Top 10 Tips to Designing an AMAZING Backyard haven for your family

Quality family time is about laughter, fun and fantastic memories. Build the perfect spot for creating these moments in your very own backyard. With these tips, every summer day will be like a family vacation.

1. What Do You Have?

Look outside the patio door and survey the yard. Sketch out the lay of the land, including any existing patios or decks, as well as any established trees and gardens.   You can even use patio or deck design software to see what you have on and around your patio or deck and can see how you can easily change things.  You already have something to work with, so start there.

How can you dress up or clean up what you have to be more family friendly? Paint or wash the deck or patio, trim the trees and clean out the garden, noting the sunny and shady spots for future reference. Plant vines to hide unattractive but functional features.

If you need more privacy, plant a tight row of evergreen hedges that will fill in quickly to make a natural sight, sound and wind barrier.

2. What Would Each Person Love?

Now is the time to have a family conference or illicit some feedback. There needs to be elements of the backyard that are designed with each person in mind.

Kids will love the adventure of a treehouse or clubhouse. Readers of all ages will escape in a comfy, quiet nook. Add a gazebo or outdoor tent for more protected space. Some of these play tents are ideal for indoors or outdoors in case you have harsher winters. Have a place for sipping coffee and flipping through the morning paper and don’t forget some tables for card games and a chess board. A wood porch swing is the perfect place to snuggle and sway together.

The whole family will thrill with the inclusion of a miniature garden railroad. As the train chugs around weatherproof track, the family can enjoy the fun of building and running this toy for all ages.

3. How Much Maintenance Can You Handle?

If hours of lawn care and gardening don’t appeal to you, be sure to design with that in mind. Low maintenance plantings that will behave and flourish are ideal.

Mulch the gardens well annually to prevent the spread of weeds and keep the moisture in the soil. Under patios and walkways, landscape fabric is a good idea to keep the weeds out. With some research and wise choices, your yard and garden can be less work than you may think.

4. Why Not Cook Outside?

To keep the interior cool and the exterior festive, grill your meals whenever possible. Whether you prefer the convenience of natural gas, the traditional propane or the smoky taste of charcoal grills, there is a BBQ out there to suit your fancy.

Install an outdoor fire pit to bring the memories of family campfires into the backyard. Traditional wood burning pits can be built, or for more convenience gas or propane patio fireplaces work well.

5. How Can You Make Everyone Eat Their Vegetables?

Fill your table with vegetables grown in your very own patch. There are plenty of simple, kid-friendly choices like pumpkins, sugar snap peas and cherry tomatoes. Plant what your family will eat and enjoy the freshest produce available. Or decorate your home with bright, cheery cut flowers. Zinnias, daisies and sunflowers grow quickly and will last throughout the season with colorful, smiling faces.

6. What Are the Best Furniture Choices?

Make sure you invest in well crafted, intelligently designed outdoor furniture. That way you can enjoy it for years to come. You’ll need a quality patio set, as well as some other favorite pieces. Choose a hammock or a glider bench, a chaise lounge or a wood porch swing, and then use them to create relaxing, cozy spots for the whole family.

Be sure to include colors to complete your design. Patterns or solids, your choice of colors for cushions, pillows, paint and accessories will turn ordinary furniture into family heirlooms.

7. Want to Have A Conversation?

When you set up the perfect patio furniture, think about how you can create a conversational atmosphere. Casual pieces, often called conversation sets, are a combination of low tables and cushioned couches arranged to face each other. Place a patio fireplace in the center for even warmer gatherings. Incorporate enough seating for everyone with a few extra for guests.

8. How Do You Add Soothing Sounds?

Bring the stereo speakers right into the backyard for the joy of music any time. There are even outdoor speakers manufactured to look like garden rocks. And others that are waterproof and even wireless. So no excuses here. Even if they are wired, just a pair of pliers is all you need to install them. They will blend right into the landscape and provide just the atmosphere you want.

9. Are You Calmed By Water?

The addition of water features in your yard help to create a tranquil atmosphere. Bubbling waters in a fountain and the splashes of a birdbath will disguise the harsh sounds of traffic nearby. Ponds attract many sights of nature and provide an ever changing picture of calm.

10. Do You Want To Win?

The fun of friendly competition and games is a must for backyard relaxation. Save a grassy area for catch, bocce and Frisbee. Put up the Badminton net or dig out a horseshoe pit. The whole family will look forward to a good soak in the hot tub, too. Any way you look at it, everyone wins with outdoor fun together.

Your backyard haven will be the perfect spot to spend time in this season. Design with your family in mind and enjoy plenty of time together.

Deck Design Software Makes Deck Designing!

Homeowners that are interested in constructing a new deck can greatly benefit from deck design software.  The software helps homeowners visualize what their completed deck can look like based on changing variables such as size, shape, style, colors, materials and accessories.   The design software can be used by deck construction or home improvement contractors or by the homeowners themselves to make designing a backyard deck an easy process.

Contractors often use 3D deck design software to show potential customers what the finished product can look like based on possible design decisions.  This allows homeowners to see exactly what their deck can look like, rather than trying to visualize it the best they can from sketches or drawings or even just a one dimensional design.  The software also makes it easy to see how changing variables, such as the shape, color of the decking materials, type of balusters or more can change the end design.  The three dimensional design can have homeowners visualizing exactly what it will be like to have specific options as part of the deck.

Homeowners also have the opportunity to use home deck design software on their own in order to help them determine what they like best about different deck design choices and to then show to potential contractors so they can easily explain their design choices.  Using the software is also a smart option for do-it-yourselfers, since building a deck is a rather large and difficult project.

Knowing exactly what the deck will look like when finished and being able to change options prior to starting the deck to determine what will work best goes a long way towards making do-it-yourself construction a much easier task.  Some deck design software products will also provide a materials list based on the parameters set within the design so that the process of ordering supplies is simplified as well. Others even list out the tools you’ll need.

 

When homeowners are getting ready to build a deck to enhance their outdoor décor and to increase their backyard’s functionality, they can find deck design software free by searching online or can purchase a software package for a small fee.  There are a number of websites that offer free online deck design software.  Some of the software is offered by companies that are also deck contractors, but it is usually free to use even if you aren’t using the company to build your deck.  There are also inexpensive products that can be purchased, either online or in a retail store.  Instant deck design software can be purchased for as little as ten dollars or less.

What makes deck designing software so beneficial to both homeowners and contractors alike is that it offers the opportunity to make informed design choices from the outset of the project.  By doing this, there is less chance that changes need to be made during the construction process and a greater chance that homeowners will be more satisfied with the end result.  It helps contractors “sell” their design to potential customers and shows them how different options will affect the look of the finished deck.  It helps homeowners get a better idea of what they want by being able to see exactly what their choices will look like.

No matter what type of software is used, whether it is instant deck design software that is purchased for a nominal fee, professional deck design software offered by a home improvement or construction company or one of the free online deck design software options available by searching on the internet, the use of this type of design tool will make it easier for homeowners to ultimately enjoy the deck of their dreams.