Outdoor Furniture, Patio Furniture and more!

Speaking of sunrooms, which I have just decided to do, they have always been among the favorite rooms in homes everywhere.  You might even say that they’re coveted.  Yes, that’s it – they’re coveted!  People love ‘em, and nearly everybody wants one. 

Whenever you visit someone who has one, you end up in the sunroom.  That’s where the lucky sunroom people like to entertain, while their guests openly admire (and secretly covet) the room. 

Believe it or not, as beloved as they have been for centuries, sunrooms are becoming even more popular now, mainly because of the huge trend toward bringing the outdoors inside, and vice versa.  Bright, airy, and cheerful, they give us the best of the outdoors, while protecting us from the worst of it; they impart a sense of serenity, lending themselves to everything from quiet meditation to lively conversation.  

Another great thing is that there are so many new choices for furnishing them.  As indoor/outdoor rooms, they’ve long been in a kind of gray area when it comes to decorating, because regular furniture may be a little too formal, while outdoor furniture can be too casual.   

Today, however, with the cedar, pine, oak, teak, cherry, polywood, vinyl, aluminum, and synthetic wicker patio furniture that’s available at CedarStore.com in a wide range of colors and styles, you can create any décor imaginable. 

Of course, the really big news is that, even if your home doesn’t have a built-in sunroom, you can get one without moving to another house, or putting on an addition!  That’s because today’s sunrooms have taken a cue from their relatives – the gazebos, sheds, cabanas, and pool houses – and decided to stand on their own.

This decision has had spectacular results, because, when freed from its ties to the main house, a sunroom can really shine!  The natural surroundings of the backyard give it more of a showcase, and make it more of a showplace.  While it is still perfect for entertaining, relaxing, or enjoying the view, it also provides more privacy than any room in the house. 

To get one, just go to GazeboCreations.com, where you can customize your ideal sunroom, by selecting the size and style, then choosing from a list of options that includes skylights, flower boxes, partitions, cupolas, ceiling fans, decorative, standard, and sliding glass doors, insulation, and several colors of siding, trim, and shingles.  With all of those features, you can use it as a guesthouse, cottage, home office, or anything else you wish. 

That means that you’ll have a heck of a lot more choices than those formerly known as the “lucky sunroom people.”

Yours Outdoors,

Kathy

Tags: sunroom, Sunrooms

Landscaping is important, not only in making a yard look nice, but in contributing to the overall appearance – and appeal – of a home.  Although the scheme is traditionally based on the home as the central feature, the dynamics change when there is another building on the property that shifts the focus from it.  The degree to which this alters any landscaping plan depends upon the size and the type of the outdoor structure.  If it’s an arbor, trellis, pergola, or planter bench, it may actually be more of a design feature, such as a focal point, which is essential in any layout. 

On the other hand, if it’s something more prominent, such as a gazebo, sunroom, shed, pool house, or cabana, it deserves the same landscaping treatment as the house, but on a smaller scale.  However, you’re planning to build a pool house or a cabana, there’s a good chance that you also have a pool, so you’ll want to create a design that will link the two together to form an area that will be the center of activity. 

Use the shape of your pool to help you plan the layout.  If it’s rounded, complement it with walkways (made of decorative stones) and flowerbeds designed with similar curves, or counter it with linear paths.  If it’s square or rectangular, use straight or curvilinear patterns to coincide or contrast with it.  

Another influence on the big picture will be whether or not you have a fence around the pool.  Although some people choose not to put one up, if there’s any chance that any kids will have access to the pool at any time, you really should install one.  Fortunately, with the endless options for materials and colors, it won’t be difficult to find one that is attractive, safe, durable, and complementary to the motif.             

While you may want to put in a lot of colorful flowers, it’s best not to plant them too close to the pool, but put them around the cabana instead.  The same goes for large trees, shrubs, or plants, which can drop foliage into the water, clogging filters, and making the pool more difficult to clean and maintain. 

Of course, you can enjoy a cabana, just like any other backyard structure, even if you don’t have a pool; and, at GazeboCreations.com, it’s a cinch to design one.  Using the Custom Cabana Creator, you can build one to your own specifications, choosing the material, style, and size, then selecting from dozens of options, including skylights, cupolas, screened windows, ceiling fans, finished walls and ceilings, insulation, and several colors of shingles.

Indeed, the cabana has come a long way since the days when it was merely a seaside shack used for changing into and out of swimming apparel.  Now, it’s right up there in status with the gorgeous gazebo and the stunning sunroom (which is much better than a sunning stunroom), taking a back seat to no other outdoor structure.  In other words, the cabana is no second banana.

Yours Outdoors,

Kathy   

Tags: cabana, sunroom

These days, everywhere you turn, someone is getting a makeover and/or competing for some kind of prize.  In fact, these contests have becomes so widespread that they no longer involve only humans, as animals, and even buildings, are getting new looks.  That’s what’s happening now in the world of backyard structures, as they vie for the “Most Popular” title; and, among the contenders, the pool house is making a big splash. 

Although it has been on the scene for years, there is a new wave of interest in it, sparked by a spectacular makeover that has given the structure many extremely desirable new traits.  Now, besides being as practical as it is beautiful, it very deftly combines the best characteristics of its competitors, the gazebo and the garden shed.

Indeed, the pool house is not only as drop-dead gorgeous as a gazebo, but it is available with the same highly sought-after options, such as finished walls and ceilings, screened floors, cupolas, skylights, double-paned, shuttered windows, insulation, and steel doors. 

It also has quite an extensive wardrobe, which includes a rich, luxurious cedar coat, as well as vinyl siding in several luscious colors.  To top it off, the pool house also sports over a dozen colors of durable shingles, as well as a cedar shake roof, and accessorizes with eight shades of trim.    

Another of its many attractive attributes is its willingness to be seen in a less-than-glamorous role, as it performs all of the same duties as a shed, holding safe anything and everything that a person can to stuff into it, without losing its composure.  It also acts as the quintessential cabana, where people can change into and out of their swimwear.  Furthermore, just like gazebos and sheds, pool houses can be furnished with beautiful porch chairs, settees, lounges, and accent tables, and used year-round as spare rooms, guesthouses, home offices, entertainment rooms, or anything else that one wishes to make of them.

At GazeboCreations.com, you can customize your own pool house in a few, easy steps.  You can create as many as you want, dress them up any way you like, and save them to your own, personal gallery, where you can compare them side by side and choose your favorite.  As a matter of fact, you can do the same with their gazebos, sheds, cabanas, and sunrooms.  The best part of all is that, no matter which one you select, you’ll be picking a winner!

Yours Outdoors,

Kathy 

Tags: cabana, gazebo, Pool house, shed, sunroom