Outdoor Living Space: A backyard plan to enjoy for years to come
I'm taking a break from my Age in Place design to focus on an outdoor living space. You see, we are going to miss two vacations we had planned and since we don't know when we will be travelling again, we are going to put some TLC into our backyard. So what exactly do we have planned?
Outdoor Living Space
Zones
The first item the Mister and I determined was how we are going to use our outdoor living space.
Morning Coffee
On the weekends, the Mister and I love to have our morning coffee outside. I will often bring out the newspaper and just chill.
Dining Area
Right now, we have two chairs and one table to eat at. We downsized to this when our teenage kids didn't show an interest in eating outside. Guess what? They now wish to join us! I love the idea of eating as a family, in our great outdoors.
Fire Table/Chill Zone
About 5 years ago, we invested in a very good outdoor wicker sectional and a fire table. We love being able to entertain around the fire and have more than enough seating.
Lounge Area
We do not really have an area for this, yet we have sufficient space for this. I would love to be able to have an area to read my books and just kick back, and relax!
Our Outdoor Living Space: As Is
This is what our current situation looks like.
While we have a pretty good sized lot, it is lacking in everything! Last year, we had to remove 3 tall Towering Aspen trees (I called them the triplets) due to the root system impeding on our underground sprinkler system.
As you can see, we are in need of some help!
Our plan
Before I show you our plan, there are 3 items that are still 'up for discussion'.
- A pool. Oh.....the Mister has wanted a pool for-ever! Our very good friends have a pool and when we are over there, we really enjoy it. Like, REALLY enjoy it! While I do enjoy their pool, the fact that we live in Canada (Western Canada) where our spring/summer months are on the short end, it's hard for me to justify a pool. On the other hand, the pool would be used all.of.the.time.
- In our current plan (that you will see below), we have a dedicated dining area. We have thought about not putting in a pool but putting in a hot tub. Again, we have gone back and forth with a hot tub vs no hot tub. To be honest, I would rather have a pool vs a hot tub. As such, we have taken out the plan for a hot tub and created a dedicated dining area.
- A dedicated outdoor kitchen. We could easily make our BBQ area into an outdoor kitchen area but do I really need it? Our kitchen is located right off the top deck and is easily accessible. I'm still on the fence with this one!
Here is our outdoor living plan
As I write this, this is what the plan looks like:
As you can see, we have plenty of space (even if we wish to add in the pool).
This rendering shot above is taken from our far back corner.
A little close up of the Fire Table/Chill Zone, Lounge Area, Dining Area and the Morning Coffee area.
The above view is from the top area by the Morning Coffee area.
This last shot is from the Dining Area. We have a really pretty apple tree that I wish to be able to see (in the far left-hand corner). This area, as well as the Lounge Area, will provide me with that view.
Tweaks to the plan
We are meeting with our landscaper today and I know there will be tweaks and changes. Things like:
- Size of planter boxes.
- The various plants we will be planting.
- The material we will use for the actual deck.
- IF we're going to install a pool!
Outdoor Living Space: Moving Forward
I am so looking forward to work to start around the second week of June. If we don't go with the pool, we are looking at around 14 days to turn this all around. I'm also super stoked to be picking out exterior 'pretty' for our outdoor living space.
Below I've pulled together some things I have my eye on that also may work well in your home.
I hope you'll stay tuned and follow along with our outdoor living space.
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