Your patio can become an extension of your indoor space if you use well-planned hardscaping techniques like these. You can even add a patio to make your home even more inviting and beautiful. Here are a few different ideas for different types of yards.
If You Have a Tiny Back Yard
Traditionally, stone pathways served to help people navigate the palatial gardens in Europe’s finest estates. In a small yard, visitors won’t need help finding their way around but you can still use hardscaping to influence how they respond to the environment. A flagstone base can transform a drab, high-maintenance patch of grass into a delightful backyard extension of your home. It also carries the eye toward the focal point of your outdoor space. Whether it’s a retaining wall, a fire pit, or a water feature, a pathway that leads up to it can make a tiny back yard look more like an enchanting garden and less like a suburban yard.
If Your Front Yard is Making Your House Look Shabby
Hardscaping projects don’t have to be expensive or time-consuming. You can spend under a thousand dollars and still end up completely transforming the look of your front or back yard.
One upgrade that’s very popular with suburban homeowners is replacing the lawn with plants that require less water and less care. If your goal is to spend only fifteen minutes per week on your front yard, that’s entirely possible to achieve with a well-planned hardscape project.
Turning your front yard into an actual patio is a neighborly, beautiful way to make your house look better and leave you with more time for socializing! Consider a small, low retaining wall that’s square-shaped. Inside, you install drought-resistant plants and sculptural rock formations, and maybe an actual outdoor sculpture or two. Next, create an area for sitting and entertaining (yes, in your front yard!). Dig out the lawn, cover with flagstone over a sand base and fill in the gaps with crushed limestone to keep out the weeds. Once you’ve got your chairs and/or table placed, perhaps with a shade umbrella, all you need is some lemonade and a friendly smile that invites neighbors by to sip for a spell!
One more reason a project like this makes so much sense is that you also get a complete transformation of the front-facing parts of your property. In other words, curbside appeal gets a big boost! That can mean a lot if you plan on selling someday.
If You Have a Wide Open Space and Have No Idea What to Do
Hardscaping can turn a vast expanse of an unimaginative back yard into the resort-style patio of your dreams. The trick, in fact, is to visit your dream spot — whether it’s the fond memory of where you stayed on your honeymoon or an inspiring photo you saw on Pinterest — and take cues from that design.
For example, if you loved the way a Caribbean resort made you feel on vacation, you can borrow some ideas from resort-style hardscaping ideas. Take advantage of your large yard and create a few separate “destinations” such as a pool, a pavilion, and a sitting area. Tie them all together with a unifying stone walkway. Add height and interest with some retaining walls. Create multiple focal points like a fire pit, a pavilion, and a water feature like a swimming pool or a waterfall. The result is more than just one destination for friends and family to enjoy.
