An outdoor enclosed alfresco is the perfect way to extend your living space and create an outdoor room. And, if you plan on entertaining year-round, you’ll love the flexibility and protection an enclosed outdoor space provides.

Offering shelter from the winter cold and summer heat, an enclosed outdoor alfresco area can become the preferred at-home destination for dinner and drinks among friends and family.  

The real trick to creating an outdoor alfresco area you’ll actually use and enjoy lies in pairing your aesthetic with your practical needs. 

In this month’s B&C Journal, we’ll be offering up some outdoor living considerations you likely haven’t factored in, as well as exploring how you can match practicality with style. 

After all, the marker of a successful living space is creating a quality environment you’re excited to experience time and again.

The team at Balnei & Colina 

 

1. Make your cabinetry the centerpiece

With a clever outdoor enclosed alfresco design, your outdoor kitchen can become the centerpiece of your space. Installing built-in cabinetry in your outdoors provides practicality and a sense of organisation, while also offering you the ability to customise the design of the cabinets to your unique needs and personal style. 

Image via Mindi Cooke Photography  

Balnei & Colina | Drummoyne Outdoor Kitchen Renovation

Our Balnei & Colina kitchen renovation team can help design an outdoor kitchen that ticks all the boxes. From beautiful cabinetry to high-quality finishes, you’ll be left with an outdoor room you can enjoy for years to come.

 

2. Extend your indoor living 

Image via Whitewood Agency 

Image via The Spruce

Forget about tucking away your barbeque, only giving it the care and use it deserves on the rarest of summer weekends. With an outdoor enclosed alfresco, your barbeque area can be the centerpiece of your space any time of year.   

If outdoor entertaining is a must for you, and your outdoor area is currently under-utilised, a practical, and eye-catching outdoor kitchen may be just what you need to make outdoor entertaining with friends and family easier. 

If you’re looking for an expert’s perspective, Balnei & Colina’s experienced kitchen renovation team can help you, design and build your ideal outdoor kitchen.  

If you have a family or simply love outdoor dining, consider integrating your indoor and outdoor spaces. Investing in stacker, sliding doors, or bi-folds, will help bring the outdoors in and provide a seamless transition between your indoor and outdoor living spaces. It’s a sure way to make it feel as though your entertaining area has doubled in size. And that’s because it has!

To achieve that feeling of continuation, build your outdoor kitchen in line with your inside kitchen. Use similar materials and finishes in both your outdoor kitchen and indoor kitchen to achieve this. When the two spaces have more of a cohesive look, the transition between your indoor and outdoor kitchen will feel seamless.  

The friendly team at Balnei & Colina renovations can help design a central outdoor hub that ticks all the boxes. From beautiful cabinetry to high-quality finishes, you’ll be left with a space you can enjoy for years to come. 

 

3. Get creative with privacy screens 

Image via Chris Warnes 

Image via Homes to Love  

Just like shutters can create privacy and separation, so can feature walls. An outdoor screen is ideal for creating an enclosed area that is private but doesn’t obstruct your surrounding views.

On a practical note, consider adding heating or a ceiling fan to your alfresco, so you can enjoy the space all year round. In the example above, you’ll spot both. 

Installing a ceiling-mounted heater, (carefully positioned so as not to impede outdoor entertaining) and/or a large fan will keep family and guests cool in the summer and warm in winter.  

Heating and cooling appliances don’t need to take away from outdoor alfresco design — instead, opt for fixtures that are integrated and subtle. That way your eyes naturally bypass both and instead land on the greenery of the garden and your newly renovated outdoor kitchen.  

Functionality and beauty can coexist — you don’t need to sacrifice either.  

Do you need help designing an enclosed outdoor alfresco that balances style and function? We’d love to hear from you.  

Simply send us your bathroom project details via this contact form, phone us at 1300 450 320, or drop us an email at info@balneiandcolina.com.au. 

To keep up with the latest bathroom renovation trends, follow us on Facebook and Instagram or sign-up for our newsletter.