The New Year is already under way, as is the cold and wet winter weather. If you’re looking forward to warmer sunnier days, an excellent New Year’s resolution could be to make sure you’re better placed to enjoy those days this year. One of the hottest trends in lifestyle and home improvement right now is the coming together of indoor and outdoor spaces. Verandas and patios are placed to maximise direct sunlight, enhance garden views and merge with the indoor transition area by using complementary looks and styles in furnishing and flooring. Another part of the indoors/outdoors trend is the inclusion of ‘garden rooms’ that immerse you in the scenery.
VERANDA PURPOSE AND STYLE
If you and your family enjoy relaxing outdoors, enjoying the sunshine and summer breezes but you don’t have a formal space set aside for this purpose it may be time to invest in a veranda. Not only will a veranda provide protection from rain - it will most likely increase the value of your home as well. A veranda can be constructed to flow almost seamlessly from your kitchen/dining area to maximise the living space for entertainment and dining purposes.
Verandas can be customised to reflect architectural features of your home if desired, including reflecting roof pitch and column styles. Depending on how you want to use this space, you may also want to consider enclosing one or more sides to give some protection from the weather or privacy and to allow for use all year round.
Do you just want to while away the time enjoying the garden view, listening to a little music or reading a book on a sunny day? Or do you want to take advantage of those balmy summer evenings, with the back doors flung open to the veranda and flowing into a great BBQ area where you can entertain guests? Whatever style you decide upon should be based upon a mix of purpose and budget. If you’re a handy type of person you might also consider a DIY solution with an easy to assemble veranda kit.
CREATING GARDEN ROOMS
The Victorian conservatory concept has been reinterpreted for contemporary living with the advent of ‘garden rooms’. These enclosed home extensions use large expanses of glass to provide an unimpeded view of the garden and scenic outlooks. They are often constructed using lightweight aluminium frames to keep construction costs low, while still providing a sturdy structure that aims to keep the worst of the weather at bay. Properly sited, a garden room can be a great suncatcher in the colder months, with windows and doors opened up in the warm months for easy access to the garden. They are a superb way to connect with the sights, sounds and scents of nature.
Whether you decide upon a veranda or garden room you are certain to improve both the livability and value of your home.
If you're thinking about adding a garden room to your
property, one of the major concerns you may have will be whether you will need
to apply for planning permission for the structure and whether Building
Regulations approval will also be needed. You can rest assured on both counts,
as most garden rooms won't need either form of permission to be obtained in
advance. You'll need to follow a few simple guidelines to ensure your garden
room complies with current regulations, but they will ensure your new and
exciting room in the garden environment can go ahead with no hassles:
1. Many garden room developments
fall into the "Permitted Development" bracket, as long as you ensure
the height of your new room is less than 2.5m there is no problem sitting your
new room within 2m of any boundary. In effect you need to bear in mind your garden
room should be single storey only.
2. You cannot site your garden room
in a front garden of any home or property as it is not possible to site any
structures or outbuildings beyond the front walls.
3. You are not allowed to use more
than 50 percent of the total area of land surrounding your property for any
proposed outbuilding or rooms. If you already have sheds or outbuildings within
the garden, you need to take their total area into account when choosing the
size of your new garden room.
When it comes down to choosing the roof for your new garden room, a flat roof
can be a good option to ensure your room stays within the optimum height range.
Adding a garden room to any home gives extra
lifestyle and relaxation opportunities, allowing children or adults some
private space away from the bustle in the house. Many home workers find that
garden rooms can be the answer they need to attain the right work-life balance
when working from home. Once they're in their garden room office the working
day begins, just as soon as they quit the garden room and head back to the
house, personal life intrudes once more. The choices you make about the style
and form of your garden room are your decisions and a room of this nature can
have a useful life for several decades.
For more information visit our website http://www.sunspaces.co.uk/ or call us on 029 2080 3755
What would your home look like with the addition of a garden room or veranda? Some of our customers find it difficult to visualise the answer to that question, and this can understandably make them feel slightly hesitant - extending your home is a pretty major project, after all, and it's sometimes difficult to imagine how the end result will look!
Fortunately, thanks to our
3D Design Lab, you don't have to imagine - we can show you!
Here at SunSpaces, we employ a team of expert designers who can help you to plan your perfect garden structure. This service can include a free 3D design like the one pictured above - this is a great way to get a better idea of how your finished SunSpace will look, and it's ideal for showing off to friends and family in advance of the real McCoy!
As shown above, your 3D design can even include additional features like
furniture and
flooring materials. Both of the examples above incorporate eight-seater dining tables and composite deck boards, but whatever you're thinking of putting in your garden room, we can include it in your visualisation.
Click here for more information about our 3D Design Lab, or get in touch to request a quotation for your SunSpaces project!
Our glass garden rooms are created to offer our customers the ultimate combination of style and functionality, allowing them to easily a merge their indoor space with their garden, to create a comforting and relaxing area. Glass also has many advantages over other types of garden rooms and extensions, which make it the best choice for your home, here are just a few of them:
An Abundance of Light
Our glass garden rooms allow you to enjoy the full beauty of your outdoor surroundings, by minimising the boundaries between your home and garden. The large glass panels let in light and allow you to enjoy both the comfort of being indoors, as well as the sense of well-being and tranquillity that comes from spending time outside. It will also prevent your new garden room from feeling cramped and crowded, by creating an enhanced sense of space and unity.
A Harmonious Transition
Another benefit of purchasing a glass garden room, aside from the space and light, is the ease with which you will be able to match the new addition to your existing home. Other garden rooms or extensions run the risk of looking mismatched or at odds with your existing architecture, and can even distract from its original aesthetic. Our glass garden rooms seek to enhance your home, working with its current shape and form to create a fresh look, which makes the most of the original design rather than obscuring it.
A Space for Shelter
Glass verandas are ideal for those who like to entertain at home, as well as families who want to use their outdoor space to it's full potential. Without making your garden feel clustered or closed-in, glass verandas can provide you with a comfortable shelter in the changeable British weather, giving you a space to relax in and retreat to. Glass side panels also provide a barrier from the cool breeze, making them an ideal haven when your garden party starts to wind down in the evening.
To see more of our glass verandas, click here, or explore the rest of our glass garden rooms here. For more garden room inspiration and ideas, follow us on Twitter!
A lot of people don't like bungalows, and some even use the word 'bungaloid' as a negative adjective for small buildings they find unsightly. However, it is the opinion of the SunSpaces team that lots of bungalows look very lovely indeed; those sweet little one-storey homes are cosy, comfortable, and - in the right hands - capable of looking just as stylish as any other home. Plus, those who live in bungalows don't have to worry about vacuuming the stairs, a perk that could make even the most squalid space seem appealing!
Of course, the main drawback of living in a bungalow is the lack of space. For some, that's a big part of their appeal (after all, why live in a mansion-sized property if it's just you, your partner, and your relatively few possessions?); other bungalow-dwellers, however, find themselves frustratingly limited by their ultra-compact homes.
But help is at hand. If you're looking to add a little extra space to your intimate one-storey abode, our
sunrooms are the perfect solution!
SunSpaces' stylish, easy-to-build sunrooms are great for bungalows because...
- They generally require no planning permission (unless built on a border)
- They can be installed without any professional help (each one comes with an assembly guide and instructional DVD to help you get the job done)
- They cost significantly less than conservatories
- They look great and can be used in all sorts of ways (if you'd like some suggestions, click here)
