it feel like you have more useable space to hold events at home but you will have increased the value of your home.
One of the main features buyers look for in a home is an attractive outdoor area – the bigger the better – preferably with an easy connection to the living room and kitchen.
Depending on the lie of the land and aesthetic concerns of your home, you could build a deck, lay a concrete slab or define an entertaining area with paving. The choice of finishes is endless. Timber can be oiled, painted or stained. Pavers come in concrete, clay or natural materials such as sandstone. There are some fabulous new concrete pavers on the market that mimic natural finishes and these days as long as it is covered or sealed some indoor tiles are also an option.
To be truly functional, an outdoor area should be covered so that it can be used in all weather and throughout the year. Here again, there’s plenty of choice – metal or polycarbonate roofing, sails and awnings in fixed or retractable styles. You may also decide to enclose the area with shutters, screens or doors, this way, for the hotter climate areas your indoor air conditioning can be of benefit.
To make the whole package work well, it pays to install a wide opening between the indoor and outdoor living zones. This is both a functional and a visual element, blending the two rooms into one large living space with a common aesthetic. What you can do depends on the structure of the house and how much you’re prepared to spend. If there is an existing window, the job should be relatively easy since the opening will already be supported. The options are french, bifold, sliding or stacking doors, in timber or aluminium. For some examples of styling perhaps visit some display homes close by.
If you live in a unit, you may be limited to courtyard styling. For cover, you may like to try a cantilever umbrella or a shade sail, small bbq area with seating. Whatever you achieve, improving the indoor-outdoor interaction in your home will add value to the property.
For ideas on styling contact Andersens
