Now, you would be hard pressed to distinguish indoor from outdoor furniture unless you were up close to it.  The types of fabrics and materials that go into patio furniture are made from very soft and durable fibers.  Many have built in ultraviolet (UV) ray fading resistance.  The furniture itself is as elegant as the fabrics that make the cushions.  Gone are the days of the simple plastic patio chairs.  Now, you’ve got outdoor bar stools and dining sets.  The list goes on

Here's one that looks to be more of an enclosed room kitchen outdoors.

and on, but for the purposes of this article, let’s get back on topic for our discussion of the kitchen designs.

Outdoor kitchen designs can be suited to the homeowner.  This means that if you are someone who enjoys entertaining and hosting more formal dinner parties, then you can have the makings for a commercial quality outdoor kitchen, complete with stainless steel appliances, grills and refrigerators.  Then, you’ve got the option of wine coolers and other accessories.  The outdoor sink or sinks can be fed with water from your hose or tapped into your home’s water supply line.  Photo credit

If your outdoor kitchen plans call for something a bit more country or cottage-like, there is room for designs in this area as well.  Just like with the indoor kitchen, you can have your choice of cabinets and countertops as well.  The only thing to keep in mind is that all of your choices need to be waterproof.  So, if you’re thinking in terms of wood, choices like redwood or cedar make for the best selections.  Stainless steel is always a good choice for appliances.  For the counters, you can go with any brick or stone choice.  A nice little feature might be something like an outdoor pizza oven or open pit-style fire place.

When you are considering how to plan for space at your outdoor bar seating area, a 15” depth and 24” width per person are good estimates.  Keep in mind, these numbers are also a reflection of the type of kitchen design you’ve got.  If you have more of an open flowing patio, then the seating needs not be so formally determined.  Speaking of a flowing space, a simple patio cover, can provide a great roof over this kitchen you’ve designed.  Over the grill or

Another outdoor kitchen idea, but much more simple.

firepit, don’t make the roof too solid as you and your guests will be choking on smoke the whole time.

So, you’ve got the roof figured out, but what about the flooring?  You’ll want to ensure safe-footing, nothing that gets too slippery when wet.  A patio paver floor works great.  Similarly, if you already have a slab or something laid, you can use an outdoor rug that can provide padding for the long standing periods on that hard surface and it will also provide more traction.  With so many options and choices from which to design, have fun with your outdoor kitchen plans and make sure it suits your cooking and patio living style.  Photo credit

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Here, you see the stone pieces used, along with stainless appliances - a great combination even in the rain!

These types of outdoor kitchen designs are really expanding on what is possible in the concept of what makes a patio a patio.  In fact, this has really sparked or been sparked, either way, by the trend in creating outdoor rooms to allow for a more flowing use of a home’s square footage.  Just like with any indoor room, there are walls, flooring and a ceiling or roof to consider.  Outdoor kitchens have some unique features about them that need other attention too, however.  Photo credit

One such feature that makes the outdoor kitchen unique is that unlike its indoor counterpart, the outdoor appliances and materials all need to be waterproof.  This is especially true if you are using something like an open style of patio cover, like a pergola to act as the framework or skeleton of your outdoor room.  A pergola will often have a lattice-style roof, which will allow rain and snow and other debris and intense sun to hit your kitchen area and appliances.

What types of appliances are available for an outdoor kitchen?  Think of your kitchen inside.  What types of appliances do you rely on?  These are all available as outdoor units.  Refrigerators, wine chillers or coolers, sinks, stoves, grill tops, even dishwashers can all be made for outdoor use now, too.  More specifically, these appliances come in stainless steel and have appropriate wiring specifications to be able to be used outdoors.  Since grilling is still one of the most popular ways to cook outdoors, there have been a number of advancements here as well.  You can get a grill that just drops into a counter area and allows for convenient cooking and serving.  Other unique items could include things like an outdoor pizza oven.  These even come as kits.  It is still best to hire a professional for installation if you don’t have the skillset or knowledge to make sure it is all set up right.  They are fairly costly, so you’ll want to ensure the job is done right.

This is a modular outdoor kitchen unit.

In terms of materials or features of an outdoor kitchen, the same ideas apply inside.  When you think about your cabinetry, again it just needs to be waterproof.  Woods can be used, but you’ll want to make sure that you use things like cedar and redwood for their excellent weathering abilities.  You’ll also find that you can get the same basic counter top features.  Using a material like brick or stone is going to be your best bet.  Granite works well outdoors, too.  However, you may want to be cautious with it as it is quite porous, so sealing it and such can be a chore.  Photo credit

Other things to keep in mind are seating arrangements.  The right ratio of space has been given to be about 15” of depth and 24” of width for each person.  This will give you a good estimate as to how long to make your counters or bar area for seating.  If you choose to have a more formal outdoor dining area, then the table and chair set will likely give you enough of a separation on its own.  There are many ways that your outdoor kitchen ideas can take shape, enlisting the help of a professional designer or architect might be helpful.  You can also find great ideas for outdoor kitchen plans online and in fine home magazines.

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Like with indoor spaces in the home, the kitchen is often the favorite gathering place when entertaining or catching up on the events of the day with the family.  This is the same situation with an outdoor patio room.  The outdoor kitchen is by far the most innovatively-designed space if we are comparing indoor and outdoor rooms.   Outdoor kitchen designs have come a long way towards creating an environment that is every bit as convenient and easy to use as any indoor space.  And, since it is outdoors, there are other features like brick pizza ovens and other grilling options that are even better suited for an outdoor space.

The main features of any outdoor kitchen plans and design ideas, that make them unique, have to do with how the homeowner will be utilizing the space.  If you are an entertainer and will be using your outdoor kitchen for meal preparation, then moving the party to your outdoor dining furniture for the rest, then you will need to consider the type of outdoor lighting features that will best serve you.

What Type of Outdoor Lighting Do You Need
By this, we mean to say, some lighting is more focused on providing you an easy way to navigate your yard or to illuminate dark areas for safety.  These situations call for outdoor flood lights.  While they are not as esthetically pleasing, they do serve an important function.  Now, let’s shift focus to creating a nice ambiance and setting for your guests or other entertaining needs.  In these scenarios, focused lighting or patio lights that will create a distinct space are what is needed.  Something like an outdoor chandelier can work great for such a scenario.  This will set a nice mood for your space and will also provide ambiance.  You can add discrete spot lights to create more usable and functional light for dining or conversation.  What you need in your lighting design is to reflect what your outdoor kitchen designs call on your plans to provide.

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So, the question is, how can you carve out a little piece of shady heaven in your garden or patio space?  One attractive option is with patio arbors.  You could consider these both as sculptural pieces in your yard as well as functional places to get a shady seat.  Many times you will see an arbor used to support some vines or other flowering plants over a nice patio swing.  The same type of set up can be achieved by having a garden bench sitting patiently beneath one of these handsome arbors.

What Types Are There?

A perfect spot to sit and swing beneath a patio arbor.

An arbor may go by several other names, which we will briefly parse out here.  On Patio Covers Place, we use the term arbor to describe a wood or metal structure that typically has four posts and a cross-beam ‘roof’. They are much like a pergola, except that they are smaller in size and scale.  Occasionally, you will also hear the term trellises used to describe these structures.  A patio trellis, in our mind, is more of a two-dimensional structure that is meant to support smaller growing vines and is often mounted up against a wall or fence for added depth and dimension.

A patio arbor can also welcome you into your patio or garden space.  They may have an arched roof or top that serve as a door to your space.  You might find that they are usually constructed of wood.  Because of its ability to be crafted into many styles, wood is an easy choice.  Cedar and redwood make excellent choices for their ability to weather to a nice color and also stand up to the elements.

You can care for them by sealing and staining each year for a structure that will last you for years to come.  Metal arbors are also available.  Wrought iron is making a comeback in many outdoor home and garden designs and features.  This will also provide support for your plants and vines, all while adding a nice strength and timeless appearance to your garden space.  Whether you choose wood or metal, you really can’t go wrong with either choice of these patio arbors.

Photo credit

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For this type of entertaining, you’ll need to think about a variety of patio accessories to make the evening more comfortable.  In many places, the climate is such that no type of heating is necessary, especially in the summer months.  However, the spring and fall in other places will be too cold to enjoy your time spent out on the deck or patio without some source of heat.  For this, a patio heater is recommended.  Patio heaters are quite affordable – in the $300 USD range for a good sized one – and are portable enough to move around as necessary.

If you prefer the look and sound of a real fire, then you might consider a patio fireplace.  These outdoor fireplaces are a bit more in terms of maintenance and care during the course of an evening, but their charm cannot be replaced by a typical heating unit.

One way to combine both the seating you require to allow for intimate conversation and the heating necessary for you and your guests to remain comfortable is by getting a fire pit table.  This is just like what it sounds like.  The fire pit table is perfect at a cocktail table height and can hold a bowl for the fire that is less than 24” in diameter.  The point is not to have some raging fire at eye level while talking but rather a quaint little flame flickering enough to create great ambiance.

Just like with patio fireplaces, you can also have your table top fire running on propane gas.  This way, you will not have embers or sparks to deal with while you enjoy your evening.  There are a variety of styles to choose from as well.  You can choose from a glass top table to something a bit more rustic or substantial looking with stone.  There are even inserts that you can use to transform your fire pit into a ‘cooler’ – mostly it is just a place to store ice and place your bottled drinks in.  Either way you enjoy it, a fire pit table makes for a great patio accessory.

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We are talking about how wireless speakers can free you up from the restrictions that having only a wired unit allows.  Just like with indoor entertainment, outdoor speakers range in size and price.  They also have different qualities and ways of operating. Some require that you plug in a base unit and then the other speakers can operate via battery power.  Then there is the infamous Airstream™ that is commonly used with iPods.

Get rid of this mess and go wireless instead.

In general, wireless outdoor speakers can provide you much more flexibility and portability than a traditional wired speaker could.  Materials and manufacturing have made outdoor speakers much more durable and even have allowed them to be more marketable over the last several years.  What was once only reserved for commercial applications can now be enjoyed by the average homeowner.

Advantages of Wireless Outdoor Speakers
The obvious advantage is the ability to be able to place your music wherever you like.  While you can do this with wires in most cases, it just requires an extra amount of time and effort, not to mention cost.  Speaker wire that is able to either be buried in the ground or in conduit has risen considerably in price as raw material costs have increased.  Even if you hire someone to do the installation of your outdoor audio set-up, you are still looking at a financial investment, if not direct time and effort through your own personal installation.

Another advantage is that if at any time you would like to re-locate your speakers, it is as simple as a removing a few screws or just picking them up off the ground and moving them.  It doesn’t get any easier than that.  Since the ‘remote speakers’ from the base or unit itself need to still be powered, you will need to replace batteries.  The frequency of this all depends upon how often you enjoy music through them.  Also, you might consider the disadvantage of distance from the unit.  While many specifications will say that you can get up to a 50-100’ range, you might notice a drop in function within a smaller range if you have any outdoor ‘obstacles’ in the path.  These are all inconsequential disadvantages when comparing the standard wired styles to wireless outdoor speakers.

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Here, we are talking about the patio trellis.  These are nothing more than structures used in a patio or garden space that add dimension, depth and character to the space.  Typically, they are constructed of wood, though metal trellises exist as well.  In fact, wrought iron trellises or some made with copper can look quite elegant and provide wonderful visual dimension to your space.

A trellis is related to other popular patio structures, the pergola and the arbor.  Where we would make the distinction here is that while a pergola is often used as a cover for your patio space, an arbor can be used as a stand-alone structure in a garden space and a trellis is more ‘two-dimensional’.  It can certainly be the support for climbing vines and other plants, like both the pergola and arbor as well.

This brings up another term that can be used when talking about such structures, the garden arbor.  Garden arbors, are unique in their own right.  We would talk about an arbor as a type of smaller pergola.  Most pergolas consist of four posts and have beams and a lattice-type roof.  They can range in size, but a 10’x10’ pergola could be considered average.  A larger arbor could also have four posts, but might be something more like 4’, 6’ or 8’ wide by 2-3’ deep.  In other words, you could put a nice garden bench beneath it or have it over your garden or patio entrance.  They serve a nice function in this way.  Again, like the trellis and pergola, greenery may grow all over it, creating a type of shaded cover all its own.

In the end, don’t get too hung up the name of the patio structure you are wanting.  The only way to really find what you want is to do a search.  As you are able to refine your search and see the names and pictures of exactly what you are after, then you can make a better decision about it.  If that ends up being called a pergola that you want to build, then so be it.  If you are looking for more of a ‘background arrangement’, we suggest looking for a suitable patio trellis.

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Now, there are outdoor rooms with all sorts of styles and conveniences of modern living.  No longer do you have to ‘rough’ it outside and sit on uncomfortable furniture in the blazing summer heat.  Some things just cannot be removed.  If you are trying to make summer not feel like summer in some areas of the country, good luck.  However, you can make your experience outdoors much more enjoyable.  Take temperature issues just as one example.

A beautiful looking outdoor room set up.

One of the most critical features of any outdoor patio room is going to be shade in the daytime and a sense of protection and coziness in the evening.  For shade, there are things like patio covers, awnings and blinds or curtains if you want a softer and more exotic look.  There are really no rules to these things.  Sure, outdoor landscape designers and decorators can give you some great ideas for what your possibilities are, but if your space fits your needs, then you are doing it right.

Another great feature you can add to your patio space is a misting system. These are nothing more than a tubing system that has nozzles placed evenly along the line that sprays out a fine mist of water to cool your patio space.  They are reported to be able to cool a patio area by as much as 30 degrees.  Part of this effect is the perceived cooling it provides.  The smaller the water droplets that come out, the better the effect.  The droplets hit your skin and then evaporate.  It is this evaporation that creates the cool sensation.  Larger droplets mean slower evaporation.

Now, as far as that evening entertaining goes, the critical component is your outdoor lighting.  This is what will create the ambiance.  While flood lights will throw a lot of light, they will not provide any sort of spot lighting for more intimate settings or gatherings.  Your outdoor room needs light just like any indoor room in your home.  When you have both spot and flood lighting options, then you can create more of a mood.

A final key feature to your outdoor entertaining in the evening is heating.  If we are talking about the fall or spring, patio heaters can solve your problems.  For the most part, you can get by with one of these and solve any issues with your patio being too cold to be comfortable.  A typical floor-mounted patio heater that is fueled by propane will be adequate for about a 10-15 foot diameter.

You can also go for a more intimate setting using an outdoor patio fireplace.  These are quite portable and available in a number of different styles and sizes.  They are very similar to a firepit, but are less permanent.  You can achieve a more quaint gathering around a natural wood fire than you will on a patio with a propane heater.  Although, you can also get a patio firepit table that can give you both a small crackling fire with the convenience of an outdoor table to sit at.  Again, the choices and accessories for your patio are almost endless.  If you can imagine it, it is probably available somewhere online.  And, if it is, it is probably talked about here at Patio Covers Place, where outdoor rooms and other patio living ideas are our passion.

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One thing is for sure, an outdoor room is slowly becoming the status symbol of choice for homeowners across the nation.  If you live in a climate that allows for almost year-round patio living, then you know how great of an escape

Here is a unique looking outdoor patio room with a tree in the center.

it can be.  Not only can you enjoy the patio in the summer, when the sun is beating down and you’ve got it made in the shade, but also in the evenings as well.  An outdoor patio room is a great way to entertain guests and have family dinners.

When the weather is right, there is no better place to dine than in the outdoors.  With outdoor dining furniture what it is, you can have as elegant or casual a setting as you like.  If your space is properly set up, you can spend hours with guests just relaxing and catching up on life.  When you start to get a chill, just fire up that patio heater or outdoor fireplace.  These make for different kinds of settings, one more ‘proper’ and the other one is a bit more quaint and intimate.  You just can’t replace that feeling and sound of a real crackling wood fire.  However, it is true that in some city ordinances, there are times of the year called ‘no burn’ days.  These days are when outdoor fires are not permitted due to high ozone pollution alerts.

An outdoor room is something that can be enclosed like traditional sunrooms or left open to the elements.  With the types of accessories that are available now, an outdoor screen room can be just as plush, convenient and comfortable as any indoor space.  There were times when things were a bit more sparse for your outdoor spaces and patio pleasures.  This is just not the case anymore.  If you’d like to expand your knowledge of what is available now, go to Patio Covers Place.  They have a passion for not only ideas for designing and covering your patio, but for all the things you need to make your outdoor patio room feel like a room in your home.

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This is a floor-mounted patio heater.

At one time, patio heaters were more available for commercial purposes and not suited well for the residential owner.  Whether it was cost, size or application, the patio heater was something you only saw at your favorite restaurant’s outdoor patio or at large outdoor events.  All this has changed with the introduction of the types of portable patio heaters we are discussing here.  There are floor-stand styles and other table-top versions.  The typical floor-standing patio heater is capable of heating an area approximately 10-15’ in diameter.  They use propane fuel, in most cases, to burn at about 40,000 BTU throwing a very comfortable amount of heat.  They also have settings so you can control the amount of heat it is giving off.  At full high heat, a typical propane patio heater will last about 8-10 hours.

Your patio may not be that large in size, so you may not require a heater that is capable of this heat output.  For smaller applications and spaces, there is the table-top patio heater that was mentioned above.  This style is exactly as it sounds, it sits atop a table or shelf that provides more local heat to a smaller group of people.  This can give you a nicer and more cozy feel to your patio gathering.  Who knows, maybe you are just spending some time out there with your significant other and don’t need to be heating a large space.  There are no rules against both of these types of patio heaters on your patio at once.  In this way, they could act much like a patio shade and a patio umbrella do.  One provides large shade cover, one is a bit more ‘spot’ specific.  You could have the floor-stand one blasting out its heat for your whole space and find that there are little nooks and pockets on your patio that your table top heater could hit more effectively, all while saving you more in terms of fuel costs and wasted heat.

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