Blending Your Indoor and Outdoor Spaces
We don’t know about you, but once we finally push through the doldrums of winter and the spring sun begins to shine, we want to spend as much time outside as possible! As homeowners spend more time in their outdoor living spaces like their deck, patio, or pool area, a popular trend has emerged of blending spaces between these areas, creating a seamless transition from the inside of the house to the outdoors.
Ok, so maybe telling the difference between indoors and outdoors isn’t that hard! But, utilizing clever design choices in your home can create an easy and irresistible flow through your home and between your indoor and outdoor spaces. This creates a sense of unity with all of the areas of one’s home and helps establish a feeling of freshness, life, and nature in all areas of the house, indoor and out.
Blending your indoor and outdoor spaces can give your home a great sense of openness and allows you to take advantage of more natural lighting and pleasantly calming color choices. It can also envelope you in the sensation of never leaving the outdoors during the fabulous spring and summer months and even into the fall!
Here’s how to make your indoors and outdoors one!
Seamless flooring transitions
Creating a smooth transition from inside to out starts on your floors. Using the same (or similar) kind of flooring in indoor and outdoor areas minimizes the aesthetic feeling of change. And, if you are walking on your bare feet, you’ll maintain the physical feeling as well.
How do you do that? Simple. If you have a wood deck, use hardwood or laminate plank indoors leading up to the door. Stone or tile outside? Use tile indoors that mimics the style used outdoors. Laminate or resilient flooring in particular is a great choice for leading up to outdoor spaces because its durability will be able to withstand direct sunlight and humidity.
Large windows and glass doors
Installing large windows and glass patio doors create huge, scenic outdoor vistas that can be enjoyed indoors. Replacing walls with windows removes once-present barriers and helps unify in and out with higher levels of visibility.
Lots of large windows also help give your home plentiful natural lighting. Lighting is crucial for defining a more natural space, so unifying the style of lighting between your spaces helps solidify their union.
High ceilings
If you are in the process of designing your space, high ceilings are one of the most effective ways of replicating the open air and space of the great outdoors inside your home. Tall ceilings, of course, mimic the roofless skies outside and helps give a home a greater sense of size and scope.
Unify furnishings
When choosing furnishings and decorations for your patio or other outdoor spaces, consider choices that mirror those on the inside. Blending the décor of indoor and outdoor spaces is a subtle choice, but ultimately one that is effective in enhancing a unified theme.
Pick similar choices of color for outdoor sofas, chairs, and cushions that are used indoors. Don’t overlook materials either! If you have wicker or wood furniture indoors use the same outdoors. The same goes for stainless steel and iron décor.
Sheltered patio area
Blending indoor and outdoor spaces is all about increasing the flow between the two areas. Putting a roof over or sheltering part of your outdoor space creates a nice buffer between indoors and out so you can experience the best of both spaces.
Providing a sheltered space is also useful for times when the weather isn’t cooperating with your outdoor ambitions, but you still want to enjoy the outdoors. Be sure to stock up the area with plenty of places to sit!
Need help creating a defining indoor and outdoor flow? Call Tish Flooring! We can help you find flooring styles for your indoor and outdoor spaces and bring samples straight to you. Call (317) 879-TISH (8474) or schedule an appointment online.
