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30 Dream Decks for Lounge Lovers
Magical settings and dazzling views create decks that are so dreamy, you won't want to leave
Houzz Contributor. Pangaea Interior Design is an award winning design firm specializing in residential projects including new construction, remodeling and kitchen & bath design. Pangaea's style is characterized by clean lines and uncluttered interiors that are warm, comfortable, inviting and reflect the personal taste and interests of her clients. Call to schedule your initial consultation and you'll be well on the way to the home of your dreams. 503-.816.4394
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I will never forget the first time my mother-in-law came to visit us in our new home in Sandy, Oregon. It was a lovely, sunny week, and we had all sorts of plans for sightseeing and events in Portland. But we are blessed with a deck above the Sandy River with a fabulous view of rapids and a canopy of trees overhead. The morning after she arrived, we all sat out there with our coffee to enjoy the morning. Four days later we were all still wearing our pajamas and all still sitting on the deck.
We call it "the deck effect." It's total inertia brought on by the realization that there just isn't anyplace you'd rather be; it's the complete inability to tear yourself away. What could possibly be better than sitting there taking in the view, enjoying a soft breeze and soaking up a little sun? Just being there is all the entertainment you need.
Here are 30 decks guaranteed to give you a serious case of the deck effect.
We call it "the deck effect." It's total inertia brought on by the realization that there just isn't anyplace you'd rather be; it's the complete inability to tear yourself away. What could possibly be better than sitting there taking in the view, enjoying a soft breeze and soaking up a little sun? Just being there is all the entertainment you need.
Here are 30 decks guaranteed to give you a serious case of the deck effect.
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| The deck doesn't have to be big. The view makes you feel like you have all the room in the world. This infinity-edge pool in Turks and Caicos looks like part of the ocean. I think you would feel like you're floating above the water with very little deck to interrupt your view. |
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| Framed by beautiful molding around the entrance, this lake is picture perfect. A simple dining table and chairs make a great picnic spot. |
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by Gary Hutton
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| This deck hovers just above the lagoon's surface. With no railing to block the view, it lets you feel the full expansiveness of the setting. |
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by Gary Hutton
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| Another deck at the same home is a little higher up and still gives unobstructed views through metal-framed glass railings. The minimalist styling of the chairs and table keeps the view the center of attention. |
This covered deck with architectural columns runs along the front of this home, forming an entryway flanked by sitting areas. It leads out to an infinity pool that overlooks a marsh. An absolutely stunning view!
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| A simple rocking chair is a great choice for whiling away the hours gazing at the sea. |
| The sleek lines of this modern deck and lounge chairs are a serene complement to the endless blue of the sky and distant ocean. |
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by Robert Granoff
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| Since decks don't sit on the ground like patios do, they can be built high up to soar above the trees. This one does that admirably, featuring a bird's-eye view high above the jungle in Belize. I think I need to go there. |
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| This deck overlooks Lake Fairlee in Vermont. It takes me back to happy thoughts of summer camp. I can almost hear the squawking of the bluejays and the lapping of the water on the shore. Makes me want to roll up the legs of my jeans and go wading. |
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| The rustic twig design of the railing is a nice touch around this deck with a river view in North Carolina. Multiple groupings of seats encourage quiet conversations or provide places to contemplate on your own as the river rolls by. |
This modern multilevel deck has lights hanging above it at multiple levels. It seems to follow the varying heights of the trees, offering glimpses of the water from up high or down closer to the water.
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This huge patio in Seattle offers plenty of room for a seating area and a dining table with a view of the lake.
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| This dramatic deck offers Mediterranean style and a luscious view of water through a beautiful, mature tree. |
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| This wraparound deck gives continuous views of the mountains and the lake. I think this must have been where they got the line about "purple mountain majesties" in the song "America the Beautiful." |
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| This is one part of a system of multilevel decks that connect the cabins in this camp. I love the view of the forest with the lake shining through the trees. |
| Rocking chairs and a ceiling fan offer plenty of comfort for someone enjoying the view that goes for miles in Black Mountain, North Carolina. |
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by Urrutia Design
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| A deck built around a large, sprawling tree offers shade, and the tree provides the focal point. |
by Urrutia Design
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I have a soft spot in my heart for decks that preserve trees and are built around them. This one is unusual in that the stairs are also built around a tree. What a lovely spot to enjoy the view of the pool from.
| I particularly like the alternating squares of this decking, and I like that you can see the view all the way through the house too. |
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| This minimalist deck wraps a lovely pool and provides a place to walk along it and enjoy the giant palm trees. There's a nice, broad bench, but sitting on the edge of the deck to dangle your toes in the water wouldn't be a bad idea. |
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| If you don't have a view, then create your own. The architecture of the home, the ball sculptures and the pool are all absolutely beautiful surroundings for this simple deck in a courtyard-style home. |
| The distinctive rolling hills of San Luis Obispo, California, are the backdrop for the bay. This deck provides loads of built-in seating and a dining area. The fire is nice, too, if you can tear your eyes away from the view. |
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by DNM Architect
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| A view of a marina is a great choice for boat lovers having an early-morning coffee before setting sail. Can't you just hear the seagulls? |
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| The Golden Gate Bridge is one of my all-time favorite views when it comes to man-made beauty. With the bridge as a backdrop, what better color than orange for the lounge chairs? I love the green railing and white posts against the color of the bay. |
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| The city view here just barely seen from this angle is Chicago. The deck has wonderful lighting for nighttime, which is, in my opinion, the best time to enjoy a city view. |
by Aquascape Inc.
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This deck just amazes me. It is built right above a koi pond, with bridges allowing you to see down into the pond from many vantage points.
The pointed shape of this deck feels like the prow of a ship. Adirondack chairs are hard to beat for a few hours of deck time.
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| Imagine how great it would be to have a whole day just to look at this scenery. |
by Incorporated
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Many decks take advantage of spectacular natural settings. If you don't have that, then you can create the spectacular natural setting with giant planter boxes like this and fully mature trees. Either way, you have a wonderful place to relax and enjoy the environment.
This deck enjoys the seclusion of trees and the beauty of modern landscaping. Such a calm spot for relaxing.
Tell us: If you could have a deck in any setting you wanted, what would it be like?
More:
Dream Tubs for Bath Lovers
Tell us: If you could have a deck in any setting you wanted, what would it be like?
More:
Dream Tubs for Bath Lovers
Ideabook published on May 22, 2012.
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Realy like the one above the Coi pond.
Although we haven't gotten around to replacing our patio with a new deck yet, I have noticed an increase in the pull of the home-front tractor beam now that we have our own waterfront "lounge" to enjoy. Our visitors are giving us the same line..."why go out when we can just hang out here?" It's the ultimate compliment!
BTW: @torontojeff. I can see where photo 4 might appear to be photoshopped, since the furniture legs and shadows create an illusion of a 2-legged table, but I'm pretty this photo has not been manipulated. I think it's a pedestal table and the other leg belongs to the chaise. This table caught my eye as well and I'd love to know the source for the table if you can find it!
If I could have a deck in any setting I wanted, which would I choose? That's a question we always ask ourselves when we sit on a deck of a vacation house. Ocean or bay? Marsh or river? Oh what a difficult choice! All I know is that we spend A LOT OF TIME on the decks, watching the water, the pelicans and herons, and listening to the wind in the palm fronds. A beautiful view is mesmerizing.
torontojeff -- No, that table is really there. If you look at the preceding photo (#3) of the same home seen in #4, the deck from #4 is back behind the one shown and if you make the photo nice and big on your screen and peer in at that deck further away ... lo and behold ... you can just see the end of the chaise and the little table.
To answer your question about how much photo shopping is going on --- most professional photographers will do some minor work, perhaps balancing brighter and darker areas so they are both visible, sometimes taking out a distracting, dangling electrical cord that nobody noticed during the photo shoot. Occasionally a little color correcting is needed, but that's to get the photograph's color representing the real thing ... not to turn a brown lawn green. As good as cameras have become they still aren't as wonderful as our eyes, so photographers often have to adjust the image a little to show it as well as you see it when you are actually in the space. Photorealistic rendering is getting good enough to fool anyone into thinking they are looking at a photograph of a real space, and that's appropriate when you are trying to sell a concept ... like when an architect or a designer is presenting a design idea to a client. There are some of those renderings in the photos on Houzz, but we try not to use them in our Articles ... and when we do (as I did in my article on 21 Dream Showers
jlwms123 -- Thank you! I think mountain surroundings are absolutely wonderful. The ocean isn't the only spectacular spot for gazing and meditating.
mandy1979 -- It's to keep it from being a human death trap. :0) That deck sits high enough off the ground that the glass wall is to keep people from falling off. A bird might fly into it, but there are codes requiring railings when you get up off the ground. Glass walls are also a great wind-break if your deck is in a windy spot.
We're seeing a lot of interest in decks here in Atlanta. Thanks for the picture inspiration!
-AK
http://www.AKAtlanta.com
Eveline.
torontojeff -- I'll explain this once more, then hopefully we can move on to enjoy the view and forget the table. I hope you are looking at these photos on a large screen. If it's an iPhone or iPad, it is going to be hard to see. Look at photo #3 and make it nice and big. In the foreground is a low deck with no railing, two chairs with the same kind of table between them as you saw in photo #4. Now, look past those chairs all the way to the far end of the low deck. You'll see a large New Zealand Flax plant (tall spiky one) and just past that and to its left, you will see a deck at a higher level which has the glass rail around it. That's the same deck as is shown in photo #4. Now look through the glass and you will see the end of one of the lounge chairs and just past that can see the little table. No photoshopper on the planet would be interested in putting that all the way back in this picture. The table is really there.
Photography, by definition is a manipulation of "reality." The question becomes, "how far do we take it?" I like to stay as true as possible to what I experience first hand. In fact, my work is all about translating the emotional response that I feel when standing in a space or in nature so that the viewer can get a little of that too, albeit virtually. Visit Belize. It is a wonderful country with many treasures.
http://www.houzz.com/pro/renaud-adorno/flexdeck-llc