Open-air living rooms, an outdoor home

Do you have an outdoor space that you want to enjoy to the fullest, making it an area of al fresco relaxation? Whether it’s a beach house, a country villa, or a town house with a garden and a swimming pool, a large terrace or a small balcony, a “garden lounge” is the perfect solution to make your outdoor space a meeting point with friends, family, guests or to enjoy alone, in peace. So we have some tips for setting it up so that you can fully enjoy all the benefits. Outdoor spaces are in fact often widely underestimated whereas, in some ways, they can create a kind of second home: an open-air house, no matter whether large or small , but in which functionality, comfort and aesthetic appeal are nowadays essential elements. An open-air living room can become a sociable location and added value to your home. A theatre of unique settings and moments to enjoy together with those you love, it is a small domestic oasis where you can take refuge when you want to get away from the daily chaos and focus on what really matters.

How to design your outdoor living room

In the summer, you’d probably enjoy being in an outdoor living room than on your sofa. Don’t you think? But in order to do that, you have to design it well! First of all, you need to evaluate the space you have available and identify the most suitable area, which will preferably be shady and not too exposed to draughts. If you already have “usable” features in your garden or terrace, such as a veranda, a pergola or a large tree, these could be ideal ways to create your relaxation area. If, on the other hand, you do not have any pre-existing features, you can opt for a gazebo or a large sun umbrella. Also, evaluate the distance of the garden lounge from your home, because, if you decide to place it away from the house, you will also have to design a walkway to reach it. Whatever you decide, what you can’t overlook is an area where you can cook. In fact we tend to feel really at home where there is food and where we can get together to share it. The perfect way to equip this outdoor space is with Palazzetti’s outdoor kitchens and barbecues.

Light, materials and layout

Outdoor lounges are a feature unto themselves and therefore furnished with items such as sofas, armchairs, tables or poufs, which can either create a sense of elegance or convey a more informal mood, depending on the style chosen. The most popular materials are definitely those that are resistant to outdoor living and, even if some natural fibers look amazing and would fit in well with your living room en plain air, our advice is to opt for plastic, stone and metal. But if you can’t resist the natural look, there are plenty of plastics that perfectly mimic, for example, a rattan texture. Choose cushions with removable and washable covers, or even better, made of waterproof materials! They will need to withstand damp and bad weather without developing mold. And even more important: don’t forget your outdoor lighting, which is nowadays considered to be an integral part of outdoor furnishing and decoration, able to influence the feel of the outdoor setting as well as enhance existing spaces.