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Party in the Back: Features to Impress Guests in the Backyard (Part 2)

 

So you’ve got the party started with Part 1 of this series already. Remember that your whole goal is to create an unforgettable experience for your guests from start to finish.

 

Now it’s time to introduce the main acts and headliners to close out the show:

 

Covered dining patio

Nothing beats dining out in the open with the sunlight all around you and the breeze in your hair. It’s even more appetizing when you bring fine dining outdoors. Set out a full-length banquet table and chairs on the patio, ready to host dinner parties. And with a roof over top, you’ll get the intimacy for dinners and deep conversations to stretch long into the night. Make sure the tables and chairs are of weather-resistant materials like teak, wicker, or cast iron. As for the upholstery fabrics, here’s your chance to start the colour accent scheme you want in the backyard.

 

Outdoor kitchen and bar

Well, if you’re going to have a fancy meal out on the patio, why not prepare the meal outside, too? And we’re not talking about just a BBQ grill here. Go all out and put in a full kitchen with a gas-powered stove and grill. Bonus points for a pizza oven, too! Hook up plumbing to the outdoor kitchen so that you can have a working sink. Heck, might as well throw in a mini-fridge to hold fresh ingredients as you’re cooking.

For food preparation, install a durable countertop. Build in extra storage in the base cabinets to hold utensils and dishes. Right next to it all should be a bar counter complete with a wine cooler, icemaker, and glasses.

The best part about having a full outdoor kitchen and bar? You can keep playing host to your guests without having to run back inside to check on the food all the time.

 

Keep the party going

After dinner, it’s great to be able to step away from the table and chat somewhere else over drinks. This is where a gazebo or pavilion would come in handy. Your guests can then continue enjoying the night air at a new hangout spot. Light up the area with some lantern ambience or strung lights. You can also have a sunken firepit patio nearby for those who want to stay warm. And for those with happy feet, an audio system and projector screen at the gazebo/pavilion will get a dance party pumping far into the night.

 

These rear additions allow you to throw an epic party. But don’t forget they’re also for you. They’ll encourage you to make more excuses to relax there on your down times. You can do a lot more in life with frequent breaks.

 

But let’s go back to your guests as they slowly call it a night with weary but contented smiles on their faces. Who can forget a party like that? You’ll stay on top of their minds for a long time. And when opportunities come knocking, it’ll be your door they come to first.

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Party in the Back: Features to Impress Guests in the Backyard (Part 1)

 

The life of royals is within your grasp. Your luxury custom home is much more than the culmination of the dream home designs spinning in your head ever since you were little. It’s also an investment in your social stature. At this level, your social stature becomes the new capital for you to pursue new opportunities. And it all starts with entertaining guests at your new lavish digs.

 

The interior of your home is your guests’ first exposure to your inner circle. The most memorable parties though are always the ones held in the backyard. Besides, when the season of hot summer evenings begin, who can resist spending time outdoors?

 

Luxury homes should be designed to take people on a curated journey that shows off all the best parts of the house. Your guests may already be impressed with the interior. You just have to build up their anticipation for what’s to come next when they see your backyard.

 

This is Part 1 of how you can leave a lasting impression on your guests, from the moment they enter the backyard to the moment they say good night:

 

Terraced natural landscaping

If you have a backyard that’s on a slope, this is a great way to create levels for different activities. The trend is to make all the features part of the natural environment with organic flow from one area to the next. This involves using natural materials as much as possible. Like wood or rugged stone finishes on backyard structures and low walls. Or paving pathways with flagstone. It also means following the curve of the land and minimizing sharp angles whenever you can. By doing so, you can even subtly work your preferred progression of activities into the design of your backyard.

You can still get the same effect even with a flat backyard. All you have to do is slightly raise the levels of certain zones to give off a terraced impression. If you prefer to keep everything on the same level though, then just make the pathways between more distinct.

 

Sectioned pool

Pools are one of the must-have backyard features that will add to your home value. Rather than the ordinary rectangular pool though, go with an irregularly shaped one that has custom sections. Inset spas and tanning ledges are popular pool sections in addition to the main swimming zone. If space is too limited for a long enough pool to swim laps, install counterflow jets at one end for endless swimming in place. You can also separate the sections at different heights and connect them with waterfall curtains.

Staying with the natural landscape theme, blend the pool with its surroundings with a vanishing edge. A vanishing edge also fits nicely in a minimalist design. That way, you get the optical illusion of the pool popping out of a travertine, Italian marble, or coral stone pool surround.

 

It’s already a good start to the party with your guests admiring the landscaping and splashing in the pool. But that’s only the first half! Stay awhile for Part 2.

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Today’s Top 6 Green Home Features

Over the years, concern about the environment has become a growing concern.  In the spirit of thinking globally and acting locally, the home has been found to be the logical place to employ green technologies.  Not only will green features in your home decrease your carbon footprint, they will save you money.  Here’s a list of today’s top 6 green home features.

 

1. Insulation

Insulation is one of the most important factors when it comes to keeping the temperature of your home consistent whether it’s hot or cold outside.  Poorly insulated homes will lose their heat in the winter and overheat in the summer which will inflate your heating and cooling costs.  Proper insulation in walls, ceilings, floors, around windows and throughout the house framing is your best bet when it comes to energy savings.

 

2. Windows

Window technology has come a long way over the years resulting in energy savings where traditionally energy was rapidly lost.  With double and triple glazing, better window frame construction, reflective coatings, insulated edgings, and inert gases between panes, today’s green windows minimize heat transfer and leakage while allowing more light to enter the house.

 

3. Lighting

Green lighting technologies have also rapidly changed throughout the years.  Although compact fluorescent lights (CFL) were once thought to be the ultimate answer to energy savings when it comes to light bulbs, light emitting diode (LED) technology has since surpassed that of CFLs and has now become the focus of the largest light bulb manufacturers.  By adding dimming switches, timers and other efficient lighting sources, today’s lighting technologies are reducing carbon footprints and increasing energy savings.

 

4. Plumbing

Water conservation technologies have lowered water use throughout the home in recent years.  Low flow toilets, faucets and showerheads along with water conserving appliances and circulation systems have reduced water use in the bathroom, kitchen and yard.

 

5. Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning

Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems are the main users of energy in the household. Efficiently sealed ductwork, radiant energy technologies, energy efficient appliances and European-style heated flooring all bring down heating and cooling costs while reducing carbon emissions.

 

6. Smart Technology Automation

With smart technology, many home functions can be automated or remotely manipulated.  Heating, cooling, lighting, alarm systems, automated curtains systems and more can now be automatically programmed or controlled from afar allowing for more efficient use of resources.  Smart technologies are the latest improvements adding to the home’s energy efficiency.

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10 Features Not To Forget When Building A Custom Home

When building a new home it’s easy to include unique features that would require demolition and reconstruction should you want to add them later. Here’s a list of some things you might want to think about when building your new home.

 

Extra Electrical Outlets

Especially with today’s electronic gadgets, electrical outlets are used more than ever.  Add extras near where the beds will be, around the entertainment centre, on the kitchen island, around the fireplace mantle, under the windows, in the bathroom, the garage, outdoors and even under the awnings (for Christmas lights.)

 

Heated And Insulated Garage

Even though your garage won’t need to be at room temperature, heating and insulation will make a massive difference over the winter for both your vehicle and yourself if you need to be doing any work out there. The heated garage will also prevent frozen pipes.

 

Garage Hot Water Faucet

If you’re fitting your garage with a cold water faucet, it doesn’t take a whole lot of effort to add a hot water faucet as well.

 

Garage Floor Drain

A floor drain in your garage will allow for easy cleaning of the garage floor as well as allow for the draining of water runoff from your vehicles.  And in the case of unexpected flooding, a the floor drain may become your saviour.

 

Heated Flooring

Something that’s popular in a lot of European countries, heated flooring can make a huge difference to your mood on winter mornings when you didn’t want to get out of your bed.  They’re easy to install when building, but not so easy as an afterthought.

 

Mudroom

An extra small room at the main entrance to dress/disrobe and store jackets, footwear and any other outdoor/indoor gear will not only keep the rest of the house cleaner, but will help keep the cold/hot weather out.  Also consider the possibility of a sink in this room.

 

Extra Wiring

Adding extra wiring before the drywall is installed will save having to replace it all later when you realize you need to run speaker or electrical wiring out to your deck.

 

Backup Generator Wiring And Storage

Having your home pre-wired for a backup generator will make installation a breeze even if you don’t have said generator yet.  While you’re at it, pre-planning a concrete slab for the generator to sit on will beat trying to find a place for one later.

 

Backwater Valves

When installing your plumbing, make sure backwater valves are included in your piping to prevent sewers from backing up into your basement.  It’s a simple addition while building, but a destructive job after the fact.

 

Embedded Safe

Everyone has valuables – even if they’re just documents.  A stand alone safe is still portable and can easily be stolen.  Think about embedding a small safe in one of your concrete walls.  Not only is it fireproof and secure, but it’s easily hideable with a simple covering.

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Ideas for Quick But High Impact Summer Kitchen Renovations

As summertime arrives, your kitchen transforms from a place to create hot, heavy and filling wintertime meals to one that will become known for cool, light and refreshing dishes.  Why not make your surroundings reflect the change in season? Here are some tips for easy kitchen renovations that will usher in the summer.

 

Brighten Your Colours

Changing the colours of your cabinetry from dark light will make a massive impact on the feel of your kitchen.  Upgrading to maple or even brighter colours such as white or yellow will give your kitchen that summertime feel.   Whether resurfacing or simply painting, the fact that cupboards occupy so much kitchen surface area means that changing their colour will cause a major shake up in the room’s ambience.

 

Match Your Appliances

If it’s time to upgrade your refrigerator, stove, dishwasher or other appliances, consider streamlining them to match.  Nothing creates cleaner lines and coherence than matching appliances.  Aligning appliance characteristics give a uniform framework to the kitchen that will reflect the summertime sunlight in a positive fashion.

 

Modernize Your Countertops

Whether you choose stones such as  marble, granite or slate or one of the newer man-made materials such as Caesarstone or Neolithic, updating your countertops can do wonders for the light reflecting capacity of your kitchen.  A simple change in countertop material can change the atmosphere of the whole room.  Consider a material that accentuates your appliances and cabinetry for maximum impact.

 

Accent Lighting

Accent lighting will brighten up your kitchen with minimal cost.  Whether adding undermount lighting to your cabinetry, adjustable track lighting to your ceiling or wall lighting to highlight special areas, these are all quick and easy ways to spice up your kitchen.  Adding accent lighting is a low cost renovation with high rewards as a result.

 

The ushering in of summer is a perfect time to change the profile of your kitchen with simple renovations that result in a fresher, cleaner look. Simple changes can make huge differences.  By adding more light, coordinating appliances and countertops and brightening your colours, you can ensure the season is reflected in your kitchen.

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Classic Color Schemes That Will Always Be In Style

Every spring and autumn you’ll notice the headlines of the housekeeping magazines featuring the trendy new color scheme of the season.  That’s all fine and well if you enjoy redecorating and painting your house twice a year. It may also work if you revel in a radical color scheme that you rarely find anywhere else.  But for most of us, house painting and furniture purchasing is not a biannual event nor do we like to wake up to fluorescent pink and green walls everyday.  Thankfully there are a handful of color schemes that will always be in style.

 

Black And White

Black and white is a definite classic with a high contrast that delivers a sophisticated look.  Adding stainless steel appliances evokes a cool modernism, while adding wood finishes or floors will warm things up.  Anything matches with black and white, so accent with your own personality.

 

Blue And White

With blue being a timeless neutral color, blue and white remains a consistent designer color scheme.  Add into the mix the wide variety of blues available and you’ll have a room that remains inviting year after year.  Vary the textures and shades of blue with different pieces to create flow and drama.

 

Orange And Blue

Sitting directly across from each other on the color scale, orange and blue are complementary opposites that work well together.  Used in moderation as accents and delineated with strong white walls and furnishings, these two bold colors can be used for dramatic effect.

 

Rustic Autumn

Still beautiful year-round, a rustic color palette featuring shades of brown and orange like rust, pumpkin go well with the textures of exposed wood, bricks and slate.  These bold colors can be balanced with white or off-white accents.

 

Springtime

Another seasonal color scheme that works year-round is a springtime motif.  Yellow can be harder to decorate than many colors, but when tempered with grey or off-white furnishings and floors, the result is refreshing and sunny.  Darker greens are more effective when used on the lower half of a wall and complemented with a lighter hue higher up.

 

The takeaway?  Classic color schemes will always be in style.  You don’t need to be constantly catching up with the seasonal trends.  Make it easy on yourself and choose a color combination that suits your personality and stands the test of time.