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Your backyard is the largest potential living space in your home, and your patio is the key to making good use of that space. Whether you want to relax with your family or invite over neighbors and friends, your patio is a great place for people to congregate.
Here’s how you can transform your patio into something special.
1. Replace your patio furniture
When you glance at your patio, the first thing you normally notice is the furniture. If your patio furniture has been standing outside for several years, it may look worn and dated. The quickest way to improve your patio is swapping out your old patio furniture for new, aesthetically pleasing, and practical patio furniture.
Recent innovations in outdoor furniture mean you can create an outdoor living room complete with plastic, rattan, or wicker patio couches and armchairs. Or, if you love to relax or read outdoor, why not purchase a hammock. You don’t need two trees to hang a hammock. Many come complete with a hanging frame.
By providing chairs and a table, you can enjoy an alfresco eating experience in your home. Using outdoor Bluetooth speakers, you can provide the ambiance of a Parisian café or an Italian terrace. You can even host dinner parties on your patio.
2. Take your kitchen outside
You don’t have to stop at a table and chairs. These days, you can move your whole kitchen outside. Many companies make high-standard kitchen appliances designed for use in the open air. You can buy outdoor refrigerators, hobs, ovens, sinks, and any other appliance you would find in a modern kitchen.
If you want to entertain on your patio, patio kitchens are super convenient. You won’t have to keep moving in and out of your home to feed your guests. Also, in summer your kitchen won’t grow too hot and uncomfortable. While cooking, you can appreciate the flowers and fresh air.
If you prefer to keep things simple, just invest in a portable barbecue. Barbecue parties are still popular and much cheaper than fully equipped outdoor kitchens. Outdoor kitchens are far more expensive to build than indoor kitchens.
3. Protect yourself from the elements
Even though your patio is outside, that doesn’t mean you can’t protect yourself from the sun, wind, and rain. A shade sails is a popular form of protection that is affordable and easy to install. You just need 4 fixed points to attach them.
For a little more protection, you can install a garden awning. These roll away when you want to enjoy the sun and roll out again to ward off the rain. When you’re hosting a dinner party, an awning will protect your table and chairs from unpleasant bird droppings.
A permanent form of shade comes in the shape of a pergola built over the patio. However, not only is this expensive, but it’s also not as flexible as either a shade sail or an awning.
4. Bring your garden onto the patio
Just because your patio is stone or concrete it doesn’t mean that you can’t have any plants there. A selection of beautiful plants in good-quality flowerpots can bring your patio to life. When selecting your flowerpots, go as large as possible. Large flowerpots stand out on your patio and provide the space for some amazing plants, such as cherry blossom trees.
There is a broad range of plant pots on the market today, so you can select unique designs that truly make a statement. Perhaps you’d like to color coordinate them with your patio furniture or alternatively choose plain terracotta pots that remind you of your vacation in Mexico.
5. A little TLC
Clear away all the movable furniture and other objects from your patio and examine its surface. If your patio was built over a couple of years ago, it probably needs some maintenance.
Weeds sprout between cracks in the cement or paving stones. Make use of an old screwdriver to scrape them away. Then mix 1 part salt to 2 parts boiling water to make a natural weed killer you can pour over the affected area.
Next, use a pressure washer to remove the layers of ground-in grime that have accumulated on your patio. After a thorough pressure wash, your patio will be transformed. If any stubborn stains remain, you can revitalize the surface using concrete acid stain to turn the whole area into a uniform color with swirly patterns.
After your patio has been thoroughly cleaned, you may find cracks and holes across the surface. Fill these using a mix of 1 part cement to 3 parts sand bonded with a drop of water. Press this mix into the crevasses using a trowel.
Clean any remaining holes thoroughly then fill them with a mix of 3 parts sand to 1 part cement bonded with a little water. Tamp down the mix with a trowel.
