Create An Affordable, Comfortable Outdoor Living Area With Charm

I’m sure you’ve heard the expression “bringing the outdoors in” which I agree with, but I’m also firm believer of bringing the indoors out. Yep, when I think of outdoor living for my family and friends I like to think of creating the same type of optional cozy living spaces that you’d find inside. Well, not the same exactly.……let me explain.

In my backyard, you’ll find what I would consider the outdoor breakfast nook, the outdoor kitchen, outdoor living room/den, my “girlie room”, and my game room of sorts. Multiple options to sit and hang out depending on the weather, time of year and mood preference. We love having various places to sit for coffee or a glass of wine, areas just to relax or read…..whatever the case may be. And, the sun dictates where we land, too. It’s nice having options. Below you’ll see the various options I have in my back yard. (This list doesn’t include my screened in porch which is what I consider my outdoor dining room/sitting area even though it’s technically enclosed. But, I’ll show you that, too at the end, because I still basically consider it part of our outdoor living.)

Outdoor Breakfast Nook/Kitchen Design

The area I call our breakfast nook is a flagstone patio we have just off the screened in porch. We call this area Doogimi’s Courtyard. I’m Mimi, my hubby is Doogie and our kids call us Doogimi. Thus the name. This is where our kitchen area is and a bar with bar stools as well. Our furniture is a collection of pieces we’ve accumulated over the years. These bar stools at the bar and the ones at the bar height table are from Mexico and they are heavy, heavy, heavy. I purchased them at a resale shop that frequently ordered new pieces from Mexico. I’ve had them for years and years. They’ll no doubt last a lifetime. Both the dining table and the bar height table I purchased from At Home and the black and white chairs I found at Kroger. Yes, Kroger, believe it or not. My eyes are always open for a bargain – wherever it may be. Everything I’ve purchased out here has been a bargain.

The reason I have two tables out here is because as my family has grown more seating is needed. I used to have the bar height table over near the pool, but decided to move it over here so that when my kids and grandkids are here and want to sit in the courtyard we have enough seating for most of us to enjoy hanging out. I had a sort of outdoor French Cafe vibe in mind when I created this space. And, I like the way having two tables with umbrellas lends itself to that look.

The larger umbrellas were purchased at At Home last summer when they put them on clearance. I took advantage of the sale and purchased a couple of extras so I would have replacements. The smaller umbrella over the bar height table I purchased on Amazon. I needed a smaller size here so it didn’t hit the screen on the screened in porch and inadvertently poke a hole in it. At Home didn’t offer this size, but fortunately I found one that works from Amazon at a very good price.

A typical spring, summer or fall weekend you’ll find me out here sitting at the flagstone bar sipping on a glass of wine while my hubby grills. Our favorite kind of evening.

Outdoor Living Room/Den Design

When we want to watch sports or a movie outdoors or just sit and visit with family and friends in a different setting we generally sit in our outdoor living room/den. This is another fave place for guests to hang out. We have seating comfortable enough for 10 people and two extra chairs we can pull out if needed. This makes for a nice conversation area with a large group. Otherwise my hubby and I sit in our swinging egg chairs when it’s just the two of us and chit chat or watch TV.

I have two sets of identical furniture out here. We purchased this set from Sears years and years ago. We no longer have a Sears store here, but the furniture is still in perfect condition. I have had to replace the cushions, but otherwise it’s like new. I find the cushions the most frustrating part of outdoor living. Aside from the natural elements, squirrels have wreaked havoc, too. Nothing more irritating than walking outside to see a squirrel gnawing through the back of your cushion and yanking the stuffing out. Grrrrrrr! Most of the time you can’t just replace one cushion to match, because at that point the same style isn’t usually available. Which means you have to replace every cushion…..which means you end up spending a LOT of money. These cushions out here are a combination of some I purchased from At Home and some I purchased at HomeGoods. A mix of solids and pattern.

I placed the two coffee tables that came with the set end to end to create a longer table and I hid where it meets with a small floor rug I’m using as a table runner. This gives it the appearance of one long table. Normally I wouldn’t place two love seats side by side the way I’ve done here, but given the size and shape of the area it is what worked best after adding the two hanging egg chairs. These egg chairs, by the way, I purchased on sale from Pier 1 Imports a few years ago so they are no longer available. However, you can find similar styles at numerous other places.

My brother and sister-in-law gave us these beautiful chimes that create the most wonderful, poetic sound when a breeze blows through. It’s such a peaceful addition to the whole setting and I love sitting out here and just listening to them.

At night we turn on the lights and it creates an entirely different ambiance. A different sort of warm, cozy vibe. Just like snuggling up in the living room or den in the house in the evening verses during the day. We enjoy both immensely.

Outdoor Girlie Room

Do you have a girlie room in the house? I do. Or at least I did till I gave the space to my husband as his home office. Technically it still looks like a girlie room, but I no longer call it that since his desk is in there. I’ll be manning it up at some point, but that’s for another day. The point is…..I had/have a girlie room indoors so why not have one outdoors as well? Through the arch here you’ll find a quant little seating grouping that used to be in my grandparents yard. I love that aspect of it and love the way it lends it’s charm to this area I call Mimi’s Secret Garden. I won’t show you the entire thing, because next month we (the Designing Women) will be doing a blog on our gardens so I’ll wait till then to show you the whole thing.

But here you can see my little girlie sitting area where I can sit here alone with coffee, iced tea, wine or just my thoughts and enjoy my garden area here. It has a decidedly much more feminine vibe to it than my other outdoor spaces. A space of my own. Literally nobody else ever comes in here other than just to peek at my garden Except the occasional moment with one of my granddaughters I’m the only one who sits out here.

Outdoor Family Room/Game Room

This area out by the pool is generally only used during the spring and summer. In the fall we gravitate more toward the courtyard and/or the outdoor living area with the fireplace. But, during the summertime this area is more lived in. I’ve just recently rearranged it to allow for more space when the entire family is over. I love the black and white motif here with the cushion and rug combined with the floral cushions. I’ve found combining colors and patterns help simply because if one gets destroyed then that’s the pattern that gets replaced. I don’t have to replace every cushion. I can keep all the stripes and replace the floral or I can keep the floral and replace the stripes. (It helps the old pocketbook if you know what I mean.) I just recently placed the double chaise lounge in with the entire grouping just to create more seating and allow us to spread the furniture out and create more space for people to mill around. Again, this furniture was purchased years and years ago. It’s all in perfect condition except for the cushions. Yes, they’re a pain to have to replace, but that’s just the nature of the beast. It goes with the territory and I’m willing to do it in order to create an inviting space that appeals to and accommodates the whole family.

The furniture here was more expensive that I would normally spend, but like I said I’ve had it for years and it’s in great condition. The umbrellas and stripe cushions are from At Home, the floral cushions are Better Homes and Garden cushions from Walmart and the black and white striped pots are some old pots I painted to match. The one on the coffee table was a gray plastic, the one by the chaise was originally a shiny brass and the one on the end table was terracotta. What a difference a little paint can make…right?

Screened In Porch Design Ideas

I won’t focus too much on my screened in porch, because I’ve decided to focus on the actual unenclosed outdoor areas for this blog series. But I do consider this a sort of outdoor space with the screens allowing the outside in and giving it the feel of the outdoors. This room is one of the most used spaces in our home. It’s the family’s favorite place to have dinner and hang out. The outdoor ambiance sans bugs. So if Doogimi’s courtyard is considered the breakfast nook, then this area is considered the formal dining room.

We’ve enjoyed many a family dinner out here even in December when the weather allows. Birthday parties for my December kids were very common out here and we’ve even enjoyed Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas dining here. I think any time possible people naturally prefer to be outdoors rather than indoors. At least that holds true with my family. With the different seasons the decorative details out here change to accommodate whether its Easter, the 4th of July, Halloween, Thanksgiving or Christmas. Spring gets is own debut each year as well. I’ve had a lot of fun decorating for the seasons out here.

Creating Charm With Details

Just like the interior of the home, the exterior is more appealing with a little extra attention to the details and creating cozy charm. Don’t you always love a peek at your neighbors or friend’s beautiful backyards? And, it’s especially nice when there’s a cozy place to land. Cushions, pillows, flowers, pretty pots and accessories all lend to the charm of an outdoor space. And, all can be collected over a period of time from thrift stores, yard sales, Facebook Marketplace, end of season sales at big box stores, etc. It’s not necessary to spend tons of money. Just keep your eyes open for that next best deal and don’t hesitate to give something old new life with paint Not only does it create a charming outdoor oasis, it also creates a view from inside that extends the home visually and makes it feel bigger.

Check Out My Fellow Designing Women Below

Be sure to click into the following blogs to glean some new info and design inspiration from my talented friends and their gorgeous outdoor spaces, Each have their own unique style and their own unique advice for creating affordable, comfortable, charming outdoor spaces.

Crystal with Sweet Valley Acres – An artist and dreamer since birth, Crystal loves creating beautiful spaces in her home and garden for her family and friends to enjoy. She also loves pushing her builder husband, Bentley to his very limits when it comes to building and renovating. After 33 years of marriage and taking on 11 homes that were the worst house on the block and turning them into show stoppers along with three new builds later, Crystal has a wealth of knowledge and experience. In addition, she has won many awards for garden design and used to own a home and garden decor store for many years.

Lynn with Living Large in a Small House – Lynn was the owner of a full-service interior design studio for over 10 years. Specializing in high-end residential new build and renovation interior design, working as a team member with architects and contractors. Since 2000 I have consulted exclusively for friends and family.

Kristy with At Home With Kristy – Homebody at heart and very passionate about creating a warm & welcoming home environment for family and friends BS Interior Design Interior Designer with 35 years experience specializing in Residential Interior Design, perfectionist, & big picture thinker, but also loves getting lost in the weeds perfecting every detail Love sharing my knowledge and expertise to inspire, encourage and empower others

Enjoy!

Happy Decorating and Happy Life by Design!