Yard of the Week: Enhanced Outdoor Living for Empty Nesters
A landscape firm upgrades a Colorado couple’s new home and life stage with an outdoor sauna, lounge, kitchen and more
After downsizing to a smaller home in anticipation of becoming empty nesters, this couple in Tinmath, Colorado, wanted to personalize and maximize their blank-slate backyard. They hired design-build firm Lindgren Landscape to turn a poorly draining lawn with minimal privacy on one side into an upgraded outdoor living space where they could entertain, lounge and dine in comfort nearly year-round.
Before Photo
Before: Here’s the same view as in the previous photo, before the renovation. Lawn stretched from the back of the house to a detached garage (where the photo was taken from). The homeowners would send their two dogs outside, but they rarely used the yard themselves. The space was poorly graded, so water pooled in various spots.
As part of the renovation, the team regraded the backyard, filled in the middle of the lawn with soil and replaced the sod so that water could drain away from the house and toward the property line.
As part of the renovation, the team regraded the backyard, filled in the middle of the lawn with soil and replaced the sod so that water could drain away from the house and toward the property line.
After: A deck right off the house creates a smooth transition outside. The front porch has composite decking (Havana Gold by Trex), and the team used the same material here for continuity. It also brings warmth and contrast and helps define the space. “If it was all pavers, it would have been a wash of gray,” McCarn says.
A window overlooking the deck connects to the primary bedroom. There was a conversation about replacing it with French doors in the future, so the team made the deck large enough to accommodate that conversion.
The team added the freestanding barrel sauna after the project kicked off. The homeowners purchased it as a kit, and the team constructed a concrete slab and added an electrical system. After the project was completed, the homeowners sent the Lindgren team a photo they had taken from inside the sauna with a view of snow on the ground outside — showing that they use the yard year-round.
Sauna: Ergo-Series Model E7, SaunaLife
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A window overlooking the deck connects to the primary bedroom. There was a conversation about replacing it with French doors in the future, so the team made the deck large enough to accommodate that conversion.
The team added the freestanding barrel sauna after the project kicked off. The homeowners purchased it as a kit, and the team constructed a concrete slab and added an electrical system. After the project was completed, the homeowners sent the Lindgren team a photo they had taken from inside the sauna with a view of snow on the ground outside — showing that they use the yard year-round.
Sauna: Ergo-Series Model E7, SaunaLife
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The covered entertaining patio sits two steps down from the deck. A large sectional sofa and TV anchor the space, with concrete pavers and the substantial shade structure defining the area.
The pavers are another material repeated from the front of the house. The team had considered stone but opted for concrete as a more cost-effective option. The light gray helps lighten up the space under the dark ceiling and ties in with large concrete slabs used elsewhere in the yard. McCarn kept the color palette limited, even with a robust materials list, to avoid a disjointed or cluttered look that would make the space feel smaller.
Patio pavers: Melville Plank in Amber Beige, Belgard
8 Ideas From Pros to Elevate Your Outdoor Entertaining Spaces
The pavers are another material repeated from the front of the house. The team had considered stone but opted for concrete as a more cost-effective option. The light gray helps lighten up the space under the dark ceiling and ties in with large concrete slabs used elsewhere in the yard. McCarn kept the color palette limited, even with a robust materials list, to avoid a disjointed or cluttered look that would make the space feel smaller.
Patio pavers: Melville Plank in Amber Beige, Belgard
8 Ideas From Pros to Elevate Your Outdoor Entertaining Spaces
A stained cedar screen along one edge of the yard and shade structure creates privacy from close neighbors. It gives the lounge area a sense of intimacy and enclosure without making it feel walled in.
The original design featured larger gaps between the boards, but the team realized once construction started that the homeowners needed more privacy. McCarn quickly updated a 3D rendering to help the homeowners visualize what a more solid screen would look like. “There’s always something that changes during construction,” she says. “We were able to pivot. It’s one benefit of having the same person there from the start to the end.”
She created depth and interest in the design so that it wouldn’t feel like a solid wall of wood. A tiled wall with a limestone cap runs along the bottom of the screen. A gravel access path behind the screen accommodates a required 5-foot setback and can be used for more utilitarian tasks.
The original design featured larger gaps between the boards, but the team realized once construction started that the homeowners needed more privacy. McCarn quickly updated a 3D rendering to help the homeowners visualize what a more solid screen would look like. “There’s always something that changes during construction,” she says. “We were able to pivot. It’s one benefit of having the same person there from the start to the end.”
She created depth and interest in the design so that it wouldn’t feel like a solid wall of wood. A tiled wall with a limestone cap runs along the bottom of the screen. A gravel access path behind the screen accommodates a required 5-foot setback and can be used for more utilitarian tasks.
The new outdoor kitchen is close to the house for ease of access. One of the homeowners already had a smoker, which he wanted to incorporate in the cooking space. The team also added a fridge, a griddle, storage and lots of counter space to elevate the outdoor entertaining feel.
The cabinets are custom stainless steel in a dark green color. The countertop is Dekton, an ultracompact surface, which the team kept thin so they could have a waterfall counter in the dining area. A white painted brick wall matches the house.
White paint: Alabaster, Sherwin-Williams
What to Know About Adding an Outdoor Kitchen
The cabinets are custom stainless steel in a dark green color. The countertop is Dekton, an ultracompact surface, which the team kept thin so they could have a waterfall counter in the dining area. A white painted brick wall matches the house.
White paint: Alabaster, Sherwin-Williams
What to Know About Adding an Outdoor Kitchen
The dining area straddles the yard’s grade change from the deck to the patio. One side of the waterfall counter features bar stools, and the other side has dining chairs, with all the seats sitting at roughly the same height at the counter. “Everyone can be in different spaces and still interact,” McCarn says.
Three pendants hang over the dining area like kitchen island lighting, further creating the feeling of an indoor space. The rest of the outdoor lighting is very subtle. Cafe lights make things feel more special and whimsical. The fixtures are all low-voltage LED and on dimmers.
Three pendants hang over the dining area like kitchen island lighting, further creating the feeling of an indoor space. The rest of the outdoor lighting is very subtle. Cafe lights make things feel more special and whimsical. The fixtures are all low-voltage LED and on dimmers.
Large concrete slabs define the fire pit patio just off the lounge area. A breeze joint between the pavers, filled with stone, adds texture, contrast and interest. It also ties in the patio with the walkway that leads back to the garage. “We didn’t want a material that would move,” McCarn says, as the walkway is an important circulation route for the homeowners and the dogs. The material also had to stand up to snow shoveling.
The team reduced much of the lawn during the redesign but kept some for the homeowners’ dogs. “That made our bed spaces very narrow,” McCarn says. But it also allowed them to use plants for vertical height and screening, including plenty of drought-tolerant grasses.
The region has strict water restrictions, which the new design and maintenance comply with. The team set up the irrigation system so that the heads water very precisely and there isn’t any overwatering.
Potted plants added by the homeowners soften and dress up the space. Not photographed here are patio heaters the homeowners use when temperatures drop. And though they report using the space year-round, they also might put covers on the patio furniture in winter in the future.
The region has strict water restrictions, which the new design and maintenance comply with. The team set up the irrigation system so that the heads water very precisely and there isn’t any overwatering.
Potted plants added by the homeowners soften and dress up the space. Not photographed here are patio heaters the homeowners use when temperatures drop. And though they report using the space year-round, they also might put covers on the patio furniture in winter in the future.
With the sauna, fire pit and patio heaters, the backyard is a four-season space. “We can really extend our seasons, and it’s pleasant a lot of the year,” McCarn says.
Roof structure engineering: Weeks & Associates
Deck, roof structure and screens framing: Esh Construction
Electrical: Gregory Electric
Kitchen cabinetry and countertop: Artisan Outdoor Kitchens
Brick walls, tile walls and stone caps masonry: Peckham Masonry
Concrete sidewalk and patio slabs: Jansma Cement
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Roof structure engineering: Weeks & Associates
Deck, roof structure and screens framing: Esh Construction
Electrical: Gregory Electric
Kitchen cabinetry and countertop: Artisan Outdoor Kitchens
Brick walls, tile walls and stone caps masonry: Peckham Masonry
Concrete sidewalk and patio slabs: Jansma Cement
More on Houzz
Read more stories about patios
Browse thousands of pool photos
Hire a landscape contractor
Shop for your outdoor spaces
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Yard at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple of empty nesters with two dogs
Location: Timnath, Colorado (near Fort Collins)
Size: 3,200 square feet (297 square meters); about 45 feet wide and 60 to 80 feet long
Landscape designer and builder: Lindgren Landscape, with Jamie McCarn as designer
The homeowners wanted a pergola or a covered structure for outdoor entertaining, but that was the extent of their vision. “We talked about enclosing it,” landscape designer Jamie McCarn says of the structure, “but we decided it was too small and we needed to keep everything open.”
They also opted for a substantial roof cover. With a pergola, “you can’t go out in the rain, and you don’t get that solid shade or interior feel. And I know that’s what [the homeowners] were going for,” McCarn says. She angled the roof to open up the look in the tight yard without losing any shelter or protection.
Stained Douglas fir wood beams and posts pop against the black-painted Douglas fir roof, anchoring the structure in the yard and complementing the home’s colors and details. “We never want the landscape to feel scabbed-on. It needs to feel cohesive with the house,” McCarn says.
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