Subscribe to Dwell
Subscribe to Dwell
All Photos/outdoor/patio, porch, deck : large/locations : back yard

Outdoor Large Patio, Porch, Deck Back Yard Design Photos and Ideas

Twenty-foot-wide doors from Solar Innovations offer easy access to the deck. “Solar Innovations was the only manufacturer at that time that had a pocket multi-slider with a good ADA threshold,” says architect Erick Mikiten. “They almost look like steel, but are thermally broken aluminum.”
The expansive grassy lawns features several ponds, fountains, native greenery, and even a tea house.
Another side of the home opens up onto a large lawn.
The fire pit area displays a 48-inch concrete fire bowl, woven chairs, and upcycled tree stumps for kid-friendly-seating.
Homeowner Jay Longtin served as the general contractor and performed the majority of the remodel work, aside from the outdoor floors, concrete, and pool, which were done by Architectural Blue.
Wood Marsh Architecture brings a sculptural aesthetic to a holiday escape in Melbourne, Australia. It opens up with an internal courtyard and orients to the rear, where an outdoor pool area overlooks the broader landscape. A sweeping deck follows the site’s natural slope to a pool area screened by a curved low masonry wall that nods to the building’s prevailing form.
The husband requested a pass-through window in the kitchen for easy entertaining.
Just inside the living room’s sliding glass door is a Parentesi lamp by Achille Castiglioni, an object Marc has admired since childhood. Below, the pool deck displays a pair of Eos side chairs, lounge chairs, and a square dining table by Matthew Hilton.
“The roof overhang extends the living space,” says Boyer, so the deck becomes a spot to entertain visiting friends and family. The couple have been working to restore the surrounding land, as well.
The Smiths’ new cabin, designed by Risa Boyer Architecture and completed in 2020, sits in the same spot as their previous home, on five acres on Mount Veeder, in Northern California. Somehow, the red chicken coop, which is constructed of wood, survived the fire with the chickens still alive inside.
Lettino sun loungers by Claudio Dondoli and Marco Pocci for Ligne Roset are arranged along another side of the pool deck.
Along one side of the home, Chaya relaxes on a Isabbo sofa From La Redoute and enjoys a sunken pool deck.
The pergola overlooks the pool with the Baltic Sea in the distance. The couple built the home so that there would be as much outdoor space as indoor space.
Jari and Anna furnished their patio and backyard with pieces from their furniture line, Skargaarden.
The Patton New-Century house is designed for indoor-outdoor living, with the great room and bedrooms looking out onto a pool and outdoor courtyard.
Designed by José Guedes Cruz, César Marques, and Marco Marinho of the Portugal-based firm Guedes Cruz Architects, The Wall House is laid out in an open-box plan, and is fitted with plenty of glass windows to enhance the synergy between its interior and exterior spaces.
The backyard is a protected retreat out of the wind. The team added a balcony off the kitchen at the third floor. It has a ship’s ladder to access the roof deck, in order to service solar panels installed there. The balcony also has a grill for cooking al-fresco. “You gotta be able to go out back and barbecue – this is the beach after all,” says Levy.
The screened porch provides a covered outdoor space that is still open to the elements. Scott built many of the furnishings himself, including the coffee table and integrated bench.
"The main spaces of the home are flooded with natural light because the homeowners wanted to capture the views of the mountain and have seamless indoor-outdoor living,
The couple is eager to host a party with Diego’s band after the pandemic to take full advantage of the new deck and its amphitheater-like seating.
Georgina, Diego, and their two children, 10-year-old Nicoletta and seven-year-old Arturo.
The lounges on the patio are from Skargaarden.
The beanbag chairs and outdoor sofa and chairs are from West Elm and the Case Study Museum Bench is from Modernica.
Known for furniture and interior design, Ezequiel Farca transformed a 1970s-style concrete home in Mexico City into a tranquil sanctuary. The temple-like retreat blends into the hilly Lomas de Chapultepec neighborhood with its pale gray-green hue and strategic plantings, which soften the boundaries between house, garden, and street. The Recinto lava stone patio accessed through the living room holds teak outdoor furniture designed by Farca himself.
The expansive, covered patio that extends from the living space features an outdoor kitchen and adjoining pizza oven. “My favorite aspect of the project was that the clients embraced the idea that home can be more than just shelter,” says architect Cavin Costello. “It can be a place that incentivizes you to socialize, think, eat, work, create, and play differently.”
In addition to its rear deck, which features an outdoor kitchen and hot tub and capitalizes on stunning ocean views, the Surf House in Santa Cruz, California, includes a sunny front patio that’s tucked between a customized surfboard storage unit and a garage.
Edward Ogosta Architecture renovates and extends a Californian dwelling, creating a breezy, light-filled home for a family of five.
Ridge Mountain Residence was designed to blend into the existing Palm Springs landscape. Cor-Ten steel cladding provides a naturally weathering material, while the concrete structure and flagstone terrace complement the light tones of the surrounding mountains.
The deck features local wood, and the pool is made of concrete.
Extension & Courtyard Facing Study
The open-plan lower level flows into a covered patio through bifold doors by Loewen. The shingles, made of Alaskan yellow cedar, were pre-stained off-site in seven earthy hues. For maintenance, they will require a new UV topcoat every two-to-three years. The Condesa chairs are by Innit Designs.
“The intention of the landscape design was to create a tranquil refuge in a vibrant neighborhood for the family to entertain, play, and spend quality time together outdoors,” says the team at The Green Room Landscape Architecture. “The architecture produced multiple lines of sight that penetrate through the home, connecting the front and back yards with similar plant materials, creating a feeling that the house was planted in a scenic Sonoran meadow.”
Now, an eight-foot sliding door brings light into the kitchen and enables fluid movement between inside and out. The wider steps can serve as seats during a party, and they make for a graceful transition to the yard.
In Esperance, Australia, Fiona and Matt Shillington turned an outdated holiday resort into a cozy compound with restored A-frames, log cabins, and cottages.
In New South Wales, an L-shaped prefab designed by ArchiBlox draws in northern light and captures views of the ocean. The residents of the Byron Bay House can judge the surf conditions from their bedroom before heading out to the beach.
Along with its durability, concrete requires very little maintenance.
12345...16