Indoor-outdoor living spaces are one of the hottest interiors trends in the UK. While this way of living is common across California and other warmer parts of the world, us Brit’s are adopting our own indoor-outdoor living style, so we can also enjoy these joyous spaces.
Indoor-outdoor living typically allows you to take advantage of warm and pleasant weather conditions by creating spaces that blur the boundaries between the indoor and outdoor.
Common spaces include living rooms which open out into the garden or open-air dining rooms with a balanced mix of foliage and light.
Whether you’re looking for inspiration for your home or you’re simply looking to add this trend to your dream home, here are 10 home designs to kickstart your interior inspiration for indoor-outdoor living.
1. Indoor-outdoor to convert tradition
If you’re looking to convert an old cottage but maintain some of its unique features, such as a fireplace, then you might want to create an outdoor space in between the new development.
A fireplace is a significant centrepiece of many living spaces, so flip tradition on its head by making it the centrepiece of your indoor-outdoor space. As an added benefit the fireplace will add warmth in the cooler months, creating an inviting transformational space between the old and the new.
Place rattan garden furniture in your outdoor space accompanied with lanterns, throws, and scatter cushions to create a cosy cottage living room atmosphere in the ultimate contemporary space.
2. Indoor-outdoor to enclose a social space
Create a little Mediterranean heaven in your south-facing garden with a framed space that welcomes gatherings and parties.
The boundary between the garden and your living space disappears as you combine traditional living room furniture, like coffee tables, with rattan sofa designs that create a joyous indoor-outdoor space to enjoy the best of the British Summer.
3. Indoor-outdoor to trick your perceptions
Beams placed above a shower create the perception of increased space while also drawing the eye to a little patch of tropical heaven. The natural materials and foliage detract from the space you are in and takes you to a paradise away from home as you take your morning shower.
The combination of right angles, mirrors, glass, and contrasting materials used in this bathroom design are a great formula to trick your perceptions in a luxurious indoor-outdoor bathroom.
4. To live in the outdoor
This modern outdoor living space situates you closer to the earth as the natural stone, wooden beams and open-air garden view create the illusion of being in a cave that is encompassing the landscape around you
With walls dividing the corresponding inside areas and a partly covered roof, you are subtly transitioned into the garden without feeling exposed by the elements.
This genius layout makes for a key area to live out the summer months in the comfort of your home.
5. Indoor-outdoor to create intimacy
If you are looking to create an indoor-outdoor environment with limited space, indoor furniture can carry the essence of the outdoors in a small space.
Wooden stools or wicker storage units, along with other natural materials and a neutral colour scheme, transfer a small unwanted outdoor space into a warm and inviting area for you and your loved ones to cosy up to.
6. Indoor-outdoor to create light levels
Light is an essential part of creating an open-air space, and large windows are an obvious way to successfully create this.
Large glazed roofs lift off the constraints of a low-level space as they welcome in the outdoor surroundings. In some cases, you can essentially feel like you are living amongst the foliage as the trees above tower in over your room, creating dynamic shadows as the sun moves across the sky.
7. Indoor-outdoor to lose the walls
While an outdoor kitchen might not be the most practical indoor-outdoor living solution in the UK, if you’re looking to make the most of the glorious warm weather at your holiday home abroad, an outdoor living space like this kitchen is a California dream.
To many families, the kitchen is the heart of the home and where the majority of events will take place over the course of a day. So, take this central hub outdoors so the space where all the family comes together is immersed in the wonders of your holiday home destination.
8. Indoor-outdoor to blur social boundaries
The boundaries of space usually restrict conversations at gatherings at parties. This can often mean the host is left to prepare refreshments alone, while their guests enjoy the space and company.
Indoor-outdoor space which blurs the boundaries between the kitchen and a patio remove these constraints, so hosts and guests remain connected throughout the evening.
With this kitchen design, guests can enjoy dining and socialising in an outdoor space that essentially feels like a kitchen breakfast bar, while being shaded from the sun.
9. Indoor-outdoor to frame a dinner view
When indoor-outdoor living space combines with water, a truly tranquil space is created.
Water is known to create a calming and peaceful atmosphere, so it brings personality and luxury to any living space that it may accompany.
Can you think of a greater way to bring the outdoors in or the indoor-out than adding a unique water element into your home?
10. Indoor-outdoor to create illusions
Turn the perspectives of a living space on its head – literally – to create the illusion of underground living.
This basement conversion cleverly creates dynamic shapes and levels, as the garden roofs the space. ‘Underground’ living imposes a new interpretation of indoor-outdoor living as you walk up a large stair case to enter into the garden space.
Are you feeling inspired, or have we missed an indoor-outdoor home design that stands out from the crowd? Let us know in the comments below.