Patios

The reasons to install a patio are endless. Put shortly, a patio allows you to extend your life to the outdoors. Not only does a patio make your home seem more substantial, but you can now do your day-to-day activities outdoors. You might consider installing a grill so that you can cook outdoors. Maybe you should invest in outdoor furniture to socialize with guests or to have a romantic evening outdoors. A beautiful patio with comfortable outdoor furniture can also be a great place to curl up with a book in the sunshine, to get away from the busyness of your life inside. If you’re worried about the cold, patios are a great place to install a hot tub or to install an enclosure with outdoor heating. Further, patios allow you to enjoy the outdoors, even if the weather is unfavorable.

In terms of whether you should get a patio or a deck, this is simply a question of elevation. A deck will be raised higher, but both function pretty much the same way and often require similar style choices. When making the decision, you will want to think about which point in your home you would like outdoor access from. If you have a multi-story house and would like to access the outdoors from an upper floor, a deck will be the best option for you. Patios provide access to your yard from the first story of your home. Patios are also convenient because minimal steps are usually required, and if you are bringing food or other things out to your yard, they give the easiest access.

Another popular go-to material for patios and decks is flagstone, though flagstone is a little harder to work with. Flagstone has been a timeless and beautiful classic option for patios and decks for decades. Flagstone is created through a natural process of accumulation of sand, minerals, clay, and other organic sediments. The natural process means that flagstone is a great choice if you want your patio or deck to look like part of the original landscape and as natural as possible.

Patios are also an excellent outlet for incorporating steps or paths into your landscape. Steps are great if your yard has multiple levels or heights and can help the people living in and visiting your home to maneuver your landscape. Steps can generally add depth and a bit of contrast to the look of your landscape. Paths to and from your patio are also a great option. Paved paths are not only a cute style feature for your landscape, but can help people get safely from one part of your landscape to the other. Paths can also make your landscape seem bigger than it is.

Patios are a surprisingly great place to incorporate a garden. Design your patio so that there are areas cut out for a garden to be built in. Having a garden within your patio provides a neat contrast for the space. It also allows you to add a little color and nature to the stone background. Additionally, having a garden within your patio protects the plants and prevents any erosion.