When the weather is on the up, we all want to head outside to soak up the rays and make the most of the warmer evenings. What better way to do this than with your nearest and dearest? A yard perfect for entertaining is almost like adding an extra room to your home. It should be comfortable, beautiful, entertaining, and full of great food Just like any welcoming family home. If you enjoy playing hostess, or you just think it’s time to give your outdoor space the love it deserves, here are some top tips for creating the perfect backyard for entertaining.
Define spaces
Just like any room in a home, a large open space lacks intimacy and comfort. The advice given to people with super spacious living rooms is to use textures, colors, flooring, and artwork to define separate spaces. These concepts allow people to relax in rooms within rooms. It brings a sense of intimacy to the space. The same rules apply to the garden.
Unlike with interior spaces, the sky is your limit when it comes to defining areas in your yard. You can add the illusion of outdoor ceilings using verandas, gazebos, and trestles. You can even introduce walls using tall bushes or climbing plants. The floorplan can be dictated by lawn, flowerbeds, patio paving, decking, swimming pools, and more. Unlike the floorplan of your home, which is almost completely dictated by the existing walls, the world is your oyster when it comes to your yard. When you start to break it down into different zones, the space becomes easier and more comfortable to use, and focal points are added.
Perfect the entertainment
When you’re entertaining guests, you want options. A bar for cocktails, a fire pit for toasting marshmallows and making delicious s’mores, a projector and screen for movie nights, and the list goes on. These forms of entertainment take the pressure off the host as people are able to take free reign over their evening, creating a more relaxed atmosphere. A fire pit or a projector are brilliantly adaptable, too. They make great entertainment for adult evenings, but the kids love them as well.
Add water
The use of water in a yard can add a whole new dimension, and brings many different options. A hot tub is an amazing investment if you plan on holding smaller gatherings, especially for gardens in cooler climates. They’re relaxing, intimate, and luxurious. No wonder so many people include them in their fantasy yard. A swimming pool is another amazing option, and great for use all summer long. They’re perfect for children’s parties, grown up parties, or just a morning swim. With so many options available, find a pool design which suits your yard and your needs. While they do require a bit of extra maintenance, they make a yard perfect for entertaining.
A water feature such as a fountain, waterfall, pond or rockery is also a beautiful addition to a garden. While it’s more decorative, the sound of trickling water adds a relaxing quality to the space, and it can create a great focal point for the garden.
Level up your grilling area
Who doesn’t love barbecues? If your summer food is mostly grilled, and you eat on the deck most days in spring through summer, you need an outdoor kitchen. It’s purely about bringing added convenience to the process. You don’t need to spend thousands of dollars on fancy equipment, but adding a countertop for food preparation and resting plates, and even a gas burner hob on the side, can make your outdoor dining experience so much more relaxed, fun, and interesting.
If you want to go all out a refrigerator is the ultimate food (and beer) storage unit. You could even put in cupboard units for storing utensils and crockery, and a sink for washing up. Creating an outdoor kitchen is all about enhancing your grilling experience. It removes the need to run backward and forward between the yard and the kitchen and allows you to enjoy grilling more thoroughly. Make it as elaborate as you like, but one thing’s for sure: your guests will love it.
Make it beautiful
We all want to hang out in gorgeous spaces. A yard with all the best amenities, but with no beauty, doesn’t inspire relaxation and fun in the guests. The great thing about a garden room is that there are limitless options for how to make it beautiful. Water features, as previously mentioned, make amazing focal points and can be really relaxing too. Otherwise, plants and flowers, sculptures and art, mosaics, and beautiful furniture all add to the feeling of the space.
You can really individualize your yard, and remember: less definitely isn’t more. Embrace color, texture, and reflective surfaces. Choose flowers and plants which make you happy and add to the dynamics of the space. Remember that durable and low maintenance plants and accessories tend to be best, unless you want to spend time tending it frequently.
Create comfort
If your yard is uncomfortable then guests are uncomfortable too. Firstly, make sure it is easy to get around. People feel on edge when there isn’t a simple and straightforward route from one area of the garden to the other. This is also helped by well-marked pathways, and using the zoning technique previously mentioned to make obvious routes. Using fencing around water such as swimming pools and ponds will also help guests to feel comfortable when moving around.
Ensure there is always enough comfortable seating for the number of guests you are expecting. Choosing seating and tables in a durable material but with detachable cushions is the best way to get comfort as well as value for money on long-lasting furniture. If you plan to entertain guests during the daytime, creating options for shade is essential. Verandas, large trees, and parasols are perfect – they add depth and height to the yard, and also allow guests to shelter from the hot sun, if they prefer.
Perfect your lighting style
Last, add subtle lighting – a floodlight is a great security measure, but it’s far better for creating an atmosphere if you can turn it off while you’re entertaining. Fairy lights, solar powered lamps, and low voltage bulbs help to create a subtle, intimate, and magical backyard getaway after dark. So make sure you mix up different lighting in different areas.
Finally, we hope that you enjoyed our tips on creating the perfect backyard. If you can’t implement them all, select a few. Look for clearance or sale items to help cut costs. Enjoy.
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