If you’re a down to earth type of person and prefer to call your back garden area a ‘backyard’ then you’ll be pleased to know that you’re hitting all the right spots in interior design terms. Trendy backyards typically refers to American homes, however, like many other interior design related terms it’s found its way into our vocabulary!
Another anomaly is that people use their backyards for all different things – a backyard can be a garden, a decked area or a place to keep chickens!! To simplify things we’re going to use the term ‘backyard’ as a place where you can take your living room interior design ideas and place them into your back garden or yard.
Contemporary outdoor living is all about making your backyard a chic and stylish place which is an extension of the interior of your home. It may seem a little far fetched to make your backyard into a home cinema, however, if you want to be contemporary you’ll need to think about more than a table and chairs in your backyard!
Large cushions, bean-bags, seat pads or futon styled sofas and chairs will provide chic style as well as comfort. Add extra cushions for maximum comfort along with various textures, colours and patterns to enrich the style.
Look at your lighting, this doesn’t have to be excessive as you’ll be watching the over-sized screen; candles are always a good idea for outdoor living or you could use a table lamp to highlight a specific area. String outdoor lighting across the top of the screen and in trees to create a stunning, yet subtle lighting effect. Look for natural lampshades, for example made from wicker to keep the outdoor theme.
You may also like to add cheap rugs to complete the look; buy rugs direct from online retailers as they’ll have plenty of choices in terms of style, colour and patterns as well as rugs which are more suitable for outdoor use, such as sisal or rugs with a rubber backing.
Choose earthy colours, rich terracotta, oranges and browns are ideal for your cushions, while neutral creams and ivories are perfect for your main seating. We may not get endless warm summer nights, but when we do why not have everything to hand and make full use of your backyard? During the daytime all you’ll have to do is take the large screen away and you’ll have a stunning area to relax and unwind.
