When most people think about luxury living, they imagine living rooms adorned in marble and kitchens decked out with fantastic range cookers. But the latest trend in luxury living is to move out of the house and into the garden. More and more people want to be able to enjoy their lives in the open air. It’s here that they want to entertain guests and indulge themselves in their hobbies, especially now that the summer is almost upon us.

So what can you do to live it up in your garden? Take a look at some of these ideas from the rich and famous.

Create Your Own Covered Space

Just because you’re outside, it doesn’t mean you don’t need a covered space to keep the sun at bay. As a result, it’s a good idea to invest in some sort of canopy: one that allows you to enjoy the rest of the garden while protecting you from the sun during the hottest part of the day.

[Photo courtesy of Hotel Montecatini Terme/flickr.com]

These covered spaces can be equipped with pretty much whatever you like, but at a minimum, you’ll want some seating and a table in the middle. If you’ve got the budget for it, add an outdoor TV for watching sports and a fan to keep you cool when the mercury hits 90.

Give Your Pool A Makeover

Swimming pools are a staple of a luxury garden: they’re somewhere that you can cool off on those long summer days between June and September. But pools aren’t necessarily stylish, especially if you’ve had your current pool for a while. Not only can they look out of date, but they can also get run down pretty quickly, especially if you don’t regularly maintain them. Visit Sparklean Pools to learn more about vinyl liner pool repair. Updating your pool can make a massive difference to the visual appeal of your garden and help it to feel luxurious once more.

A Wonderland Getaway

The wealthy also really love to use their gardens to escape from the rigors of the day. Having somewhere they can go to relax helps them to unwind. A wonderland getaway can take on practically any form, depending on what constitutes a getaway for you, which is what makes it so exciting.

[Photo courtesy of Gary Barnes/pexels]

Some people like to be surrounded by flowers and slunk off to a remote corner of the garden to read a book. Others like to create communal spaces in unusual locations, using the geological features of the backyard itself. For instance, your garden might be on a slope, next to a steam or near to a rock formation. Finally, a wonderland getaway could be a physical building, like a summer house, complete with various creature comforts.

An Outdoor Chess Set

[Photo courtesy of Misaochaaan/wikimedia.org]

Being in the garden is all about having fun. That’s why many wealthy people make games a permanent feature of their gardens. Take chess, for instance. Large, outdoor chess sets are really good if you have children or relatives who like to play. Plus, they help keep people entertained on those long summer evenings.

We all want to make our homes look their best. We put our design minds on and make each room the way we want it. But, there’s one part of our homes too many of us forget. Most of us put all our efforts into making what’s between our walls work. But, what about your outside space? Decor doesn’t stop at the door. Turn your designing hand to your garden to ensure you can be proud of your house as a whole!

[Photo courtesy of 김 대정/pexels.com]

Get Creative with Flowers

No garden is complete without flowers. If you have a flair for creating, you can have a lot of fun designing your flower beds. If you’re not familiar with gardening, you may be tempted to stick to safe designs. Don’t do it! You just need to put some thought into the way you’re planting things. Flowers look beautiful no matter what, so you can’t go far wrong. Think about where you would like your flower beds to be. You don’t have to stick to the traditional options! Think, too, about how you’re planting. Do you want to work on a color scheme, or would you prefer the colors mixed?

To Patio or Not to Patio

Flowers aside, consider what you’re going to do with the rest of your space. If you’re not keen on the idea of plain grass garden, a patio might be for you. Bear in mind that a patio could make a small garden seem smaller. Plus, it would take over your greenery altogether! If you have ample space to play with, though, a patio could be an amazing design feature. If you’re unsure what a patio can do for you, take a look at some examples to help you decide. If you’re worried about covering your grass, remember you can enhance your patio with potted plants!

[Photo courtesy of Terje Sollie/pexels.com]

Don’t Forget the Furniture

Now we’re on familiar footing. Like the rooms in your house, your garden needs furniture! What you buy depends on what you’re going to be using the space for. If you plan to eat outside, invest in a table and chair set to suit your needs. If not, you might just want to buy a sofa or lawn chairs. And, the furniture choices don’t end there, either. You could add to the atmosphere by purchasing a log burner. Or, you could go all out and treat yourself to a hot tub. Again, this is best for a larger garden. If you want to put your design skills to good use, design your own hot tub.This option also has the benefit of ensuring your choice fits in with your garden. Don’t forget, too, to stock up on some lighting for your outside space! That way, you can enjoy your garden well into the evening!

These are just a few of the ways you can turn your designing hand to your garden. The trick is to not feel overwhelmed. There’s nothing to it. Think of it as a house without a roof!

One of the worst things about the winter months is the little time we get to spend outside in our garden. After all, gardening is one of our favorite hobbies to do in the backyard. But with the weather beyond freezing, it can stop us from spending time in the garden. And it feels like it’s forever until spring and summer arrive! However, you don’t have to give up your garden entirely during the winter. Therefore, here are some surprising tips you need to ensure you don’t miss your garden this winter.

[Photo courtesy of songsy/pixabay.com]

Bring the BBQ inside of your home

It’s always lovely in the summer months when you can have your family around. And you all enjoy a BBQ in the garden. As well as the amazing company, the food can be fantastic as well. After all, food can have a delicious taste once it’s been cooked on the barbecue. Therefore, it’s common to miss this grilled food during the winter months. But you don’t have to miss out on the delicious food during the cold months. There are many portable grills you can buy for your kitchen which you can use to recreate that BBQ taste. And food tends to be a lot healthier if it’s grilled!

Start growing plants inside your home

There’s something so therapeutic about looking after your plants. In fact, so many people use gardening as a stress-reliever. Also, it’s a massive achievement when you manage to successfully grow a plant. Therefore, in the winter months, you can miss taking care of your beloved plants. However, you don’t have to wait until spring before you start growing plants again. You could grow them inside to ensure you can carry on with your gardening all year round. Find them a spot in your home which has plenty of sunlight throughout the day. You can also consider getting some LED grow lights from companies like Lumi Growth which will ensure your plants grow properly while they are inside. And then you can tend to them every day to still enjoy gardening during winter. Once the sun comes out, you can always move them outside to ensure they enjoy some natural sunlight.

[Photo courtesy of andbjo/pixabay.com]

Invest in a beautiful indoor water feature

A lot of people love having a water feature in their garden. Not only can it be a relaxing feature, but it can also help your garden to stand out. And it’s a natural way to boost wildlife to your garden. During the winter months, a lot of people miss the calming sound of running water which they get when they are in their yard. But you can have the sound inside your home if you go for a beautiful indoor water feature. They can be a lovely addition to your home and will help to create a calming atmosphere. Put it in the hall or the lounge so that you can hear the feature around the home.

And you could even get a fish tank for your property if you are missing your pond! After all, you can watch the fish and enjoy the sound of the tank in your home!

You may think that the winter season is never going to end, but there are only a few months to get ready for the summer, and this is without mentioning any bikini figure! You need to think about getting your house ready for the hot season, and this isn’t something that you can delay too much. It is important to start planning right now with this list of summer essentials for your to go through.

Make Sure You Have All You Need To Keep The House Fresh

It might seem odd to think about keeping cool when the weather is still cold outside, but now is the right time to check the state of your air conditioner system, fans, and your swimming pool. If you don’t have any air con, it is time to consider an A/C installation to prepare for summer. As you still have a handful of months left before the hot months arrive, it is good to get in touch with expert engineers to service your pool and keep your cooling systems up to date before the summer rush begins.

Look After Your Garden Now To Find Freshness In Summer

You’re sitting inside, looking through the window to see only cold, gray rain. Taking care of your garden might well be the last thing you want to do with your time. But it is essential to maintain your trees and plants throughout the cold months to help them be strong and healthy for when you will need their shadow and their freshness. While you don’t need to spend every week kneeling outside in the wet grass and the mud, a monthly list of maintenance tasks should include:

[Photo courtesy of jensullivan113/pixabay.com]

• Mowing the lawn,
• Trimming the trees so that they can grow strong and high in summer,
• Pruning flowers and fruit trees to ensure a beautiful and vibrant garden,
• And protecting your precious plants from the frost and the rain.

Prepare For A Change Of Interior Décor

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Winter is naturally characterized by a change of décor inside your house: A warm blanket lies on the sofa to keep you warm in the evening; a series of tall mugs is piled up in the sink for a hot cup of tea; and every room has received a touch of warmth with scented candles and fluffy cushions. Everything is there to provide a cozy sensation. But soon the time for bbq parties and summer drinks will come: You need to rethink your décor to bring back a sense of sunny freshness inside your home. There are many options to do so on a budget: You can choose to hide all reminders of the winter months away, such as blankets, heating units, and candles, or you can decide to bring touches of bright colors inside the house with picture frames, funky cushions, and decorative plant pots. Just remember to check every room to make note of the wintery elements to store away during summer. And why not already plan your first bbq party of the warm season? Maybe you could celebrate the arrival of spring around a grilled burger with friends, so if you start now, you could prepare your DIY décor.        

You may think now that winter season is here, you can sit back and leave you garden alone. Unfortunately – that’s not the case. There are still a few things you have to do if you want your garden to survive this winter.

Lawn

Although it may be cold and icy, and you have perhaps even seen mini icicles on the lawn, this isn’t an excuse not to cut the grass. True – it’s not growing as it would in the spring and summer time. But there is still slight movement, and if you want to keep your garden looking fabulous, you need to keep looking after it.

[Photo courtesy of walkersalmanac/pixabay.com]

There are many ways you day decide on cutting your grass. But as it is the winter, a machine is best because it is the quickest and most efficient way. There can in all sorts of brands, sizes, and power, so get your own model that works right for you.

Watering

Just because it’s winter, doesn’t mean we no longer have to water our plants. There may not be any bright, colourful flowers, but that is not to say that there is no life. Things are still growing, and they are going to get thirsty. So give some water! Do in during the day when the sun is up so they have no risk of freezing over.

[Photo courtesy of Antranias/pixabay.com]

Plant A Hedge

Hedges are a great alternative to fences as they effectively filter strong, damaging winds. A mixed variety of native plants provide the perfect habitat for birds, insects and small mammals such as hedgehogs, as well as giving year round interest from flowers, seeds, berries and colourful tones of foliage.

Eradicate Weeds

Weeds have been having a wonderful time during this mild winter, quickly germinating and getting ready to cause all the havoc again in spring. Hoe through the roots of annual weeds and dig out the roots of the more stubborn ones to stop them in their tracks. This will save a whole lot of time and effort in spring time.

Early Potatoe Chitting

Begin the process of chitting early potatoes at the end of the month. The best way to do this is to stand the tubers in a recycled egg box with the end that has the most buds uppermost, and place in a bright, cool, frost-free area.

After a couple of weeks, shoots will begin to sprout, get these to about three or four per tuber to get the most productive crop.

Prune Wisteria

As beautiful as this plant may be, wisteria can be a bit of a nightmare and needs pruning in summer and winter to keep it manageable.

If you don’t bother to do this, wisteria naturally produces a very messy mass of foliage and barely any flowers. So prune the whippy growths back to five or six buds in late August, and prune further in January or February to two or three buds. Don’t worry if you missed the summer prune, it’s simple enough to spot the elongated stems.

A lot of us don’t do much with our garden once we have moved into our property. Of course, we may lay some turf and grow some plants, but we are not properly utilizing the space we have. Especially if we have a big garden! After all, it’s best to make the most of your garden as it can be one of the top selling features when you do put your home on the market. Therefore, here is some unmissable help to make the most of the space in your large garden.

Add an entertaining area

It’s hard for everyone to fit in your home when you are entertaining people for a special occasion. After all, your kitchen and dining area might not be that big inside your home. Therefore, to make the most of the space in your garden, you should make an entertaining area. It will be a great place to have guests over for a party. You can add a table and chairs and a BBQ so that you have everything you need for the occasion. Remember to get some kind of canopy, so that everyone can enjoy being outside for the party. Also, as extras, you should look into adding a fire pit and a chiminea to the entertaining area.

[Photo courtesy of noahherrera/pixabay.com]

Add a summer house or log cabin

You should also look into adding a summer house or a log cabin in the garden of your property to make the most of the space. It would be ideal as an extra play room or office for your property. It could be a mini home for your teen, so they have somewhere to complete homework or spend time with friends. You can either get a company into build one in your yard, or you could look into making one yourself; check out this video for more advice. Remember to make sure it’s protected for weathers all year round. You can find lots of help online for log house maintenance to ensure it stays looking great through the harshest of climates!

[Photo courtesy of Antranias/pixabay.com]

Add a beautiful garden feature such as a pond or water feature

If you have the space for it in your garden, you should consider adding a beautiful garden feature such as a pond or a water feature. They have lots of benefits; for one thing, you are doing your bit for the environment. After all, you are giving some fishes a must-needed home! And kids will love looking at them and feeding them every day. Also, water features are very relaxing for your soul. The calming sound of the water flowing can do wonders for your blood pressure!

Consider building an extension

A lot of people have a smaller home but a lot of land outside which belongs to them. In that case, you could make the most of the space in your large garden by extending your home. You might be able to make an additional bedroom or even an office room in your property if you do extend your house. Of course, make sure you are allowed before you do extend your home.

And remember to add a greenhouse to your yard if you have the room. That way, you can grow plenty of vegetables for your family’s use.

Unused garden space can feel wasted. If you have a large patch of grass with nothing on it, you probably want to fill it up with something exciting. That’s why building your own D.I.Y. log cabin is a fantastic idea. As well as being a fun project to take on, it’ll give you a perfect little hideaway and make your garden stand out.

The time it will take depends largely on how you go about getting materials and how big you want it to be. You can finish building a simple log cabin with purchased materials in a couple of weeks! However, no matter what kind of cabin you want to make, it will take a lot of planning and preparation. Here are the things to consider when building a cabin of your own.

[Photo courtesy of Pezibear/pixabay.com]

Setting Up

First of all, you’ll want plenty of wood to build your cabin. Plan out the size of your cabin and make sure you have the right amount of wood in the right size. The simplest way to get wood is to buy it. Many places deal in selling dry logs. You could also use other types of wood if you prefer. Some people go all out by chopping down and treating their own wood, but this takes much longer. You can also find ways to recycle old wood into your new project.

Be mindful that wood requires a lot of treatment. You’ll need to stain, caulk, and chink your wood to keep it all together and make sure it’s well protected. Maintenance is required to ensure your cabin doesn’t get ruined by the weather. Luckily, there are services dealing in cabin supplies to help you out.

Make sure you have your wood ready, as well as the plans and tools to set it all up.

Learn To Build

Once everything is setup, you’re ready to start building your cabin. Even for many D.I.Y. experts, this job might be completely new to you. It’s best to look for online tutorials to run you through the process. You could even watch a YouTube tutorial to give you a video demonstration of what to do.

Be prepared to spend a lot of time and effort on this. Some people spend weeks or months on building their perfect cabin. The best idea is to get friends or family to help you out, as more hands are always better.

Decorate Your Cabin

Learning to build and executing your plans will take a long time, but the results will make it all the more rewarding. Now you have your brand new backyard hideaway; it’s time to get to the really fun part.

You can repurpose your cabin in so many ways. You might want to use it as a faux holiday home, to get away from your house and spend some luxury time in. You could even make it into a guest bedroom for having people over.

You could extend the electricity from your house into the cabin or use an electric generator. This allows you to add things like a TV and electric heating. However, you might want to use your cabin to go back to basics and shut technology out. Pinterest can give you plenty of log cabin decoration ideas. Enjoy!

It can be disheartening when you purchase a property with a small backyard. Especially if you are a keen gardener, who likes to be outside in the backyard during the summer. However, a small garden doesn’t have to be a disaster. You can bring your small garden to life with these easy steps.

[Photo courtesy of  Jasper33/ en.wikipedia]

Use pots to grow a perfect fruit vegetable garden

One easy step to bring your small garden to life is you can use pots to grow a perfect vegetable garden. You don’t need to have a lot of space in your garden to put your vegetable pots. You could get a hanging pot which you can use to grow some beautiful strawberries or even some delicious tomatoes. You can grow herbs in small pots which you can dot around the garden. Your garden will be full of growing vegetables without having to use much of the space.

Get a landscaper in to utilize the space

Another easy step to bring your small garden to life is you can hire a landscaper to utilize the space properly. They will be able to help your ideas come to life in your backyard. They will be able to think of great ways to utilize the space properly, so you and your family can enjoy it for years to come. You can get a free quotation from them so that you know you can afford to have them in. It’s also an excellent way to add value to your home if you have a professional landscaper in to make your garden look fantastic.

Use the vertical space in your garden

You can also bring your small garden to life by using the vertical space in your garden. You want to get some plants which grow upwards, rather than out. A lot of people don’t use that space, but it’s an excellent way to utilize your small back garden. You can get planters which you hang anywhere in the backyard to create a vertical garden. And as this article says, you could even use a shoe organizer from your home to create a vertical garden. Don’t be afraid to try some espaliering on the walls outside to make your garden look great!

Bring in bright colored plants

Another easy step to bring your small garden to life is to add some brightly colored plants to the garden. They will make the backyard look beautiful and bigger. As this feature explains, you should put them at the front, so the rest of the garden will seem to recede, making it look longer.

Add a decking area to the garden

You can also build a decking area in your small garden. It can make the garden seem grand and beautiful. It also separates the garden into different zones, making it look deceptively bigger. It’s also an ideal area to add a table and chairs, so that you can sit outside in the sunshine!

Hopefully, these easy steps will lead to lots of compliments for your small garden!

Making your garden look as good as it should can take a lot of effort. If you aren’t a natural gardener, it can take a lot of persuasion to get you out in the garden working on bringing it up to muster. The more effort you put in, though, the better it will look. And the better your garden looks, the more ready you will be to go out there and keep it in fine condition. When you have a garden to be proud of, things flow from there.

[Photo courtesy of  Karen Arnold/publicdomainpictures.net]

One of the most important things about getting your garden in check is having a plan. Sometimes, when you move in to a new place, your garden needs a bit of work just to make it tidy. In doing so, you can keep it simple, or you can be ambitious with it and create something you’re proud to call your own. It should be something that fits where you live, as well. Picking the right things to put there will make a real difference.

Growing Something Beautiful

[Photo courtesy of  Roland zh/wikipedia.org]

A garden isn’t really a garden without at least a spray of natural beauty. What you’re aiming for is something that gives a burst of color. That will make it a pleasure to sit out in the garden and take in the view while chatting, eating and drinking. Flowers that suit the soil, whether they be roses, poppies or anything you like the look of, will be a pleasure to look at.

Growing Something Useful

[Photo courtesy of  Gab997/wikipedia.org]

Plants that have a utility beyond just looking pretty can be a sound addition to a garden. Not least because they themselves can be beautiful too, but also because they create a working garden. If you plant tomatoes, sweetcorn, chilli peppers or similar, you can then pick them when they’ve grown and use them. There’s something nice about eating food that you have grown yourself from native Australian seeds.

Creating An Ornamental Display

Not everything that you put in your garden has to be something that grows. Indeed, it can be efficient for you to put things there that don’t require planting and watering. Some decking or decorative gravel can create a walkway that looks good in the garden and is useful to you. Additionally, ornamental touches such as parasols and garden furniture can make the garden a more pleasant place to sit.

Add A Water Feature

[Photo courtesy of  Tama66/pixabay.com]

Making use of water in your garden can make it a more relaxing place to be. The sight and sound of running water, against a backdrop of an interesting sculpture, is an excellent finishing touch to a garden. It attaches to your home water supply – so it might be a good idea to go for something small if you don’t want higher bills. It does, though, make a wonderful conversation piece and a touch of class.

You may well have your own ideas for what to do with your garden – it’s certainly something that is easier to do when you have had a look. Picking the right things to add to a garden takes some thought, but is well worth the effort.

Gardening in the summertime is one of life’s little pleasures. You can escape the usual stress and strain of your day-to-day existence, working happily on creating your own touch of Eden. It’s easy to while away hours, enjoying the blooming flowers and perhaps even tending to your vegetables.

Then, it happens. You know it’s a possibility, but somehow, in the pleasure of tending to your crops, you forget. You go back indoors, back aching pleasantly, hands covered with dirt. You head for the shower, shrug off your shirt, and then you see them. Bites. Circular, red blobs where some bug has had itself a feast of your delicious blood. As soon as you see them, they begin to itch. The itch, pain and discomfort continue for days, long past the point your calm happiness from gardening has evaporated.

It’s a fact of life that being outside means that you’re going to get bitten. Try and see it as a compliment – these bugs are saying you’re tasty! Well, it’s a nice idea if you can see it like that, but it more likely just makes you murderous. The bugs, flies, wasps, mosquitoes and everything else have got to go.

1. Bug Spray

[Photo courtesy of Clker-Free-Vector-Images/pixabay.com]

These have a dual purpose. First, they can make you a less attractive feast. Secondly, you can bring about violent revenge should anything try and bite you anyway, as they are instantly poisoned.

If possible, try and find sprays that do not include a chemical compound known as DEET. This has been shown to cause a whole host of problems. If you would rather keep things as natural as possible, diluted neem oil is a good idea.

2. Stay Above Ground Level

If you tend to sit down to weed a particularly stubborn flower bed, you’re putting yourself at a level most insects can find you. At least give them a fight. Stay upright as much as possible, or use something to kneel on when working at ground height. A large tarpaulin can put a protective layer between you and the things that fancy a nibble.

3. Go All In

[Photo courtesy of Jim Gathany/wikimedia.org]

If you’re covered in bug spray and crouching on a tarpaulin, but still ending the day covers in bites, it’s time to think bigger. Companies that specialise in mosquito control can help eradicate the idea garden of the issue, through a variety of methods. If you’ve young children, this is particularly worth thinking about. You don’t want to discourage them from going outside.

4. An Old Wives Tale

It’s not possible to say if this really works or why, but there’s plenty of evidence on a colloquial level that people swear by it. If you fill a plastic bag with water and hang it around where you’re working, bugs may well leave you alone. There’re theories that the water disrupts the many-eyed insects and confuses them. Or perhaps it does nothing- no one knows for sure. It is, however, an easy and inexpensive idea if you’re at the point where you’re trying anything.

Employing the above can help reduce the discomfort creepy crawlies may be unleashing on you. After all, your garden should be a place of pleasure, not pain!