Design tips to take your living space outdoors
Looking to turn your garden into a getaway? Landscape designer Korina Petrozzi, owner of The Plant Nerd, lends her expertise to the spring issue of The Dirt, IRWD's quarterly garening newsletter, with easy design tips to follow that help you take your living space outdoors.
Q. What’s the most important thing to consider when designing an outdoor living space?
Petrozzi: Consider your lifestyle: Do you like to entertain, travel to wine country or host your kids’ sports team events? Focus on emotion to identify your overall style.
Collect a handful of inspirational photos that evoke the feeling you want in your yard, and consider sun exposure, proximity to the house and how to connect space with the inside of your home.
Sometimes, the idea of a sitting area in the corner of a garden might seem cozy and intimate, but it can end up feeling lonely and isolated.
Color — reflected in the leaves, flowers, furniture and other features — will define the energy of your space.
What DIY suggestions do you have?
Petrozzi: Don’t start too big. Begin with a small seating area or a view from your bedroom. The rise of apps like Pinterest or other AI tools provide an infinite number of design ideas.
Make sure the plants you select are well suited to the areas you plant them. Given the right sunlight, soil and water, they will grow, change shapes, flower, bear fruit and undergo seasonal changes to keep the garden exciting all year.
Korina Petrozzi | Owner, The Plant Nerd
She was called “Bug” as a kid because she was always playing with plants and putting creepy-crawlies in her pocket. “I thought I would be an entomologist,” she says, “but when I realized it was the plants that brought in all the fun insects, I turned my attention to horticulture.”
Looking for more outdoor inspiration?
Bring your vision to life with the YardtopiaTM Initiative. The Yardtopia™ Initiative is about transforming your backyard into the gorgeous outdoor retreat of your dreams. More than just a garden: a refined extension of your living space. Envision a place where you can unwind, entertain friends and enjoy nature.
Be inspired. Take charge. Create your Yardtopia.
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