How to Use Winter to Plan a Summer Outdoor Living Space

It’s a common misconception that you can only plan your outdoor living space in the warmer months. That is when most plants blossom and bloom so it makes sense for people to make a parallel and think that to do anything in the garden, you have to wait until spring or summer.

However, creating your perfect space is not just about planting flowers. Winter is the best time to sit down and think about how you want to transform your backyard. It is the ideal season to get a head start on some larger projects, and possibly even finish them by the time summer rolls around so you can roll around in your dream garden. Here are some things you can do right away.

Getting a space ready, even an outdoor space, requires you to organise and design it. Use these cold months to peacefully brainstorm some ideas and make a game plan without any pressure.

If you wait until it gets warm to start planning, you won’t have much summer left to enjoy the garden which you are just starting to construct. So don’t let the frozen ground freeze your projects. Get started right away by first identifying your wishes and needs.

Whether you are working on your own or with a contractor, a visual aid will always be of help. Take this extra time to go online and find as many pictures as you can which represent the type of living space you wish to create. You should be able to put together different themes and change your mind if you want to because time isn’t an issue now that you started to plan early.

The winter soil is much looser than summer soil, so a lot of hardscaping projects take less time to complete when it’s cold. Doing ground work in the winter can save you hours of labor and, in some cases, money. If you are planning on doing expensive digging or hiring a paid contractor, keep that in mind.

Take this opportunity to do some work above ground. Consider ways in which you will be able to hide away from the harsh summer sun before it surprises you. Aussies deal with the anger of the sun almost all year round, so most of them have designed their outdoor living spaces around that issue.

Look for companies that do professional installation of awnings in Sydney, for example, and take note of the stylish ways people have met their needs. Also, they are usually made to withstand all weather conditions and can be retractable as well - for when you want to get a tan in!

Once you have decided what you want your garden to look like, do a detailed budget. Luckily, with all this time on your hands, you should be able to visit different stores and compare prices which is usually very time-consuming. During the winter, you also have the luxury to revise your budget and prioritise your wish list slowly instead of rushing into making choices.

You need to decide what kind of material you want your outdoor space to be made from. On top of deciding what you want it to look like, you need to consider the different weather conditions this material will need to endure.

Think realistically about the level of maintenance you are prepared to provide and then get ready to choose between wood, tile, or the thousands of other combinations out there. It’s a good thing you have all winter to make a choice.

You might need some professional assistance in creating your outdoor space and the winter months will allow you to find the perfect contractor. Most of them will be more accessible off-season than in the summer, so you will be able find someone who fits your needs and is good at what they do.

As an added bonus, the contractor won’t be overbooked and rushing from job to job. Instead, they could give your dream project their undivided attention.

Summertime is for enjoying your backyard, the winter is for planning it. Hopefully some of these ideas will inspire you to start doing some work right away, no matter the time of year!