Outdoor Shade Solutions

It’s hard to beat a well designed outdoor space, created to enjoy those long summer (and winter) evenings outdoors, and creating one of these havens in the backyard can be a well-thought-out investment, adding significant value to a home. Creating an outdoor room with retractable awnings, shades and screens.

The outdoor room, depending on the way it is designed, often becomes another living area - adding a significant footprint to the house, without adding to the physical footprint of the building. Utilising the latest technology with items like outdoor awnings, louvres, shades and screens it’s possible to create rooms that are designed to shelter from the elements, as well as open up completely when required - allowing for year-round enjoyment of the outdoors. 

Retractable awnings

Retractable awnings and opening louvre roofs are a popular way to achieve this, with many available suitable for all sorts of environmental conditions including those areas with high wind loadings. Shade sails are another way to create a semi-protected outdoor room, although these are more suited for predominantly summer use - as a sunshade - rather than protection from rain and winter conditions.

Like sun shades, the outdoor umbrella is perfect for a summer garden, although not as useful throughout the colder months when more permanent or versatile solutions come into their own, such as louvres, retractable louvres and full louvre roof systems allowing for varying degrees of protection or an entirely open ‘roof’ when desired. Combined with outdoor screens or garden screens, it’s possible to create a full outdoor room, designed to be enjoyed in rain, hail or shine. 

Our fascination with the concept of the outdoor room as led to the creation of full outdoor furniture suites designed to replicate the luxuries of the indoors outside. Recently, these types of suites - indistinguishable from their interior counterparts - have become commonplace, evoking a true sense of relaxation in the comfort of the home garden. 

If you’re not sure where to start with an outdoor room, make sure you create an ArchiPro Design Board and save all your favourite projects and products to develop an inspired start to the design journey.