The Zero Residence by Reitsma & Co is designed to transition seamlessly from indoors to out. Image credit: Cieran Murphy.
Landscape is never an afterthought for the team at Reitsma and Associates. In fact, it’s the very first consideration of the design conversation. “Reviewing the site, the context, what views we have, the sightlines, the trees, and the neighbours to block out are all critical when we begin the design process,” they explain.
How a home interacts with its environment is the foundation on which every other decision rests, and when this relationship is carefully orchestrated, the boundary between indoors and out all but disappears. But beyond investigating the context of the site, there are some key design moves that can really augment a sense of flow. To learn more, we spoke with Reitsma & Associates, who shared ten clever ways to create a completely seamless indoor-outdoor experience.
Villa Solare: The solid balustrade and wall cut-out in this home serve to block out neighbouring houses, thereby connecting those on the balcony directly with the view.
1. Identify elements to block out and those to highlight
Introducing privacy is essential to creating a calm, outdoor-connected home. That may come through mature trees, layered planting, fencing, walls, external fireplaces or cleverly placed blinds. Blocking out what you don’t want to see often heightens the experience of what you do want.
Reitsma and Associates explain that an enclosed balcony or terrace can transform a view. By cutting out surrounding houses and revealing only the tops of trees, a home suddenly feels enveloped by nature. “It’s curating or framing what you want to show and what you want to hide”.
2. Use raw, natural materiality
Material continuity dissolves the boundary between inside and out. “We like our houses to feel like an outdoor pavilion: same flooring, same walling continues from inside to outside”.
Honest, raw materials like timber, stone and concrete soften transitions and create textural consistency. These natural surfaces weather comfortably, so the exterior feels like an extension of the interior, not a departure from it.
Bairndale Residence by Reitsma & Associates: Natural materials in both interior and exterior spaces create a direct connection with nature.
3. Get the spatial planning and orientation right
Indoor–outdoor flow starts with the plan, not the doors. Orientation to breezes and sun is essential, and courtyards provide the ideal structure for cross-flow ventilation. Reitsma frequently uses courtyards cut into the plan from the sides: “We’re bringing greenery into the dense parts of the house, and what it does is it creates opportunities for cross-flow ventilation, as well as connection with nature and light”.
Rather than pushing all outdoor living to the perimeter, these inward-facing spaces also create exceptional privacy. “You can feel oblivious to the neighbours.”
4. Bring outside materials in
Rather than merely extending interior materials outward, Reitsma often reverses the gesture. “We prefer to take an outside material in”. Raw stone or timber decking carries through, and even exterior fixings might remain visible indoors.
“The illusion is that when you walk through the home to the exterior spaces, you think ‘How on earth do they close this off?’ because the boundaries are seamlessly blurred through the materiality.” This approach makes the house feel as if nature naturally extends indoors.
5. Pocket the doors away entirely
A seamless connection requires removing visual clues to how the house opens and closes. Pocketed sliding doors disappear into hidden walls, leaving no evidence of their mechanism.
“When the doors are open, it tricks your mind, because you can’t see how you actually close off the space, so you feel like you must be in an external space,” shares the Reitsma team.
0042 Residence by Reitsma & Associates: Pocketed sliding doors are a great way to dissolve the threshold between indoors and out.
6. Hide (or minimise) the door track
Door tracks can be a giveaway. A chunky 300–400mm track immediately signals a threshold. Reitsma avoids this by using single sliders or bifolds with a slim, 20mm track. When a track is needed, it’s recessed and extremely minimal.
The result is a nearly uninterrupted surface, enhancing the illusion that the interior and exterior are one continuous space.
7. Use seamless furniture placements inside and out
Furniture is often an overlooked interrupter of flow. “What’s really critical is you don’t create a competition between the outside and inside furniture,” they say. Placing an indoor dining table directly adjacent to an outdoor one instantly divides the spaces.
Instead, furniture should be curated holistically, so the eye doesn’t flick back and forth between “inside zone” and “outside zone.”
Outdoor furniture should integrate seamlessly with the same palette and materiality as indoor furniture.
Villa Solare by Reitsma & Associates.
8. Create a ‘cave mouth’ with planting
Hanging plants or cascading greenery can frame outdoor areas in a soft, enveloping way. “You feel like you’re at the mouth of a cave, and the plants are cascading over”.
This “living curtain” also enhances privacy. “I can look out on the view, and they can’t look in on me”. It creates a protective, atmospheric edge, blurring the boundary between built form and landscape.
9. Use broad overhangs for shade and softness
Generous overhangs protect from heat while supporting the illusion of spatial continuity. Homes with extensive glazing need shading, and wide eaves keep outdoor spaces cool and comfortable.
They also make it difficult to discern where indoors ends and outdoors begins, creating a deliberate blurring of architectural edges.
10. Harness dappled light
Finally, dappled light adds a sensory softness. Whether through cascading plants or natural timber screens, patterned shade mimics the experience of sitting beneath a tree. “It gives you the opportunity to enjoy the sun without getting hot or burnt”.
This interplay of shadow and light contributes to a feeling of shelter: open yet protected, bright yet gentle.
Wilflower Residence by Reitsma & Associates. It's not always necessary to have direct sunlight in an outdoor living space; using wide overhangs and screen planting can filter light in more softly.
