Stay Cozy This Winter by Contemplating These 5 Outdoor Living Ideas in Powell and Lewis Center OH

The cold weather is still on its way, but you may be wondering how to spend more time and enjoy the winter. Improving your outdoor living area will encourage more outdoor time year-round. There are plenty of features that make your patio feel warm and welcoming. You can stay cozy this winter by contemplating these six outdoor living ideas in Powell and Lewis Center, OH.

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Start with a Pavilion

The snow may blanket the landscape and render many parts unenjoyable, but a pavilion will help to keep things dry and comfortable. With a closed roof and open walls, the pavilion offers shelter from the harshest of elements while still keeping a great feeling of being outdoors. Once you set aside space for a pavilion, adding a few creature comforts will turn the space into an outdoor living room you’ll love to use all year long.

Add a Fire Feature

Fire features might not seem like a good fit under a roof, but any gas-fueled fire feature is safe to use under the roof of a pavilion, and will provide necessary heat. The masonry structure itself will provide a fantastic permanent presence that sets the ambience. You can use a fire table to enhance the dining experience; or a full sized outdoor fireplace for an even cozier living room feel..

Warm Refreshments

Part of any living space is making sure that everyone is hydrated and fed. In the summer, you may offer lemonade and fruits to help everyone keep up their energy. In the winter, you may offer hot chocolate and warm hand pies for a comforting and warming experience. Beyond just a few basic appliances such as an electric kettle and hot plate, you may opt for an entire outdoor kitchen under your pavilion. This will give you the opportunity to broaden the scope of your gatherings and give the stage to your culinary talents.

A Wind Break

Depending on the location of your pavilion and how it interacts with the wind, you might consider a way to block frigid winds from making the outdoor living space uninhabitable. Wind breaks can be detached from the pavilion (along the property boundary, for example) either in the form of a living wall made from trees such as cedar or a privacy fence made from wood or vinyl. Or, the wind break could be attached to the pavilion, such as a lattice structure covered in climbing vines (attach a vinyl screen to the lattice during the colder months for a more effective windbreak). You could even position an outdoor fireplace on the windward side of the pavilion and let the masonry block the wind. A wind break will help contain the heat of your fire feature and make your pavilion a more enjoyable area during the winter.

A Heated Floor: the Ultimate in Luxury

Use a driveway paver heating system under the pavilion (in fact, your entire patio would benefit from radiant heat) and you’ll soon wonder why everyone doesn’t have this feature. A heated floor in your pavilion may seem like a luxury, but it has many practical applications that will help keep everyone outside since our extremities are the first places in our bodies to get cold. A heated floor will help keep the area free of ice and snow, no matter how much snow has blown into the pavilion; and a dry floor makes for a much cozier experience.

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