Who To Call For Pool & Patio Design Ideas?

One of the biggest questions homeowners ask us, is “who should I call for pool & patio design ideas”? For our clients, the choice is easy! Even though we are interior designers, we are also exterior designers. If you’ve read my blog posts, you know that I love merging interior design with external surroundings. I’m a gardener at heart.

As another Memorial Day approaches, pools and patios are now havens, especially amid the Coronavirus pandemic. Being the expert kitchen and bath designer in the Dallas, TX metro area doesn’t stop at the home’s interior design. We often go outdoors with our design expertise for as many home interiors we design.

Throughout this post, you will find super essential considerations for your loggia. You’ll discover imperative pool & patio design ideas too. Please read to the end if you require patio design ideas. Yes, we can even help with virtually preparing and executing patio design ideas for your pool or loggia too. For now, read on…

How To Design Outdoor Spaces To Best Suit Lifestyle & Regional Weather Especially In The Dallas TX or DFW Metro Area

Before considering an investment in your loggia or patio furnishings, there are a series of questions every homeowner, especially Dallas, TX homeowners, needs to consider before taking the plunge. Dallas can have four types of weather in one day! Wind, rain, snow, and heat are all considerations in DFW. Your region may be the same.

After stepping in on a project where the homeowner hired another designer and her outdoor kitchen contractor – it was all going wrong! No one has taken the weather or surfacing into consideration. I’m a positive person; therefore, I won’t spend time telling you what all they had done wrong. I’m simply going to tell you how to fix your pool & patio design ideas plan of attack moving forward.

Below you will find questions your design professional should be asking every homeowner. Whether you choose to work with an interior designer, exterior designer, landscape architect, home remodeler, or builder, before spending a dollar, they should ask you the vital questions below. Hiring someone to build an outdoor kitchen or source patio furniture and outdoor seating is critical because most of the outdoor patio furniture is garbage, yet it’s expensive.

In the case of my recent design client, the prior interior designer had NOT even asked the homeowner about their lifestyle before spouting off HER design ideas. {My personal pet peeve with some interior designers.} To avoid embarrassment for THAT and all interior designers in DFW, I will use one of my past exterior loggia design projects to walk you through the proper questions and how to ensure you’re getting outdoor pool & patio design ideas you want to live with for LIFE.

First, let’s view the project during construction…

How We Helped Opposites Attract

Carrying the cool blues outside to the pool area was a natural fit. To give our “opposites attract” homeowners a virtual walkthrough of the space before continuing color, placement, and product selections, we created a comprehensive design using 3D rendering technology.

After finishing their interior design and home remodeling project, we blended their styles and began on the exterior patio design ideas. See the living room design below – click here to see the entire living room home remodeling project details.

We finished their interior design projects first, then began bringing their exterior project into three dimensions. Our 3D renderings save the client’s time and a lot of money by streamlining selections and preventing additional construction costs. They thought they originally wanted things in their interior design and their patio design ideas. After seeing their initial wants in 3-D, they quickly realized these were decisions they would later regret.

During Construction | Home Remodel | Pool & Patio Design Ideas

1. Select a qualified exterior designer or landscape architect for your pool or patio design ideas.

Make sure your interior designer understands landscape architecture and exterior products. Otherwise, it could be like flushing your hard-earned money down the drain. Ask for references or links to their most recent work’s interior design blog posts. Call their previous clients to ask specifics about their work and product selections.

2. Select flooring surfaces that are heat and water-resistant.

As interior designers, we love to use beautiful tiles. All tiles or concrete surfaces around a pool or patio should be heat and water-resistant.

3. Surfaces should be prepared and leveled before installing flooring or tile.

Believe it or not, we often see contractors and builders skimping on products such as levelers. Flooring leveling is imperative; otherwise, tiles crack and cause decks and patios to look old and need repairs long before their time.

Builders and contractors often get away with leveling because homeowners may not realize these issues until much later after it’s too late or the project is out of warranty; that’s if there’s a warranty at all.

4. The outdoor surfacing and patio furniture scale need to be bigger than you think.

See how small the tile is under the large gigantic concrete tiles below. The size of the concrete tiles is four times the size of the small thin porcelain tiles previously selected by THAT other uneducated interior designer and her contractor.

HOME REMODELING PROJECT FEATURING OUTDOOR PATIO DESIGN IDEAS WITH CONCRETE TILES

5. What should you use for outdoor screens or patio protection? Motorized smart home screens, traditional screens, or screened doors?

See where the red tape is? Everything goes into consideration with patio design ideas. In this case, motorized smart home screens are built into the home’s structure columns. There are numerous ways to screen a patio or loggia. When applicable and budget allows, the motorized smart home screens are the best bang for the buck.

6. 3-D Renderings of Pool & Patio Design Ideas by designers or landscape architects are always a good idea.

When working with a designer or landscape architect, I highly recommend that clients pay a little extra for designers and landscape architects that supply you with an excellent visual rendering of the outdoor pool or patio design ideas. Renderings can easily allow you to see what their patio design ideas will look like before the first construction dollar is spent.

We love to provide more than a verbal presentation or storyboards to help our clients understand and visualize how their investment will be spent and the final results. Three-dimensional renderings are how we start the design process to help each homeowner see the scale and dimension of their furnishings before we place a single order.

Questions Every Interior Designer Or Landscape Architect Should Ask Before Designing Your Outdoor Loggia or Patio Area

Whether it’s an indoor or outdoor space, a series of questions is necessary to understand how you will use outdoor rooms or outdoor areas at home.

Here is my list of questions to ask when meeting with a Dallas homeowner. Keep in mind, if you’re not in Dallas, there are many other considerations, with the climate being a biggy that should be considered for your area.

7. How will you use your pool, patio, or backyard space?

Will you entertain family and friends on weekends, or will you take a seat outdoors to browse through your emails and social media each morning? Or is this a seasonal space (ex winter, spring, summer, or fall) only space? These factors determine if you’ll need cushion storage, furniture covers, and whether or not leaving exterior furnishings exposed at all times is a good idea or not.

8. How often will you use the outdoor loggia or patio?

Daily, weekly, monthly, seasonal, or only for special occasions? If so, how many special events do you host each year? Furniture use and comfortability are keys to creating patio design ideas that suit your lifestyle.

9. How will you maintain the loggia or patio furniture?

Will you maintain your loggia, patio, or pool area, or will you hire someone to do it for you?

More elements such as weather and types of materials aren’t changed out like a throw pillow. Most outdoor furniture is equally as costly as interior furnishings, yet it’s exposed to elements. In Texas, we have to think to make the selections for their interiors or sometimes loggias, and then we let the patio. Maintenance and care for outdoor furniture are more critical than indoor furniture, which must go on someone’s TODO list.

AFTER BUILT-IN STORAGE BENCH BASED ON PATIO DESIGN IDEAS by DKOR HOME  | Outdoor Patio Design Ideas That Include an Outdoor Television

10. Will you entertain in each of your outdoor areas?

If so, how do you envision entertaining guests? For instance, should we plan on refrigeration, wine chillers, a bar, grill, wood fire pizza oven, or will you be ordering in Dominos? Do you want areas separated but harmonious, or do you prefer complete separation so that kids and adults can organically separate themselves?

AFTER PATIO DESIGN IDEAS | DKOR HOME  | Outdoor Patio Design Ideas That Include an Outdoor Television

11. Do you plan to watch sports games? If so, should your patio design ideas include a television?

The answer for most of our clients is YES on outdoor television or televisions. If your answer is also YES, you’ll need to think about the internet or cable in the television area.

3-D RENDERING OF PATIO DESIGN IDEAS | DKOR HOME | Outdoor Patio Design Ideas That Include an Outdoor Television

12. How long have you lived in metro Dallas TX, DFW, or your regional climate?

If my clients are moving from other regions, I advise them of climate issues for their outdoor spaces. Understanding their outdoor space maintenance is even more critical.

3-D RENDERING OF PATIO DESIGN IDEAS | DKOR HOME | Outdoor Patio Design Ideas That Include an Outdoor Television

13. What necessities are most important for your patio design?

The latest outdoor theatre screen? Outdoor smart home screens that you can lower while you’re at the office?

14. Should you consult an “exterior designer near me”?

The list could go on and on based on my homeowner’s answers. Still, as a Dallas interior designer with more experience than I care to write about in this blog post, it doesn’t take us long to identify solutions that function for each of our clients.No matter where you live. I highly recommend you reach out to a qualified exterior design professional. Our interior design firm offers free virtual design consultations. Believe it or not, we design and oversee projects for clients both in-person and virtually.

Find more Pool Design Ideas & Patio Design Ideas.

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X – Your favorite Austin Interior Designer,

Dee

P.S. Check out these posts or book a complimentary home design appointment with one of my Dallas interior designers or Dallas interior decorators.