Summertime means spending more time outside, in the outdoor spaces of our homes that are pretty much ignored during the winter months. But whether that outdoor space feels inviting, comfortable and practical will depend on how well you’ve done your planning. Honoring  just a few principles can help you create a pleasant outdoor space that you can enjoy all summer long.

Here are a few tips:

1) Create spaces for intimate chats AND large gatherings. Your space should be able to handle multiple situations, whether it’s an afternoon iced tea with a friend, a morning out sunbathing alone, or a large dinner or cocktail party. Arrange furniture into groups that can handle all situations, or invest in stackable and double-duty furniture  pieces that can be pulled out easily to accomodate larger groups.

2) Create both shady and sunny spots. There are times you want to lie in the sun and other times that you want to take refuge from it. A good outdoor space will provide places to do both. A space isn’t working well if it feels barren and forbidding in the heat of summer for lack of shade or too cold to enjoy on cooler summer days because the sun can’t get through.

3) When it comes to plants, investigate those that shed least. If you don’t want to engage in major clean-up of your outdoor space on practically a daily basis, you’ll want to avoid plants that shed blooms or leaves continuously. For example, while pine trees can provide wonderful shade, continuously falling pine needles can also make for constant sweeping and raking. Talk to your local garden center about plantings best suited to be planted near an outdoor patio.

4) Don’t forget the lighting. People sometimes forget that lighting outdoors is just as important for setting ambiance as lighting indoors. Since patios often get use in the hours after sundown, plan a multiple source lighting scheme that will provide a feeling of intimacy and romance, but also allow you to see what you’re doing. Popular options include lights on a string, as well as candles. A patio light on a dimmer switch will also allow you to create a mood.

5) Treat plants as sculpture. The major difference between indoor and outdoor spaces is greenery. So make full use of that difference by investing in lots of plants in bold sculptural shapes. Plants will quickly set the tone of your outdoor space, providing color, shape, texture, and even a beautiful smell. (Think jasmine). Plants can be used to camouflage a less than ideal location (as a cover up against a bad view), can provide privacy when your neighbors are a bit too close, and even set a tone of formality or informality.

Images: MarthaStewart.com

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Design Dilemma: Five Secrets to a Great Outdoor Space

Here are a few ideas:

The Frank Gehry Outdoor Collection is fashioned of plastic in Gehry’s characteristic sculptural style. It includes a chaise, bench and small twisted cube that can be used as a stool, seat or sidetable. It’s available as a collection (4 pieces) from HiveModern for $2,285.

DWR’s Cabrio Chair adds a burst of modern color to any outdoor setting, The weather-resistant chair gets special kudos as it is made of recycled plastic milk jugs. Designed by Greg Benson and Jefy Taly for Loll, the chair is currently on sale at DWR for $335.75.  It comes in an array of colors.

Similarly, DWR’s Go Collection, which features the loveseat rocker above, adds a burst of cool to patios and verandas everywhere. The set was also designed by Benson and Taly, and includes a rocker, chair, and double loveseat rocker. The set is also made of reclaimed and recycled plastic milk jugs. It’s currently on sale for $731.

Also available from DWR is the Ms. Rio ottoman, made entirely of  recycled flip flops. The ottoman not only looks fun and funky, but uses recycled soft rubber without any further manufacturing. It’s currently on sale for $297.50.

Finally, below, the grasshopper chair at Tectona, is the perfect outdoor chair for dining. Made by the Parisian furniture company, this chair was designed by Weiki Somers and costs 222 Euro. Although their store headquarters are based in Paris, they ship overseas.

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Design Dilemma: Stylish and/or Eco-Friendly Outdoor Furniture

And with that new look comes a new way of thinking about a swimming pool. Instead of fighting nature with chlorine and harsh turquoise concrete surroundings, as we did back in the 20th century… how about a a 21st century retrofit that makes a pool into a natural one.

These homeowners in Kent, in the South East of Britain, where annual average temperatures have risen almost 2 °C since 1961, (probably around when this pool was built!) are perhaps typical. Their original pool had fallen into disuse. It not only looked dated, but it was badly in need of a redesign. Rather than a mere renovation – they decided to have the UK company GartenArt make a complete change.

Plantings were added to shield the view of the house from the pool, making it into more of a sanctuary from everyday life. The hedge at the side was allowed to grow its lush natural self, rather than try to be the tight prim hedge that made the area so sterile to begin with.

The “Before” view from the house side makes you wonder if anyone had ever been inclined to swim here, even when it was new – this looks so gritty and unappealing.

Now the total pool area is larger. Where the old pool had been is now the deep part for swimming. A shallow planting area has been added around the edge.

I doubt that the family dog loved to swim in the old pool. But I think he is definitely considering a dip in the new one. With natural pools, plants clean the pool. By keeping the levels of key nutrients low and in balance, algae is not able to grow and the result is clear, clean and healthy swimming water. The fence in the back has been removed and plantings will fill in to the edge of the paving, connecting the pool to the land beyond.

Source: GartenArt Pools

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Before and After – Making a Natural Swimming Pool

Each of these FatBoy Waterwalls can safely store 650 gallons while protecting the stored water from mosquitoes and leaves getting in on top through the three inlets, and from algae inside, once its closed. They are constructed of a high density polyethylene, that is protected from degrading in sunlight, and (Australian government) inspected and approved for holding potable water. They are over six feet high and two and a half feet deep.

When full these each weigh nearly three tons, so you’ll want to build a solid foundation. For the same reason, the construction is extremely sturdy so it is capable of supporting such a load. Each has several outlets at different heights so you can hook it up as you like, low at ground level if you want to hook it up for under-surface irrigation or at grabbing level for daily watering by hand.

The Fatboy Waterwall is a great solution for rain harvesting without giving up valuable space.

But what if space is no object? You could do worse than really stock up on those precious drops from among these humongous other options from Loomis Tanks in California that stocks the Fatboy Waterwall:

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Fatboy Waterwall Stores Rain in Your Fence

Passive solar thermal is the best way to heat your pool without carbon emissions: let the sunshine do it. This company builds on that with artistic recreations of lavaflows to supply the thermal mass.

The technique employed by PacificGunite builds on the ideas used in radiant flooring. In a radiant floor, a solar collector on the roof (or a basement water heater)  sends hot water to rubber tubes embedded in a concrete or mortar (and stone) floor which then radiates heating up through the thermal mass of the concrete to warm a house.

In this case, the opposite occurs. There is a circulating system of water going through these rubber tubes that are set into the deck by the pool.

As the pool pump is running to clean your pool, some of the pool water is diverted through the rubber tubes. Once the thermal mass of the Lavacrete has been poured surrounding those rubber tubes, that sunshine warmth soaks into the Lavacrete and transfers to the water in rubber tubes. The warmed water goes into the pool while the next lot of cool pool water is fed into the rubber tube system to be warmed. The hot sidewalk is cooled as the pool water becomes warmer. Automatic controllers regulate how warm the water will get.

And in case you just can’t get enough of lavaflows outside; you can also make your living room into a lava lounge. PacificGunite certainly has made some great molds of a force of nature.

Source: PacificGunite

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Solar Thermal Warms Hot Lava Pool in Hawaii

So these chunky, indestructible tempered glass pebbles make for an environmentally clean and friendly alternative, instead of burning hard-to-replace wood or dirty coal or charcoal. You can wash the glass, it is tumbled and worn round.

They are made of a highly heat-resistant glass that can safely be used instead of wood (or worse -  fake logs) in vented gas fireplaces or open air fire pits.

They are an eco-friendly solution to cleaner air quality and reduced air pollution because they do not emit ash, soot or carbon toxins to the air. This makes for healthier indoor air quality and improves human health. No soot or ash or carbon toxins are released as with burning wood.

There are many ways you can design fire places with them; used in any kind of regular fireplace or gas fireplace or open air fire pit. They are not ugly like some cheap plastic fake-fire log. The tumbled glass comes in an assortment of colors.

Not only are these climate friendly as they reduce outdoor air pollution, but because these are are tempered glass; these will last at least a lifetime.  And longer. There’s definitely something sustainable about that.

Source: FireCrystals®

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Glass Lasts Forever – Wood or Coal Burns Up

An amazing retreat on the secluded beach of Anse Louis deep in the heart of the Seychelles, Maia is a real sanctuary that stretches along a pristine beachfront washed by the Indian Ocean. With 30 thatched villas, each with its own infinity pool and amazing ocean views, the lush resort is only surrounded by Jungle Book-style palm trees that play the live soundtrack of the rainforest. With transparent turquoise waters and soft, white sandy beaches, Maia is more than an escape and much more than a hotel. It’s the place to unwind and experiment relaxation, the luxurious way, so better not miss it if you can afford it … [via Adelto]

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Maia, the Luxurious Resort Deep in the Heart of the Seychelles

Felipe Assadi and Francisca Pulido of Assadi & Pulido Architects, have created a kids paradise – the perfect setting from which to enjoy the view and the outdoors.

The Deck House is a simultaneously rustic and laid back yet modern holiday home surrounded by deck.

The deck encircles the entire sace, floating the house on it, tipping the  occupants out into a swimming pool built into the lower portion, an inclined area that matches the natural lay of the land, and extending up to the roof.

The result is an almost entirely wood-clad kid-friendly home, where the wood is only interrupted by glass walls that open to welcome the bathers back for dinner. Assadi & Pulido Architects

Via Arch Daily
Photo credits: Cristobal Palma

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Kid-Friendly Holiday House for Swimmers

We know cars are responsible for carbon emissions. We are used to sneering at hoggy cars that wastefully emit so many tons of carbon per year.

Measuring carbon footprints in these terms is by now such a cliche that the measure:  carsofftheroad will become a metric kids learn in school, just like feet and pounds are now.

Phrases like I took 15 carsofftheroad last week installing 3 kw of new solar will be as readily understood as I lost 15 pounds last week running the marathon.

But, doing energy efficiency analysis for apartment complexes – I have uncovered a surprisingly huge source of wasted energy that has thus far escaped notice and ridicule:

One of the hoggiest sources of absolutely stupidly wasted energy is the apartment pool. More than half the gas bill goes to take the chill off a huge, usually empty pool.

Municipal pools are typically covered at night to keep the heat in. Home hot tubs are the same. But apartment complexes simply leave the whole thing exposed to the chilly night air. Even when the cost of keeping pools and hot tubs warm go to well over half the energy cost of the entire complex, the marketing people simply won’t allow the pool to be covered at night.

So here it is for your consideration. It’s the new pig on the block. We have the carsoffthe road. We have the lightbulbsreplaced. Next we should look at apartment pools and see them as a similar measure of pigginess. Worse in some ways, as the solution is simple.

Apartment pools should be covered at night. It’s the climate-friendly thing to do.

More HomeDesignFind from Susan Kraemer: Journalists on Twitter

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Consider A New Measure of Carbon Footprint

Remember the lazy summer afternoons in the backyard when you were lying on a hammock under the shade of the trees you hung it on? The WAVE Hammock by Erik Nyberg and Gustav Strom recreates that blissful feeling with a single difference – you no longer need trees for your hammock. The secret of its elegant design is in the single stand that holds the whole hammock. Made by electro-polished stainless steel, the stand goes from the ground to lightly form an oval shaped floating haven in which you can enjoy the nice weather. You can as well enjoy the not so nice weather as WAVE has a wide awning to protect you from rain or too intensive sun. Lie down, relax, feel the breeze… You can almost feel it, can’t you? – available at Royal Botania

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WAVE hammock – on the wave of bliss