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For many, an outdoor living space is more than just a patio. It’s a destination.
Homeowners Sherri and Mike Hulse wanted an outdoor living space complete with all the amenities, including a television and full kitchen. Now they say they spend as much time outdoors during the warmer months as they do in their interior spaces.
For years, homeowners around Tulsa have been going to the back yard to relax and spend time with family and friends.
And now they’re doing it in style.
For homeowners Sherri and Mike Hulse, it was a matter of enjoying their outdoor space and expanding upon what they already had. The couple began working on the outdoor living space accompanying an existing pool to create a more livable space for their home, where they had decided to remain although their children had since moved.
“We decided that rather than downsizing and moving, we are going to stay there and turn it into an empty-nester home,” Mike Hulse says.
The couple turned to Chad Lovett, owner of Beyond the Backdoor, to create a space that would provide an escape they could enjoy eight to nine months out of the year. The Hulses’ south Tulsa back yard is complete with many of the amenities any homeowner wants — a kitchen, living space, pool, television and stereo system. Mike admits, though, that the addition of the outdoor living space has added more than just enjoyment for the family.
“I don’t think there was any question that it added value (to the home),” he says. “It really does represent another living space.”
While outdoor living spaces can include a variety of elements, some features stand out among Tulsa area designers and contractors.
“Right now just about everyone wants a fire element,” says Mark McCoy, Certified Kitchen Designer with Oklahoma Landscape. “It’s either a fire pit or a fireplace.”
A fire element can extend a season and bring people together, says Bill Powers, owner of Powers Design & Build.
“Everybody loves a fire and it’s always a reason for gathering and it’s comforting,” he says.
Another element that seems to be a requirement of any outdoor space is a covered structure.
“We’ve always done patio covers and decks, but they’ve gotten more elaborate now,” says Barry Helms, owner of Renovations by Helms Inc. “People are making (the backyard patio) more a living space and staying out there more. Before it was just a getaway for the spring and fall.”
These structures can be as simple as adding an arbor or extending a covered patio; creating a stand-alone structure with beamed ceilings and exposed woodwork; or renovating an existing space, such as a detached garage, into a permanent living space.
With so many homeowners spending time in these outdoor spaces, technology has found its way outside as well.
Options such as the SunBrite TV, an all-weather outdoor LCD television, have been released in the past few years, making watching TV outdoors easier. The TVs can handle the elements — sun, rain, cold, heat and wind — and range in size from 23 inches to 55 inches.
Technology has brought a new kind of pool to consumers. Beyond the Backdoor is the only retailer in the state — and only one of three in the country — to offer an alternative to the traditional pool, thanks to some intelligent technology, Lovett says.
Homeowners with minimal lot space can now enjoy the backyard pool with a Hidden Water Pool, an “extremely cutting edge” product, Lovett says. A patio can transform into a pool in less than two minutes. Lovett explains that the custom-made patio floor can be lowered to a variety of depths for the pool. Pool owners can set the pool as shallow as a wading pool for small children or create a full 6-foot pool available for swimming.
No matter the size, cost or style of the outdoor living space one desires, each begins with a well-thought-out plan of action.
Many designers have a standard process for working with customers. It begins with a walk-through of the property, during which the designer can see the area and speak with the homeowners about their wants and desires while assessing the feasibility of their ideas.
Then there is a design process, during which ideas and plans are fleshed out and approved before construction finally begins.
Technology has also improved the design phase.
Besides an architectural drawing, McCoy can show clients a computer simulation of their future outdoor space.
“It really brings a level of understanding,” he says, for clients who may be wary of committing to such a large project without first seeing the finished product.
Once merely a back yard, outdoor spaces have become an integral part of the home.
