Do you dream about stepping out of the back door and walking into a full-fledged oasis experience? You’re not alone in that vision of transforming your backyard. Building a better home experience can involve the creation of a truly unique backyard. There’s a lot of great ideas that can go into making this part of your home experience, and many of them are ideas you’ll get extensive use of for years and years to come.
What you want to do is make it feel like an oasis, and you want people to walk away thinking that their backyard can’t compete. This is the goal of anyone committed to some serious landscaping challenges for their next backyard project. There’s so much to focus on that it can be hard to know where you want to make improvements and what’s already good enough. This list will help you determine what you need to finally make your backyard an oasis experience that’s perfect for you and your guests.
Choose a theme.
The first thing you want to determine for your backyard oasis is a good theme. An oasis is a desert haven surrounded by lush palm trees and reflects a distinct, relaxing, safe place in such a brutal environment. Your backyard isn’t exactly miles from civilization, but picking this desert theme is a good one, or you could go with the Mediterranean villa, or maybe you want a mountain lodge, or how about a Hamptons-lite retreat? There are so many themes for your backyard reimagining that the biggest difficulty isn’t finding one, but deciding on one.
Protect your patio.
The patio is your point A of the backyard. This is where everything begins and where most of it happens, so you need to protect it in various ways. Choosing the right patio stones for the environment will provide a good starting point. Wood is great-looking but slippery when wet and hot in the sun, while concrete isn’t always the most attractive, but it’s durable and safe. Secondly, you need to protect the furniture and flooring material, and Royal covers can keep it all protected. Keeping the elements at bay and everyone nice and comfortable on your patio will make any time spent in your yard worth it.
Create a backyard kitchen.
It’s a huge want to have the joys of your indoor kitchen outside, but the world of backyard landscaping has evolved a lot so you can get the best of both worlds now. Having an outdoor kitchen isn’t the same as your actual kitchen. You won’t have a fridge, washing machine, and all the same amenities, but you can surely add a lot – cooking and prep surfaces, barbecue cooking area, mini-fridge/wine cooler/drink and ice sink, and drawers for your utensils. Having your own backyard kitchen and barbecue pit setup would be the coolest way to host an outdoor party and would blow people’s minds. If you really want to go a step further, you can add a stone pizza oven, and expand your cooking capabilities for a nice dinner night spent outdoors.
Include water features.
Water features are things like ponds, streams, and fountains. These are really nice and relaxing additions to a backyard that isn’t overly aggressive in terms of remodeling choices. They offer something good for the yard because it promotes more natural elements, like a birdbath, but they feel upscale as well. You can add a fish pond to further your connection to nature with your backyard. The sounds of the water will be a refreshing sensory experience. Digging your own pond is doable and requires some basics in landscaping, but it can teach you a lot about making your own additions by hand. Water features are very old school, but you can do a modern spin on them with design features, and keep your backyard looking new school.
Install a pool.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, a pool is a very aggressive backyard addition, but as mentioned, an oasis needs water. Pools are big, they are expensive, and they are a serious commitment for your yard, but having this gives you added relaxation value with a cool place to lounge. Above-ground means needing a deck, which adds extra square footage for guests to sit, talk, and walk around, while an in-ground pool is less obstructive to the view lines of your entire yard. Get some fun pool toys like noodles and floating chairs, so you can spend your days soaking up the sun right on the water. Whatever pool design you choose, they attract attention and lift your home into oasis status.
Get creative with furniture.
The worst thing you can do for your backyard patio furniture is stick to boring ideas. Folding chairs? Old metal frames? Boring. You can do better, and there are tons of ways to buck the trend. Some good ideas for backyard furniture are beanbag seats, outdoor sectionals, and Muskoka chairs. These furniture choices have to match your design, so a Mediterranean-themed backyard wouldn’t work well with dock chairs. Sectionals are a good universal choice, and you can get creative with even funkier furniture than a beanbag seat. Swinging seats, stone bench seating, and even a hammock will push your backyard’s potential past what people expect. Patio and backyard furniture don’t need to be boring, and you can definitely have some fun with it and play around. The whole point of creating your own personal oasis is to have fun with it, so think outside the box and create a unique look with your furniture choices.
Is your backyard boring and bumming you out? This seems to be something that too many homeowners are pondering these days. When you own a home, you shouldn’t have to settle for an entire portion of your house in a letdown, so these tips will help you find ways to convert your once boring backyard into the oasis you deserve.