Keeping sunny summer days in mind, a covered patio is a must for sun protection. It also creates additional living space.
Not all homes have ample outdoor entertaining space. In many cases, we utilize the entire front yard. When you have outdoor space, it’s always a good idea to have a covered area. It is basically an extension of the home where you can do entertaining in daytime or evening.
Here are four different options of open living spaces with access to the exterior patios and decks.
HOME 1
This house is located in Shady Canyon just above a beautiful canyon with rolling hills in the distance. The scenery resembles Southern Italy. Since it’s inland and not near the beach, it tends to get hot. We created a custom iron patio cover with awnings on it so that they would always have the ability to cover the patio or uncover it depending if it’s daytime or evening. They can use it during the day for lunch. For evening dining, it could be open to see the stars. The cover created the versatility. There are party lights for evening dining.
HOME 2
This is a vintage cottage with a second story balcony and a view of the white waters near the Montage Hotel. There wasn’t much room in the back of the house, so the front of the home was utilized because the view is better. There is also a pathway to a second entrance to the side of the house. Anybody that is using the downstairs room can utilize the patio as well. There is a little covered patio area for having coffee and breakfast. The upstairs patio is uncovered and very breezy. There is a patio for the two levels with an umbrella on each.
HOME 3
This has a covered entry and covered patio, which spans the entire front of the living area with French doors. The back of the home is located on the alley, so the entire front yard was utilized. There is a barbecue area to the left. The house faces the sun setting. Having a covered patio helps block the sun exposure in the living room. It also doubles the size of the living space. By opening the French doors, the patio becomes part of the living area.
HOME 4
The house was built by my client’s father back in the 50s who was major tract homebuilder. It was slowly remodeled inside. Then when it came time for the exterior remodel, they wanted a new fresh look but with still some cottage appeal. We started with the most cottage look of all on the top floor using classic board and batten mixed with some smooth stucco around the upper deck walls. The middle level is traditional horizontal siding. The lower level is a modern split stone giving warmth and a strong finish to the facade of the house. It was a treat to take this home up a notch and I loved mixing all the materials on this one. The second level deck is protected from the sun by the cantilever of the third floor deck. This gives the homeowners an option to sit in shade on second level as opposed to full sun on upper level.
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