SubscribeSign In
All Photos/outdoor

Outdoor Design Photos and Ideas

The balance of mint green-painted ironwork, plants, pool, and blue sky capture the warmth of the Mérida indoor-outdoor living environment.
Red- and blue-pigmented cement augments the color palette of the courtyard.
FMT Estudio renovated the pool deck with sanded red bricks manufactured in central Mexico.
On a clear day, you can catch a whiff of sea salt from atop the cliffside.
The remote location made construction a challenge. Horne ended up widening the road to the cabin in order to move the shipping containers up the cliff.
Although previous owners built a pool at a lower part of the yard near the piano room, the couple decided to build a new one just off the kitchen. “We thought, it would be amazing to have a pool that was kind of jutting out, with the backdrop of the city,” John says. The patio doubles as entertaining space for summer parties.
Moss-covered rocks and twisted tree trunks give the landscape a fairyland-like quality.
Danny envisioned the space between the ADU and the house as an informal place to gather. "It creates a sort of courtyard sensibility, which works for our intergenerational family dynamics."
Francis and RJ relax at home with their two young children.
In the backyard, the couple added a pergola, greenhouse, and outdoor dining space for $6,000.
The reading nook corridor has a sizeable sliding glass door that pockets into more glass, with thresholds flush between the cork floors on the interior and the large format porcelain tile on the exterior. The center of the atrium is filled with raked 1/8” Desert Gold crushed granite.
<span style="font-family: Theinhardt, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, sans-serif;">The simple wood deck features innovative cutouts that allow full-grown Yucca trees to peek through.</span> <span style="font-family: Theinhardt, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, sans-serif;"> </span>
The home's wood deck is a neutral base that compliments the home's back and white features.
A perfectly groomed backyard lawn with a paver patio.
Chickens foraging in an enclosed garden with vertical planters.
<span style="font-family: Theinhardt, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, sans-serif;">Wood adirondack chairs surrounding a stone firepit. </span>
On the home's east side, the overhang created by the second story volume shades the front door while still allowing morning light into the bedrooms.
Kick off your summer with these stellar sales from your favorite fashion, beauty, home decor, and bedding brands.
The couple<span style="font-family: Theinhardt, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, sans-serif;"> wanted the house to be a thoughtful contribution to Fire Island's distinctly modern aesthetic. The geometric shape and expansive windows call to mind the vernacular of Sea Ranch while the cedar-clad exterior fits right in with the neighbors. An overhang on the deck adds architectural flare while also helping to reflect light back into the home. </span><span style="font-family: Theinhardt, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, sans-serif;"> </span>
The balcony is an important part of tropical living, allowing one to enjoy breeze and light but also shade.
A healthy budget for landscaping allowed Leah to achieve a natural, wild look with plants. “I wanted to look out and see just lush plants growing wild,” she says. The collage of native vegetation was also used to soften the transitions between surface materials and backyard zones.
Surrounded by oak trees and lush grasslands, Field Cabin features a steeply pitched roof and an expansive glass door and decking on the front facade.
The terrace is a favorite gathering place. The house is positioned facing south to get the most sun exposure.
The courtyard brings natural light into the lower level of the home, which has a den/media room, guest suite/workout area, and storage and mechanical.
“Typically people don't have pools on a small city lot like this, so we really had to work with what we had,” says Monika. The couple’s child, Sullivan, peaks through the pool’s window.
A vast terrace overlooks a nearby park, while the ground floor patio (connected to Vanbesien’s office) opens up to a garden.
The couple followed permaculture principles for their garden, complete with a robust compost system. You’ll also find an orchard, native prairie grasses, and a winter pond on the land.
A clear railing creates uninhibited views of the surroundings.
The side walls have been treated as vertical extension of the horizontal surface of the garden, and are used for growing climbers such as jasmine, grapes, honeysuckle, raspberries, beans, peas, and even a climbing fig. Colorful bird’s houses and bug hotels are also mounted on the walls.
Living in between the woods
The Douglas fir deck that extends from the front facade of one of the cabins features a sunken tub that lets users feel as if they're floating above the clouds while bathing.
Edgeland House, built on a cliff-top lot in Austin by architect Thomas Bercy for lawyer and writer Chris Brown, is topped by a living roof to help it blend into the landscape. The concrete, steel, and glass house is divided into two distinct public and private halves. <span style="font-family: Theinhardt, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, sans-serif;">Tucked beneath a grassy roof covered by nearly 200 species of plants and grasses, the structure is virtually invisible from the nearby street. In fact, the 1,400-square-foot house is so well hidden in the earth that it doesn’t seem to register on the radar of local wildlife either. Birds, butterflies, bees, dragonflies, hawks, snakes, lizards, and frogs all treat the house like just another grassy knoll.</span>
The U-shaped floorplan wraps around a sunny central courtyard.
The house is divided into three sections connected by a series of outdoor galleries. “When I walk from one room to another, I have to go outdoors and feel the weather and nature—rain, cold, and sun,” says Sævik. Instead of emphasizing the expansive panorama of oak, pine, and aspen trees, the house frames select views—a move inspired by Japanese design.
For cross ventilation, the residents can open and close the large sliding doors around the porch, which the architect describes as “the heart of the home.” Likewise, windows are positioned to provide breezes when necessary.
On the outskirts of Grândola—a small Alentejan town in the Setúbal district of Portugal—a dramatic architectural form sits in the vast, arid landscape amidst cork trees and herds of cows. The whitewashed guesthouse is known as Casa da Volta, which translates as "Home of the Return,
Designed by award-winning Sant Architects, this four-bedroom vacation rental near Topanga elevates the concept of a mountain retreat to new heights—from its raw, concrete facade and hillside pool, to the Bauhaus-inspired interiors that feature expansive glass walls that overlook the Pacific Ocean. The clean, architectural lines are expressed using iron beams, concrete slabs, timber-panelled walls, and glass, and the sprawling, open-plan living area features a slide-away fireplace and enormous windows that seamlessly transition the property from cosy winter retreat to breezy summer getaway.
A large open skylight floods the heart of the home with natural light, even in winter months, and creates an interesting play between interior and exterior space in the main living area.
Rear garden
The private outdoor space showcases the renovation's south-facing windows, which were installed to connect the indoors with the yard.
The standard approach on the balcony would be to use a glass balustrade—however this would open the view up to the road, passersby, and an adjacent car park. “This means that the living room is truly private, even though it is in a prominent spot,” explains architect Jeffery Bokey-Grant.
Situated on a gentle slope, the tiny home features a gable roof, a rectangular silhouette, and an expansive wood deck that extends from the front facade.
The resulting home is overflowing with greenery—and it's the perfect place for its owner, Patricio Martinez, and his girlfriend, Nati Malamute, to unwind.
The home's windows are from Fleetwood Windows &amp; Doors, while the sofa is from Teak Warehouse.
123456...113