A rattan hanging chair is a high-style riff on a kids’ swing. For an inexpensive coffee table inspired by a designer piece, the couple who own this house took an Ikea tabletop and drilled in three sturdy white terra-cotta planters for the base.
Found Space
This homeowner didn't think she had enough room in her tiny backyard for a patio. But she turned a retaining wall from a necessary eyesore into a warm wood- and plant-draped backdrop that helped define the space. A concrete firepit fits in with the utilitarian vibe, and succulents soften the area.
Mix and Match Styles
One design idea we love for patios is to take an ethnochaotic approach. This Santa Fe-area home is decorated in a predominantly Southwestern style, but the owner threw in global touches like a rustic Mexican table and a Moroccan lamp. The patio is also an example of how aggressive landscaping isn't always necessary. A wisteria vine has been allowed to do its thing, creating a shady, leafy oasis in the backyard.
Let the Outside In
This 1888 Victorian home didn't have a lot of natural light before a renovation. One solution? The addition of an innovative folding door with huge glass panes between the patio and kitchen. Light and breezes flow in, and it feels like the kitchen extends into the backyard.
Double-Duty Patio
If you live on a slope, a patio can do more than simply provide a place to relax outside. The flat surface also absorbs excess rainwater, which minimizes erosion and keeps more precious water for your garden plants. Incorporating water-wise ideas into patio design has never looked better.
Tread Lightly
Flattening and denuding a part of your yard can feel like a heavy environmental blow. So do the earth a favor by using reclaimed materials in your patio project. Used brick makes for a durable, low-maintenance flooring. This homeowner took salvage a step further, making a tabletop and bench from what were once scaffolding planks.
Jungle Room
When Mother Nature is part of your decor, there's no point in going for stark minimalism. Embrace lush abundance with oversize greenery. Pick brighter, chunkier furniture than you would use indoors—this room literally has no ceiling so it won't feel claustrophobic.
Looks Good, Feels Good
This Central California coast patio space was once a manicured lawn. The homeowners became increasingly uncomfortable with its water demands, and opted to replace the surface with native grass, pebbles, and concrete pavers. What sounds austere on paper is in practice a tidy, low-maintenance stepping stone to the ocean view beyond.
A Solid Base
Flagstone laid out in a parquet pattern provides enough visual interest to jazz up even a fairly minimal floor plan like this deckchairs-and-firepit arrangement. Small sprays of greenery (like the tiny plot of grasses and succulents) really pop against the neutral stone pavers.
Lush slate patio
Here's a lovely patio design idea for those with a DIY bent. Surround a small slate patio with lush plantings for a versatile backyard retreat space. This one is 8 feet in diameter.
Welcoming winter patio
Open to the garden on two sides, this patio in Woodland Hills, California, has all the comforts of an indoor room. Owners Marla and Chuck O'Connell use it all year. "We gather friends and surfing buddies for wine and good conversation," Chuck says. Adds Marla, "We're outdoor people, living our fantasy."
A fireplace is the patio's focal point. The prefab box is framed in wood and capped with stone veneer.
Earthly sophistication
"I like clean lines balanced by earth-toned materials and organic shapes," says landscape designer Jared Vermeil. The father of a toddler, Vermeil loves creating contemporary yet family-friendly gardens. As he says, "Modern can feel warm and comfortable too."
More: One patio, 3 looks
Affordable backyard Bali
Brooke Dietrich, owner of Green … Landscapes to Envy in Costa Mesa, CA looked to bargain sources to outfit her own patio. “Ikea and Pier 1 are my kind of stores,” she says.
Hearth patio
The area rug in this outdoor living room is actually brick inlay. Farm touches like the Dutch door in the kitchen make this a cozy space.
More: Southwest Idea House
Easy brick patio
This patio measures only 7 feet across. And, with the right tools, you can easily build it in a weekend.
Think of the possible uses for this circle of bricks. You can tuck it into a perennial border. Or place it in a remote corner of your garden, where you can linger at day's end over a glass of wine, or on Sunday morning with your coffee and magazines.
The perfect room
Add a mirror for the illusion of space. This one gives the patio a living room look, yet it stands up to sun and rain.
Easy cabana
With our checklist of tools and materials, some PVC pipe, and a little elbow grease, you can transform your outdoor space into an instant retreat ― all for about $300. This DIY backyard lounge serves as both a casual spot for year-round entertaining and a private refuge with resort style.
More: Step-by-step DIY cabana
Colorful patio
Bright colors make this playful patio pop. This patio design idea can be executed on the cheap with a couple trips to a well-stocked flea market and oozes boho-eclectic chic.
More: Take our personality quiz and find the outdoor space for you
Recycled materials
Large and small aluminum letters, set between irregular chunks of black slate, gives this 8-foot-wide patio in Alameda, California, contemporary flavor.
Info: Shirley Alexandra Watts, Alameda, CA (510/521-5223)
Cobbles and rock
Rectangular chunks of tumbled Connecticut bluestone, set on a bed of decomposed granite and sand, form a 12-foot-diameter dining patio in a wooded Berkeley backyard.
Info: Vanessa Kuemmerle, Vee Horticulture, Berkeley, CA (510/653-7667); BlueJay Feldman, Blue Ridge Landscape Co., Orinda, CA (925/258-9233)
Mediterranean accent
A cast limestone fountain with an antique finish adds a Mediterranean-inspired accent to this narrow front patio in Sacramento, Calif. The wall blocks the sight and sound of street traffic nearby.
Rustic patio
This open-air dining room features reclaimed redwood siding salvaged from an abandoned water tower that once served a local stage coach station.
Small seating area
A metal-framed daybed sits on a small patio next to the back deck. A young espaliered fig is displayed against the dark exterior wall (Licorice, item 517-7; Pittsburgh Paints). With this simple design idea, even small patios can scream with style.
More: Amazing cottage makeover
Waterfall and moat
Suspended over a koi pond, a circular redwood deck in Gardnerville, NV, is both a viewing platform and shade structure for fish.
The nine piers of steel-reinforced concrete that support it were poured in place as an integral part of the pond bottom, as were the steps that appear to float across the water’s surface. Both the steps and piers were finished below the waterline with rough-textured black plaster.
Info: James Rowley, Naturally Beautiful Gardens, Minden, NV (775/267-5234)
Art Patio
In their rear garden, lined with olive trees, Jeff Reed and Jennifer Madden enjoy an alfresco meal at a sculptural table they created.
More: See this artful house
Patio entry
Decorative and functional, a dry-laid flagstone and mulch path leads the way to a patio retreat.
A border of ferns and red-flowered Cuphea ignea creates a leafy entry.
In the back planter, a tall mallow hedge screens a vegetable garden.
Outdoor sofa
The rammed-earth "couch" around the firepit appears to grow out of its setting.
More: Ultimate Sierra retreat
Small space patios
Small lots don't easily accommodate separate outdoor living areas. But Dean Shibuya and Jeffrey Molloy's 600-square-foot San Francisco backyard uses every square inch to contain several garden rooms comfortably.
More: Small garden secrets
Tiny urban gem
Dry-laid flagstones, tightly spaced, cover the upper patio as well as the main walkway leading to it, while an arc-shaped path of natural steppingstones connects the upper patio to a smaller one that is nearer the house and overlooks a pond.
Super simple patio
For a perfect patio, all you need is about $200, some lemonade, and the seven elements pictured here.
