The home may be where the heart is, but nothing about my patio inspired any love. A previous owner surrounded 3 sides with an ugly concrete block wall. The patio itself was covered with a cracked concrete floor and deep wooden joints connecting the blocks. Our patio screamed, “Don’t you have any easy patio design ideas to make me over? I’m hideous!” This year, since completing my master gardener classes, I’m planning a complete patio remodel I will be sharing as I complete the projects. Until then, I’m sharing the easy patio design ideas for your home and garden I’ve used over the past few years.
Easy Patio Design Ideas for Home and Garden
Want to convert your outdoor space without spending a ton of money? Here are my 4 best tips for patio design.
- Paint. Want to know the easiest way to change the look of your patio? Grab a gallon of paint or a few cans of spray paint and update all the patio furniture and accessories. The best way to pull together a matching look is to choose 2 to 3 colors of paint and carry the theme throughout. I use French blue, Lagoon, and Smokey Beige to create a calm and serene oasis. If you’re feeling brave, you can repair, patch, and paint your concrete.
Furniture Painting Tip: If you have metal furniture, sand any rusted spots before you begin. I like to use spray paint with primer included as it saves a step during the painting process. My paint of choice-because it is readily available at home improvement and craft stores and provides a nice coat- is Krylon ColorMaster Matte (or Satin) Spray Paint & Primer.
If you choose to paint the concrete, realize it is a labor-intensive process that will take several days and nice weather to complete.
2. Create Comfortable Seating Areas. Nothing beckons you to relax on the patio more than comfy seating arrangements. Group chairs and a loveseat together to create an intimate space for friendly chats or add a small patio table with chairs for Al Fresco dining. But, don’t stop there! Create spaces that meet your needs; dining areas, cozy reading nooks, a space to grill, or a potting spot to work with plants.
Designer Tip: Add comfort with decorative pillows, cushions, and blankets. These can be purchased in contrasting colors if desired to add some punch to the decor. Be sure to include lighting options, like candles, pathway lights, or string lights.
3. Add plants. Flowers infuse the garden with personality and create a lush atmosphere. It’s simple to add a few containers to the patio and fill in with your favorite flowers, herbs, or veggies. If you have enough room, include a small raised bed with a trellis. I added both shade and full sun perennials, along with herbs and veggies to create a working garden in a small area.
Garden Design Tip: Design your garden plans on paper before you begin to save time and money. Here’s a designer tip I learned: you can create more impact with one or two large containers filled with flowers than with an assortment of small scattered pots of flowers.
Money-Saving Tip: Want to save even more money? Grow your own plants for seed. If you are a beginning gardener, choose easy to grow flowers such as nasturtium, sunflowers, or coneflowers, easy to grow herbs such as chives and cilantro, or easy to grow vegetables like lettuce or strawberries. You can also grow “themed gardens” like a pizza garden or a fragrance garden.
4. Add Personal Touches. Let your imagination run wild! This is your space to enjoy and let your creativity run wild. Make sure it matches your personality! Incorporate some of your favorite things or use garden art that reflects your hobbies. My love of New Orleans courtyards prompted me to create a small seating area with an antique door complete with a flower box, colorful chairs, and a classic courtyard fountain.
Other personal touches I’ve included are bird feeders and birdbaths for my husband, and some metal bunnies and sheep to represent the animals that live on our farm.
Money-Saving Tip– Check local thrift stores for fun accessories or other pieces that can be redone and added to your garden.
One more tip– Creating a garden “all at once” can be a daunting and expensive task. Plan to break your garden down into a 3-5 year project. You’ll save money over time by finding pieces you truly love and, if you use perennials, by being able to propagate them and save money on plants.
Be sure to stop by often as I will try to post a new gardening topic each week, along with the progress on our *budget* patio garden redo as soon as we can start. What are your favorite garden design ideas? Share your suggestions on easy, low-cost patio design with us in the comments.
I’m totally down for growing cocktails! These are some great idea’s and I will be sharing the cocktail idea with my grandmother, she will love it.
Great garden ideas! I’ve been looking for some ideas for ways to improve my garden. This has been helpful!
You’ve got some great ideas here:)
Great tips, we just purchased herbs to grow. I think that is a great project for the kids.
I am just loving these beautiful ideas for a easy yet creative Patio for your Home and Garden. The Birdfeeder is an amazing idea out of them & I would love to stepin to makeover our garden area as well.
I’ve been planning to revamp my patio for a while now, this has given me just the inspiration I need to get out there!
Grow cocktails intrigue me! I want my own garden one day that is a goal of mine!
I need to add some flowers to our front flower bed. Great tips. Next year I will be doing some planter boxes.
I love the personal touches that you added. This gives your patio, as well as your home and garden, a hint of who you are and what your personal decor tastes are.
I am hoping to get outside today to work on my outdoor space. Everything is growing like crazy and I am behind!
I wish I had a larger patio. I love greenery, and I have always wanted to start on a vegetable or herb garden. I have to check out Uncommon goods. Maybe this year, I can start working on that herb garden.
That’s a beautiful patio! I love pretty garden with lots of flowers and herbs
Such a cute garden. I can’t wait to buy a house so I can plant my own garden
I like your ideas. Very cute and not too much fuss.
These are great (and adorable) patio ideas! I really want to spice up my patio/backyard this summer with a few nice plants and flowers.
These are great ideas! Our patio is all set up with plants and planters. Now i just need to work on the seating! lol. But when I am finally done it will be such a nice relaxation area.
I love these ideas. My patio is pretty plain-looking right now. I need some accents!
I love the warm weather, it allows people to enjoy sitting outside on the patio and be one with nature! great ideas for decorating the patio to make it a tranquil place to relax!
These are all great ideas. I love to decorate my patio with gnomes and other decorative items.
I love a good patio. It makes sitting outside so much enjoyable.
Those are some really cute ideas we are trying to get our backyard and some kind of an organization since we moved in. I can’t wait to see what our yard will look like once it’s set and ready to go.
Oh I love this such some an awesome ideas I am totally going to have to check out Uncommon Goods as well I am loving that rabbit. x
These are great tips. I love that bird feeder!