Inspiration for your dream patio

There’s nothing more satisfying in a garden than a beautiful patio. It’s the perfect platform for entertaining, relaxing and admiring your wonderful planting, not to mention your interesting garden features.

No matter what size your garden, a patio is a great way to make a design statement and increase the value of your home, and you’ll be sure to spend more time outside in the fresh air, so there are health benefits too.

So where do you start when it comes to designing the perfect patio for your home? There is so much scope when it comes to patio design. To ensure your patio is everything you want it to be and more, it’s a good idea to do plenty of research. You’ll need to think about size and colour scheme and how easy it will be to maintain, as well as position in your garden (it doesn’t have to be right next to your house). End of garden patios are a great idea.

Think about whether you want an intricate pattern or a minimalist, modern design? And you’ll need to decide on which materials you’d like to use, such as stone, pavers, bricks, flagstone or concrete. Don’t feel you have to stick with one monotonous material. If you are planning a large patio, you could break up areas with smaller units.

Perhaps you want to hire a professional or are you keen to take on the patio as a DIY project? These are all decisions you’ll need to make before you can bring your dream patio to life.

Here’s just the inspiration you need to iron out your ideas!

Source: Great Ormond Street by Andy Sturgeon

Think big, scale small

Take a look at some bigger projects by high-end garden designers for inspiration. It’s a great way to gather interesting ideas. Not all of the paving ideas will be suitable for a small project, but many will. Even discovering materials and bold colour schemes can be inspirational enough to set you on your own design path.

Source: House Beautiful

If you want a more modern take on the patio, why not replicate your kitchen flooring to create an outdoor kitchen and patio?

Source: Backyard Miranda Magazine

These tiled areas look modern, chic and add real interest to any contemporary garden. It proves that anything is possible! Patterned tiles, sawn limestone and polished concrete work well for modern patio schemes. For great tile options check out Topps Tiles, if you can stretch your budget we love Bert & May.

Gather ideas

Gather as many ideas as you can from home improvement and gardening magazines and websites. You can find some unique inspiration from others by using image sharing platforms like Pinterest. Start to build a picture of the type of patio style you would like and how you would like to use it. Will you be using your patio just as a platform for a couple of deck chairs? Or is your plan to have a dining table, outdoor kitchen and outdoor lounge?

Here are some great patio ideas to get you started:

Source: Pinterest

This large patio has been made with reclaimed slabs which makes a great feature with a bit more of a rustic feel if that is the look you are going for. Reclaimed weathered paving flags are another great idea if you would prefer your patio to look worn in than brand new.

Source: Home Designing

This simple but expansive patio is divided by lawn into zones. And what a great idea to have one zone covered with a pergola to provide privacy and shade! See more creative ways to cover your patio here.

Source: House Curious designed by Shelly Hugh-Jones

Sometimes it’s all about the view. This simple concrete patio sets the scene. Anything more intricate would detract from the gorgeous landscape beyond.

Source : Houzz

This pretty and cosy outdoor area includes an amazing firepit, which is just perfect for gathering around on cooler summer evenings.

Source: Tuindesign

This delightful patio combines lush planting and a central water feature to make the setting both more serene and interesting. A water feature nestling into the patio is a great design feature. It creates a truly relaxing and meditative space to escape to and enjoy and is sure to wow your guests too.

Don’t forget to take inspiration from family and friends if they have patios. Garden shows are also a great source for inspiration. Good luck with the patio of your dreams!

Words by Annie Button.

July

With the sunshine coming out to play this month we’ve picked out some of our favourite happenings in and around London. From Wimbledon, to sipping cocktails or heading to the seaside, we’re sure to have something that will get you into the summer spirit. Cheers to July may it be hot and sticky with plenty of ice cream days. Enjoy, and remember to share any hip happenings in the comments below x

Wimbledon - 1st-14th July

Kicking off this month is one of the most quintessentially British summer events, Wimbledon. It remains one of the very few major UK sporting events where you can still buy premium tickets on the day of play. Tickets are sold strictly on the basis of one per person queuing.

A limited number of tickets are available daily for Centre Court, No.1 Court and No.2 Court, except for the last four days on Centre Court, when all are sold in advance. In addition, several thousand Grounds Passes are available each day at the turnstiles entitling use of unreserved seating and standing room on Courts No.3 - 18. For more info click here.

Summer Cocktails

Secret London have a great selection of cocktail spots with some of the best places to sip on cool, alcoholic beverages in London this season; from frozen margaritas to charitable sugar snap pea-infused vodka. Believe me, they’re good. For more info click here.

Escape to the beach

There are plenty of ways to escape London - from lush park walks to weekend village breaks - but sometimes a trip to the seaside is the only way to reset and unwind. Londoners needn’t trek far for a brilliant beach; the capital is well connected to some of the best beaches in the country, and in less than two hours, city folk can find themselves oceanside making sandcastles, spotting wildlife, and copping a lungful of fresh salty air.

From the fresh oysters on the foodie coastline of Mersea Island to seal-spotting and fossil hunting at Walton-on-the-Naze - here’s Time Out’s guide to the best beaches near London.

Summer swimming

Come rain or shine, outdoor swimming was a favourite British pastime in the 1930s, over the last few years it has been making a bit of a come back. Luckily there are a few of the original lidos that remain and have been revamped for modern day – now serving as ideal spots for al fresco exercise or lazy summer days by the pool. Sheerluxe have pulled together some of the very best ones in London, and around the UK…for in for click here.

ON Blackheath - 13th-14th July

Born out of a desire to stage an event that would celebrate this stunning part of London, ONBlackheath was created as the perfect festival for unwinding and putting a smile on your face, showcasing the best in local and international artists, serving up amazing food, and offering a world of fun for our younger visitors. For more info click here.

Somerset House - Summer series - 11th-21st July

Across eleven nights of open-air gigs, Somerset House Summer Series brings a vibrant festival atmosphere to the very heart of London. With a programme of pioneering musicians across a range of genres, Summer Series gives music fans a live experience unlike any other, with the rare chance to see critically acclaimed artists plus some of the best up and coming performers in a spectacular yet intimate setting. For tickets nad more info click here.

Citadel Festival - 14th July

If we’re being honest, Sundays at a festival are usually a bit of a damp squib. After days of abuse, both your inflatable mattress and soul are dangerously deflated. Going to a festival on a Sunday all fresh and rested, on the other hand, sounds a lot more appealing, especially if it’s tailor-made for the day of rest – which is where Citadel comes in. Returning to Gunnersbury Park once again as the calmer post-Lovebox antidote, Citadel has more of a chilled vibe to it, but still boasts some top musical acts including Friendly Fires, Honeyblood and Dream Wife, plus all manner of other pursuits, including comedy, arts, talks, workshops and lots of top food and drink. Words by Time Out for more info click here.

Longboys - Now open

This new venture from former Group Pastry Chef for the Hakkasan group, Graham Hornigold, and Heather Kaniuk, former Executive Pastry Chef at the Mandarin Oriental, has brought us some very unholy doughnuts. These aren’t round boys, they’re Longboys.

Found at Wembley Boxpark and the Selfridges Food Hall, Longboys has changed the game for doughnuts. More like a eclair-doughnut hybrid, they’re filled with all sorts of fresh and tasty ingredients, such as rhubarb, custard and orange; sticky toffee, date and pecan; raspberry, rose and lychee; and lemon meringue pie.

Summer Salad Ideas

As soon as summer hits the doors are open, the BBQ is on and I’m in the kitchen rustling up a delicious salads. We love salads during the summer months either on their own for lunch/dinner or as a side for a BBQ or garden party. We've pulled together some of our favourites that I just know you'll love.

If you make any of the salads we would love to see your creations, so make sure you tag us on social media or comment below. Or if you have your own salad recipe that is to die for please share with us hello@housecurious.co.uk and we just might feature it on the blog (with your permission obviously).

Superfood salad

This salad is so delicious and healthy it’s one of my favourites. Whenever I serve this salad people always ask for the recipe. It could be a meal on its own and is great if you have vegetarian guests. I borrowed this dish from the man himself, Jamie Oliver. This salad has a wonderful combination of textures and flavours and is such a beautiful dish to bring to the table; perfect with a slow roast lamb or by itself with some fresh bread and hummus.

Summer Skin Food Salad with a Zesty Dressing

The lovely Erica from Naturally Nourished London joined me to create an everyday recipe tailored to promote healthy glowing skin for the summer months ahead. We came up with this very aptly named beauty and really hope you enjoy making it as much as we did creating it! You can follow along on IGTV and the recipe can be found here.

Anna's Black Rice Salad with Green Harissa 

This salad is from the awesome Anna Barnett and goes beautifully with the slow roast lamb or is delicious by itself. This dish looks so beautiful but is also very tasty. The Green Harissa is pretty special too and again its one of those recipes that everyone wants to know.  The great thing about this salad is that you can make it the night before. For all the details just click here.

Tomato and Pickled Ginger Side Salad

Last Summer we cooked up a delicious indian inspired feast with Amandip Uppal, Author of cookery book Indian Made Easy. The tomato and pickled ginger salad is a great side dish or salad for a summer BBQ. For the recipe check out the blog post here and follow along on IGTV.