The warm weather has arrived! You may already have a few outdoor patio ideas lined up, but don’t finalize those plans until you check out our suggestions. Some are unconventional and others are just common sense. Without further ado, here are 8 outdoor patio ideas to get you ready for the summer season.
- Create a focal point
- Make your guests comfortable with sectional seating
- Accent your patio with your favourite colours
- Upgrade your ambient lighting
- Refinish/repaint old patio Furniture
- Incorporate the colour of your shingles
- Strategize the shaded areas on your patio
Create a focal point
This is decorating 101 folks. How do you enjoy your outdoor patio the most? Is it eating dinners, hosting parties, or simply talking with friends?
Depending on the space you have, your options may be limited to choosing your favourite activity and centring your patio arrangements to say to the world “It all goes down right here!”
A focal point draws the eye to the main event. It can also distract your guests and onlookers from things you don’t want people to see. Highlight the main feature you want people to look at and be drawn to. Firepits are amazing focal points that look great in the day…
…and are even more dazzling at night.
Make your guests comfortable with sectional seating
If you want to turn your outdoor living space into a comfortable entertainment area-do NOT make the mistake of moving your old couch outside! Mold and mildew will be all up in that couch in no time, making it a cesspool of bacteria and quarantined hazardous wasteland.
For outdoor seating, don’t settle for less than the best. Cabana Coast and Ratana have a number of seating options for every style and taste. Sectional seating is one of the best options for seating larger groups. The Cabana Coast and Ratana collections come with your choice of a loveseat, a sectional couch (consisting of a right, left and corner module) that is good to seat at least 7-8 people.
The most popular picks are wicker and cast aluminium. Take a look at one of the top selling cast aluminium collections here called Lakeview By Cabana Coast:
Brighton by Cabana Coast is a popular wicker patio set collection that is sure to whet your appetite.
Accent your patio with your favourite colours
It’s absolutely amazing what a few throw pillows can do to change the look of your outdoor lounge area and get you excited about hanging out in the backyard. Most outdoor sofas come in neutral tones, which gives you a world of options for switching up and arranging accent colours.
Work in the colours you enjoy the most into the seating area and make this summer outdoors a more vivid experience for your eyeballs.
Upgrade your ambient lighting
Transform your outdoor patio into the perfect lounging environment by upgrading your ambient lighting. You’ll be surprised at how much of a difference a themed lighting scheme can make in the look and feel of your outdoor patio.
It doesn’t take much either. A few well-placed lanterns along your walkway can go a long way to leading you and the fam to a quiet lounge area.
You can also string up a set of lights to create your own tiki lounge. Why bother with a trip to the local bar (do those exist anymore) when you can have your own festive getup right here in your backyard.
Refinish/Repaint old patio furniture
The warm weather brings a lot of exciting times and with it comes the old patio furniture. While we would prefer if you bought a whole new set-we’re all about our customers and in some cases, you can feel like you’ve bought a brand new patio set with a well-executed refinish or repainting. This works best with a plastic material that’s faded or and metal patio furniture that’s begun to rust.
Regardless of what material your patio furniture is, the first step is to read our article on how to clean patio furniture properly. Once you’ve got your patio set spic and span you can move on to the next step.
Refinishing plastic patio sets
For plastics, once they’re clean you’re free to apply a couple of coats of spray paint to transform your patio set into a brand new colour. If you don’t want to get that involved you may also opt for a coat of wax to liven the existing colour and make your patio set more vibrant.
Refinishing metal patio sets
You have the same options for metal patio sets, however, you need to remove the rust before you attempt the refinishing coats. You can use steel wool to get off most of the rust. If you’re going to repaint your furniture you’ll need to remove the existing paint as well.
There are tools to use to make this process simple, however, if you can’t remove the rust and paint with a scraping tool, you’ll need a muriatic acid solution. Once you have the peeling paint and rust off, use a rust converter solution for assurance that if you missed any rust from scraping, that it will be converted to iron tannate.
Use rust-inhibiting primer as well as a rust-inhibiting paint to finish off the job. It sounds easy, but make no mistake, this is a project that will require a commitment of your time.
If you’d like to skip all of this and go directly to enjoying your patio furniture, simply buy cast aluminum or resin wicker for low maintenance and rust-free option.
Incorporate the colour of your shingles with your backyard decor
The roof on your home can account for almost 40% of your entire outdoor living space. When you’re planning on the colours and themes of your backyard oasis, be sure to consider the colour of your shingles as a contributing part of the décor.
Obviously, it’s not a seasonal option you have to consider, however, sooner or later you’re going to need to replace the shingles on your roof. When your roof needs replacement, be sure to coordinate the colours to match what you have going on with your home and outdoor patio area.
If you’re looking for the best roofing contractors in Whitby, Ontario, call C.D. Roofing & Construction Ltd. on 202 S Blair St. Whitby, ON L19 8X9 (905) 430-7911. These guys have been servicing the Durham region for more than 25 years and have an amazing track record for workmanship and customer service. If you like the next idea, you might need them to make sure your soffit and fascia are up to par.
Strategize your outdoor shading area
While the summer season is well anticipated by all Durham Region residents (make that all Canadians), don’t presume that all-time outdoors is best spent in the sun. Too much sun is, well, too much sun! You need to strategize your shading for the ultimate outdoor patio experience.
Awnings can increase the value of your home
In an interview with Consumer Affairs, Joey Allison (a contractor in Virginia) told reporters that awnings add to the value of your home from a functional and aesthetic standpoint. Installing an awning creates a more comfortable outdoor living space and because the material block UV rays, it also lowers the energy costs of your home.
In addition, a well-placed awning adds curb appeal and therefore makes you home more marketable, increasing its resale value.
Choose between installing a retractable awning and a fixed awning in either metal material or a UV resistant Sunbrella fabric.
The minimum requirements you need are 8 feet instalment height over the ground or deck you will be shading. The attachments are placed on the side of your house directly on the brick or can be attached to the soffit and fascia, which is the area under the overhang of your roof between the gutter and the side of the house.
Cantilever umbrellas are the next best thing
Installing an awning can be somewhat of a project, however, cantilever umbrellas are a simple solution for many shading options. The sheer size of some of the largest umbrellas can house entire dining sets, conversation sets and hot tubs (we’re talking about each one on its own-not all three under one umbrella!).
The image below is a picture of one of our clients backyards. If you look in the background you can see a cantilever umbrella covering the hot tub.
What’s your suggestion for the best outdoor patio idea ever?
We would love to hear from you. Send us an image of a patio idea that’s worked out beautifully to info@canadianhomeleisure.ca and we’ll add your idea to our blog! Share your idea with us on Instagram and Facebook too!
