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25 Feb 2019

Rustic Outdoor Fireplace Ideas for 2019

fire pit

New Year is a time for change and reflection and also the perfect opportunity to update your surroundings. Your outdoor space is a great place to start. Outdoor fireplaces are a main contender, bringing with them a plethora of benefits. They can enhance your mood and turn your yard into a glorious outdoor haven.

Read on for their amazing qualities and new outdoor fireplace trends to transform your space in 2019.

5 Rustic Outdoor Fireplace Ideas

Whether fireplace or fire pit, there’s a rustic look suitable to everyone’s tastes. Fire adds a certain ‘je ne sais quoi’ to an outdoor space. It’s a natural element that creates a focal point and turns an ordinary space into something quite spectacular.

1. A Tiny Bit Traditional – A classical fireplace gets an update thanks to some clever design work. Bring the indoors outside with a traditional looking fireplace in natural stone. Create a living space to mimic the perfect, cozy family room. Use large cushions and throws to really enjoy your outdoor living space.

2. Minimal Masterpiece – Concrete is a must and a real staple for honing in on the minimalism trend. Try a low, wide fireplace and play around with different textures and finishes. A darker contrasting mantle showcases a bespoke look. Create an opening and place fresh cut logs. Matching concrete seating and dining options brings the whole look together.

3. Classic Country – A red brick work fireplace frames the perfect country scene. Incorporate wrought iron, brick or stone fittings, and marry them with contrasting tables and chairs. Woven or beaded materials adds an extra element and creates a sense of care-free relaxation.

4. Awesome Open Pit – To really appreciate the flames on a fire, an open fire pit is the best choice. Choose a masonry brick pit to take yourself back to memories of camping trips. Use reclaimed logs and wood to create bespoke details and furniture pieces. Huge throw pillows and lanterns add a touch of glamour to your rugged outdoor spot.

5. Beautiful Bonfire Pit – Keep all of the focus on your fire pit. Try a teak-and-steel lava-rock fire pit. Showcase the flames and use a wood surround seating bench. Keep colours natural and clean to create a blank canvas.

Benefits of Having an Outdoor Fireplace

• A fire pit/fireplace adds ambience to an outdoor space and, due to the heat and light it emits, allows you to use your deck/yard into the later evening and the colder months.
• The living room may not be the most favoured place in the home anymore. An outdoor fire allows you to sit with loved ones and create new, special memories.
• Toast marshmallows and sit around singing – no longer are fire pits reserved for holidays and camping. Enjoy special times all year round.
• Increase your property value with a fireplace and beautiful outdoor living space.
• Give yourself an extra space to cook and enjoy meals.

Come to Green Scene Landscaping for your new outdoor fireplace. We create beautiful custom masonry fireplaces comprised of a variety of materials such as:

• Brick
• Natural Stone
• Flagstone
• River Rock
• Sandstone

Contact us today and let us help your turn your yard into the place to be in 2019.

25 May 2018

An outdoor kitchen is just what the doctor ordered

Outdoor kitchen

A BBQ on your patio is great, but a full outdoor kitchen is better.

It’s an investment in the outdoor and family-entertaining lifestyle you live, and it increases the value (and appeal) of your house in the competitive southern Ontario real estate market.

You should never leave everything up to your builder, no matter how experienced they are. It’s important to stay present through the process so you are never surprised by the choice your builder makes.

Follow these tips and you’re more likely to avoid any surprises as your outdoor kitchen comes together.

Don’t rush the planning

Poor planning explains most badly executed outdoor kitchens.

Measure your space, draw out a plan. Make some calls for quotes on materials, appliances, landscaping, etc…

Outdoor kitchen sketch

Write out your intended use for the kitchen and get specific. Don’t just write cooking – of course you plan to cook.

  • What kind of meals will you most likely cook outside?
  • What size groups do you intend to entertain? How many seasons do you hope to use the kitchen for?
  • Will you transport things back and forth between your main kitchen, or do you expect your outdoor kitchen to be fully self-contained?

Get the details down so you are clear when you bring in a contractor.

Update your knowledge

Appliance features change from year to year, and most people buy new appliances every decade or so. A lot has changed since the last time you bought a cooktop.

Get a firm grasp of what’s available.

An outdoor fridge had to be brought in over the winter 10 years ago. Today, you just unplug it and your fridge lives comfortably in the snowy, icy weather until you need to use it again in the spring.

Make your kitchen part of the scenery

Outdoor kitchen

The materials in the design of your outdoor kitchen should be dictated by the home and its surroundings

Use the same trim and stone you find on the exterior of the and in the landscape.

Or build with updated materials you plan to incorporate into your home and landscape down the road. Continuity is the key to making an outdoor kitchen that enhances your house and doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb.

Think about the size

If your home is large, your outdoor kitchen should be too.

If your home is a more modest size, the kitchen should reflect that.

After all, you aren’t building a home addition. It’s a home improvement.

Smart designs incorporate numerous structural elements to make a kitchen fit into its surroundings, including pergolas, screens and plantings.

Don’t ignore positioning

People using the pool shouldn’t have to walk past a hot grill to get a cold drink.

Guests sitting at the table shouldn’t be showered with smoke from the grill.

You shouldn’t be cut off from the social part of entertaining because you’re cooking.

Where will you put food after you take it off the grill? Where will you put a dirty pot?

The more you think about the kitchen as part of a whole functional space, the better (of course, your designer is here to help you with that. You don’t have to be the expert, you just have to think about it).

Don’t try to save money by cutting out lights

Kitchen lights

It’s hard to see food cooking on a grill at night, so you need bright task lighting.

It’s also hard, to eat food if you can’t see it.

Combined kitchen and dining areas, like your outdoor kitchen, should have ambient and ornamental as well as task lighting.

We also recommend dimmer switches, so the light can match the situation.

Outdoor cooking gives opportunities to do things you don’t normally do with an indoor kitchen. Searing steaks over incredibly high heat, smoking slabs of ribs for hours, or cook pizza in a wood-fired oven are all more enjoyable outdoors. Make sure your kitchen design lets you do everything you want to do more of.

We can help you design an outdoor kitchen your family will love, and handle all the building work, keeping you involved through the entire process.

This is a partnership, not a simple transaction. Your outdoor kitchen will serve your family for years, it’s important to get it right.

Give us a call today to talk about your vision and find out if we are the right fit to build you rnew luxury outdoor kitchen.