A new HGTV series focuses on designs for gracious living in our very own great outdoors
Joanne Blain
Sun
ZEN AND SENSIBILITY What was once a commonplace spot in this Kitsilano backyard has been transformed into an inviting outdoor yoga studio (above) with sheer drapes creating a zen-like feeling.
SIMPLE TRANSFORMATION With summer coming, an attractive outdoor setting takes on a new importance for homeowners. The simple transformation of the deck on this Mount Pleasant condo shows what can be done with a little imagination, with a formerly bland space now becoming the type of sitting area that makes you want to be outside.
COOL STUFF FOR A STYLISH OUTDOOR SETTING Koolhaus garden and patio furniture includes the Eclipse chair,left, Manta silo umbrella and Roma Sling lounger.
You wouldn’t furnish your living room with ugly plastic lawn chairs. So why would you think they’re good enough for your backyard or patio?
That’s the question Kelly Deck wants to get homeowners to ponder in her new HGTV series Take It Outside. Her weekly mission is to get people to look at the exterior of their homes as an extension of the interior.
“It’s all about rethinking how we live in our outside spaces,” says the aptly named Deck, a Vancouver interior designer. “Every square foot of living space that you pay for, including your yard or deck, make it exquisite and make it work for you.”
Luckily, the selection of high-quality outdoor furniture on the market today is making that task easier. Gary Christianson of contemporary furniture retailer Koolhaus says the range of products and styles has changed dramatically in recent years.
While traditional teak-slat chairs and tables are still a popular choice, he says the fastest-selling outdoor furniture is sleek and modern in style, employing materials like powder-coated aluminum, faux-wicker woven resin and easy-care synthetic mesh.
And the big trend is toward comfort, says Christianson, with many people looking for weather-hardy lounge chairs and loveseats that will allow them to relax and enjoy the great outdoors.
Deck agrees that there’s far more choice today in functional and stylish furnishings that can work outdoors.
“The trend in the past five years has really been creating a home, and the market really reflected that in terms of products,” she says. “But now I think the trend is moving outside and rethinking your outside space to make it an extension of your inside space.”
For Take It Outside, which debuts June 6 on HGTV, Deck transforms everything from a deck on a Mount Pleasant condo to the expansive backyard of a North Vancouver house.
The budget for each renovation varies from home to home, ranging from $5,000 to about $50,000, says Deck. The homeowner kicks in $1,000 and the show picks up the rest of the tab, with help from sponsors who contribute products in exchange for the exposure they receive on the show.
Deck focuses on finding ways to entice people out of doors by creating the same sense of comfort and style they have inside their homes.
“Lots of people have neglected backyards,” she says. “So the question is what would make you want to go outside and how can you make it work to suit your lifestyle.”
Many people think about outdoor spaces primarily in terms of landscaping — which is swell if you’re passionate about gardening, but not so great if you have no interest in spending your leisure hours mowing, weeding and pruning.
“My personal association with gardens is labour,” says Deck. “I think what many people associate an outside space is with having to garden, and that’s so much work.”
One recently filmed episode focused on a Kitsilano house with a private, but otherwise fairly plain backyard. The homeowner was more interested in yoga than gardening, so Deck created an outdoor yoga studio, complete with a water feature and sheer draperies to create a zen-like feeling.
“It has almost no plants in it — they are more of a highlight than anything else,” she says. “The space is now conducive to what he does every day.”
The homeowner, Lawrence Cheng, says Deck captured his personal sense of style and used it to create a practical and tranquil space for yoga and meditation.
The change, he says, “was really amazing. I think Kelly really transformed the backyard space into something quite magical.”
On the show, Deck takes her inspiration for the design of the outdoor space from something inside the home. And for homeowners planning their own outdoor overhaul, “that’s a great starting point,” she says.
“When you think the possibilities are infinite and you have no parameters, it’s intimidating,” she says. “So using your inside space as a direction for how to design the outside creates a beautiful flow from inside to out.”
Mark Johnston of Fusion Television, which produces Take It Outside as well as the W network shows Divine Design and Colour Confidential, says Deck has proven to be the ideal designer for the show.
“She had a youthful energy but also a very strong, sophisticated sense of design,” he says. And the serendipity of her last name in relation to the show’s theme “was just a bonus,” he adds.
For her part, Deck — who continues to juggle a full-time design practice at the Simple Design Group with her hosting duties — says her experience on Take It Outside has given her a new appreciation of how to turn an outdoor area into a stylish, comfortable and welcoming space.
“It’s amazing how a simple transformation can make you want to go outside,” she says.
Kelly Deck of Take It Outside will be on the Pacific Centre plaza at Howe and West Georgia today from noon to 3 p.m., providing advice on designing outdoor spaces and offering homeowners a chance to win a design consultation and $3,000 home-furnishings gift certificate.
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FIVE HOT PRODUCTS FOR YOUR DECK OR YARD
Cantilevered umbrellas give you more design flexibility because the supporting post is on one side of the umbrella rather than down the middle, says Kelly Deck of Take It Outside. Koolhaus has several styles with unusually shaped canopies for extra drama.
Furniture made with Textaline mesh, a woven synthetic material, has a sleek, contemporary look and does a great job of withstanding the elements, according to Gary Christianson of Koolhaus. It doesn’t fade or crack and when it gets dirty, he says, just hose it off.
Zinc planters are a great choice for decks and patios, according to House & Home magazine. They’re lightweight and rust-resistant, and the finish oxidizes to an attractive whitish-grey colour when exposed to the elements. You can also fill them with water and float candles or cut flowers in them to create a simple water feature.
Take a break from wood with chairs or tables in powder-coated aluminum, says Christianson. They look great and they’re lightweight and practical — many pieces fold up for easy winter storage.
Sconce lights aren’t just for hallways — try some outside in a powder-coated finish to throw accent lighting up or down and to create “a clean, modern look,” says Deck.
FIVE TIPS FOR CREATING MORE LIVABLE AND STYLISH OUTDOOR SPACES
Consider your needs before you shop for outdoor furniture, suggests Gary Christianson of Koolhaus. “Are you someone who is out there on a Saturday afternoon with a beer enjoying the day, or are you having dinner parties at 8 o’clock at night?” That could determine whether a dining table or a couple of lounge chairs should be your top priority, he says.
Think outside the box when you’re looking for outdoor furniture, says Kelly Deck of HGTV’s Take It Outside. By all means, check out stores that specialize in patio furniture, but also look in stores that are better known for home furnishings. Two Vancouver retailers she suggests are worth a look are Chintz & Company and Moe’s Home Collection.
Make sure your outdoor furniture is functional and flexible, says Christianson. “Everything has to perform double duty — it has to stack or store, because people want to put it away for the wintertime, and it has to be able to survive the outdoor elements.”
To extend the usefulness of an outdoor space, consider adding a source of heat — anything from an outdoor fireplace to an overhead gas heater, says Deck. You want a space that you can use for more than a few hours a day, a few weeks a year. On the west coast, she says, “there is often a chill in the air, even in the summer … and when your body’s not warm, people don’t enjoy themselves.”
Give some thought to using contrasting materials in your outdoor design scheme, says Christianson. For example, consider something other than wood furniture if you’re furnishing a wood deck, he suggest. “Break it up a bit so it’s not all wood — maybe it’s a combination of teak and stainless steel and fabric.”
© The Vancouver Sun 2006