Tag Archives: outdoor living

outdoor living spaces

Patio Makeover Ideas for Summer Entertaining

outdoor living spaces

Image via Houzz

More people are redesigning their patios to take advantage of the extended living space. A well-designed patio is the perfect place for hosting outdoor parties whenever weather permits. Here are a few exterior remodeling ideas to help you get started.

Update Your Furniture

Your outdoor furniture choices make a big difference in the comfort of your family and guests. Set flimsy plastic lawn furniture aside, and replace it with furniture that is more comfortable. Wicker chairs and sofas with cushions are a good choice. Create a sitting area with these options and complete it with a weather-resistant coffee table. Think in terms of bringing indoor comfort to your patio.

Enhance Your Outdoor Cooking Area

Enhance your grill or outdoor fire pit by adding a prep table nearby. This saves trips back and forth to the kitchen. You might also consider following the outdoor kitchen trend by adding a mini refrigerator and weatherproof cabinetry to hold cooking utensils and other items.

Improve Outdoor Lighting

When the sun sets in the Kansas City sky, the party is just getting started. Keep guests safe by adding lighting to outdoor pathways and stairs. Add a few ultra-modern colored LED lights for a chic effect.

Outdoor Environments can help turnover your patio into the perfect place for entertaining this summer.

outdoor lighting

Light Your Outdoors with Universal Design in Mind

outdoor lighting

Image via Pinterest

Creative outdoor lighting is one of the leading outdoor remodeling trends.  Universal design in lighting leads the way to your front door safely and makes your patio and outdoor eating area more pleasant at night.

Universal design refers to safe and easy accessibility to residential and commercial buildings for people of all physical abilities, including those with disabilities, children, and seniors. Good outdoor lighting helps people of all ages and abilities see clearly where they are walking and stay safe on a path at night.

Well designed outdoor lighting creates zones to help people determine borders at the edge of paths and stairs.  Swimming pools and other landscaped water elements should also be illuminated at night for safety.

Various styles of outdoor lighting can illuminate pathways, entries and parking areas while adding elegance to your home. A pathway lined with ground-level LED lights can show the way to your front entry, backyard deck or  your garden. Illuminate your raised deck area with colorful lights under the railing.

Lights mounted next to or under steps will make them easier to ascend and descend at night. Lights can also be added to the stairway bannister by your front or back door.

Outdoor Environments will work with you to create safe and elegant lighting for the exterior of your Kansas City home.

outdoor spaces design

May Maintenance for Your Outdoors

outdoor spaces design

Image via Houzz

As spring weather arrives in Kansas City, our thoughts head to spending time outdoors.  May is the perfect time to spruce up your outdoor areas and have them ready for the warmer weather of summer.

Here are some maintenance tips for your outdoor living rooms and kitchens:

  • Stain Away – Protect the wood in your outdoor areas by washing them down thoroughly then re-staining them.
  • Follow the Paths – Take a look at your garden paths and see what needs fixing.  Re-do edges to give them a clean look, fill in any gravel and fix or replace broken areas in your paths.
  • Clean Out – Get into the garden shed and garage and get rid of any expired products and anything you don’t need anymore.
  • Ready to Grill – Make sure your grill is clean and ready to go.  Give the cooking areas a good scrubbing.
  • Mending Fences – Check over your fences and make sure there is no splintering, cracking, or holes.

If your yard needs a general spruce-up but you can’t find the time, contact the outdoor experts at Outdoor Environments.  Our services include deck and outdoor living maintenance. We can have your outdoor living rooms and kitchens ready for you to enjoy all summer.

outdoor living tips

Summer Grilling Safety Tips for Your Deck

outdoor living tips

Image via Flickr

Memorial Day weekend is just around the corner and after that, summer will be in full bloom. It’s a great time to be alive and have some fun hanging out by the pool or on the backyard deck.

Indeed, outdoor decks and barbecues get the full workout at this time of year so be sure that yours are safe and secure. Here are some great tips from FEMA for keeping you, your family and your guests safe while getting the most out of your backyard deck:

  • Keep your Distance – Do not grill too close to the house and never in an enclosed area. 
  • Watch the Kids – No one can get in more trouble faster than the little ones so keep them away from the grill, the lighters and any other potential hotspots. 
  • Properly Dispose of Coals – At the end of the night, people sometimes forget. Better to let them sit overnight than risk the chance of a fire. 

For more information about keeping backyard decks in Kansas City safe or about installing or remodeling one, contact the professionals at Outdoor Environments Inc. Their staff understands all the intricacies involved in your outdoor spaces and can help create the perfect one for your home.

Bring Peace to Your Landscape with Water Features

outdoor living space design

Image via Houzz

When you are searching for exterior remodeling ideas, peace can be attained with water features added to your landscape. Water ideas are abundant, and these ideas can depend on both the size and shape of your landscape area. You may consider a small pond with turtles, frogs and fish. Plants lining your new pond will give you the sense of being in the middle of a nature reserve, even if you reside in a major city.

Some other great ideas are waterfalls of many types, using rocks or glass as a backdrop. You may want to have a beautiful fountain in your landscape. We have even dug and formed amazing creek beds running down the midst of your yard and falling into a small pond.

Whatever water feature that you may desire for your landscape, here at Outdoor Environments we can assist you in getting that peaceful landscape. Give us a call at 913-897-2706. We do landscapes that will make the neighbors jealous.

The Steps to Remodeling

Image via Outdoor Storage

 

Remodeling can be exciting, but just like all wonderful things, you have to do your homework and brace yourself for the process that leads to your oasis.

Here are a few steps you can take to get yourself and your mind ready for your deck remodeling project:

  • Finances. Assess your finances to make sure you are financially ready to make changes to your home without causing strain on your living or your savings.
  • Have an idea of what work you want done. By looking through magazines and websites, get an idea of what you want your finished deck or patio to look like, then refer back to your finances and create your budget.
  • Allow time for your remodel. Perfection can’t be rushed, and when you add the possibilities of unforeseen problems to the mix, patience is a necessary factor. Just now, at the end of it all, your Outdoor Environments customized deck will totally be worth it.
  • Enjoy. Take a moment to realize you’re actually doing it. You’re finally actualizing your dream of building your own private deck or patio that’s built to your liking and your family’s usage. You did it!

To get the process of building your Kansas City deck started, contact us today.

How to Build the Perfect Outdoor Fire

 

The temperature has started to drop but that doesn’t mean you have to move all your entertaining indoors. Many backyard patios now have a built-in fire pit or a portable chiminia making outdoor gatherings possible right up until that first snow fall. But nothing is more frustrating than a fire that just won’t light. Listed below are some helpful tips to get that fire roaring in no time!

 

Image Courtesy of : www.thisoldhouse.com

 

  • While it’s important to clean your pit out after every use, always leave about ½ inch of ash in the bottom. This old ash acts as insulation and helps capture the heat pushing it back to the top.
  • Small pieces of dry wood called kindling is the first step. Place the first layer of kindling all going in the same direction and then stack several additional layers in alternating directions.
  • For best results insert a fire starter into the center of the stack. You can purchase logs of compressed sawdust or make your own out of newspaper rolls.
  • Light the starter which will then start the kindling burning. Normally a fire with just kindling will last about 15-30 minutes.
  • For a longer lasting fire, after the kindling is totally engaged place larger logs on in the same pattern as the kindling. Continue to add larger pieces through-out the evening as needed.

 

Remember that safety is paramount. Don’t leave the fire unattended anytime during the evening and make sure it’s completely out before retiring for the night.

 

Photo: http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/how-to/intro/0,,1636191,00.html

Barrels Popular on Decks and Patios this Season

Many of the nation’s leading design magazines and websites are featuring wooden barrels this season as planters and other decorative objects. Using a vintage barrel is eco-friendly and adds character. Let’s have a look at inspirational images:

  •  Barrel water garden. Country Living magazine featured a “Whiskey-Barrel Water Garden,” which is sealed on the inside.

 

whiskey barrel water garden

Image via Country Living

  • Barrel tables. Affordable and fun, barrels can be used as either side tables or something large. The popular website My Sweet and Saucey even showed a banquet being given on a long whiskey barrel dining table.
whiskey barrel tables

Image via My Sweet and Saucy

  •  Barrel planters. A creative arrangement atop a barrel makes for an impressive statement, as the chic blog 100 Layer Cake demonstrates.
barrel planter

Image via 100 Layer Cake


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For the Kansas City deck or patio to enhance your home, contact Outdoor Environments, a certified contractor in Overland Park. Visit us online at www.outdoorenvironments.com or call 913-897-2706.

Deck and Patio Decorations for Fall

As the leaves drop and a chill enters the air, homeowners are giving their decks and patios an autumnal feel with decorations. Here are some that inspire:

  • Planter. Pumpkins and gourds transform a planter. Pottery Barn takes the concept to new heights with its Bicycle Planter.
Pottery Barn

Image via Pottery Barn

  • Wreath. For exterior doors, a wreath in earth tones and spice tones conveys the flavor of fall. The Pumpkin Patch Wreath by Williams-Sonoma is a fine example.
pumpkin wreath

Image via Williams-Sonoma


  • Natural. Bales of hay and other beautifully humble natural items make for a warm and friendly outdoor gathering, as this image from Country Living demonstrates.
hay

Image via Country Living


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For the Kansas City deck or patio to enhance your home, contact Outdoor Environments, a certified contractor in Overland Park. Visit us online at www.outdoorenvironments.com or call 913-897-2706.


 

How to Fix Peeling Paint on Your Kansas City Deck

An interesting article in The Kansas City Star had tips on fixing peeling deck

deck paint

paint, and we’ve boiled these tips and others down to five easy steps.

  • Step 1: Remove as much of the loose paint as possible with a wire brush.
  • Step 2: Use an orbital sander to remove the rest of the peeling paint.
  • Step 3: Sand again using a 150-220 grit sandpaper.
  • Step 4: Clean the deck, perhaps with a power-washer.
  • Step 5: Apply a wood primer and finally, paint.
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For Kansas City decks, contact Outdoor Environments, a certified contractor in Overland Park. Visit us online at www.outdoorenvironments.com or call 913-897-2706.
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Image via greenliving