Hey, hey! Today in NYC it is going to be 85 degrees! I’m thrilled. I’m sitting here typing this on our new sofa while listening to the birds chirping and staring at a clear blue sky. I can’t wait to get outside later to use our terrace! Which gave me the idea to write a blog post teaching you how to design a small outdoor space. Sure, many people live in the suburbs, and it’s great for them. But! Even more young people are flocking towards cities, and they need love too. Many people have small patios, balconies, terraces, or just itty bitty outdoor spaces in general, and it can be really intimidating to design because everything counts when your space is small. But, fear not, today I am teaching you how to design a small outdoor space that you can be really proud of and actually want to use. How’s that sound?
The above design is a great example of minimalism. This can be really tricky to achieve if you have a small space because it does not come off as minimal, it comes off as unfinished. Just a hob glob of things outside that you forgot to tie together with an actual design. I would not recommend this strategy unless you have a medium sized small space. Does that make sense? If you have a space the size as the gorgeous blue beauty above, you can get away with minimalism…any smaller and probably not.
Learning how to design a small outdoor space is all about curation and less about the size of the space.
So what look should we be going for? Layered, lived-in luxury. Sounds cool, right? What I mean by layered is that we are going to have multiple textiles at different planes. When you think of your space vertically, consider each object on a plane. Your layered textiles on different planes could be a rug, a chair cushion, pillows, a woven basket, etc. Anything with interest. I would even consider a mosaic tabletop a textile because it has pattern and texture.
The lived-in luxury part come naturally when you have a layered space that is well thought out and proportioned. Your space won’t be filled to the brim; you’ll have room to breathe. You will have textiles that add to the comfort and coziness you desire, and it will be luxurious because it will be surrounded by beautiful plants. Consider this post a guide to creating your own perfect outdoor oasis.
So here we go!
How to Design a Small Outdoor Space
Step 1: Space Planning
First thing’s first. You need to measure your space and draw up a potential floor plan as a jumping off point. You can literally just draw the plan on a piece of paper (that’s what I do for my own house projects).
Reason being: small spaces can get cluttered fast, so you need a plan so all your hard work won’t look jumbled together like a yard sale. You’ll be surprised at how much you can fit on your patio if you are mindful about your space and sketch it out ahead of time. Really think about how you will use the space and what its needs are. Do you do a lot of entertaining? Or will you be the only one using the space? Do you want more space for plants or do you want a space to eat and work? It all matters. Decide what your space will be used for and establish a clear direction.
Pro tip: if plants are involved (and they should be!), consider the sun exposure of the area. This sounds stupid because it’s a small space, but if there are tall buildings around, it’s very possible that half of your space could be covered in shade while the other half is baking in the hot sun. What I do is check every couple hours to see where the sun is, and then plan accordingly.
I learned from my mistakes when the first growing season I had, everything died because I thought the sun exposure was better than it actually was. For example, my basil cannot tolerate full sun like my sedums. So, my basil is in an area that gets half sun. See Step 3 for more about plants.
Step 2: Color Palette Selection
So, the first step is space planning. The second step is being mindful when coming up with a color scheme. In my opinion, the best small space patio furniture is super fun and colorful. It’s ok to be more wild with your color palette when you’re working with a small space. Reason being, is that you want it to look inviting. If you draw the eye to your bright furniture and color scheme, it will look like a place you actually want to use.
Let’s say your balcony is 5×5; would you be more likely to spend time out there if the space was colorful with lots of textures and patterns, or if it were drab with neutral colors? Probably the former!
You want your eye to be drawn in before it realizes how small the space is. Think of it like a baby nursery: you want the nursery to feel warm and inviting so you forget the lack of sleep and abundance of feces. Or the toddler room that is bright and colorful so you forget how much it hurts when you step on a Lego every time you’re in there. Trickery, you see.
Understanding how to design a small outdoor space has everything to do with playing up the assets of your space. Small space=cozy, quaint, perfect for intimate settings. Play that up!
Now, if neutrals are your jam, then jam on. Look at the neutral design above. It’s great! Go with whatever aesthetic is most pleasing to you. This is your space. This is your isle of tranquility. Remember in step 1 when I asked what your space will be used for? If you’re a neutral lover, you might just want your space to be where you enjoy an after work glass of wine, catch up on a good book, or meditate. And that’s cool too.
If you want that layered, lived-in luxury look we talked about, you can add interest to your neutrals with texture and patterns. If you want an interesting looking space, include patterns with your textiles such as plant pots, pillows, and rugs. Learning how to design a small outdoor space has everything to do with the amount of visual interest you add to the space. Layers=comfort and luxury.
A successful outdoor space has layers and is flooded with visual interest.
My preference is just for a more colorful palette because you’re outdoors, so you’re competing with the best and most colorful design out there: mother nature. The best palette will speak to you and make you feel something. I want my outdoor space to be a giant sigh of relief and feel like a comforting hug. But I also want it to not take itself too seriously. Decide how you want to feel when you’re in the space and let that dictate your color palette.
That’s the beauty of good design; it makes you feel.
Recently, my friend was looking at Airbnb’s in Manhattan for her upcoming trip, and she showed me a listing that was super small (the shower was literally in the middle of the kitchen) but it was colorful and FUN. It is much smaller than my already tiny apartment, but the owner used space and color brilliantly. It even had an (illegal) sitting area set up on the fire escape with a small patch of grass!! This owner knew how to design a small outdoor space, man. This little perch looked so cute hovering over the city and I could picture a warm summer evening out there. Bonus: if there’s a fire, you’re already on the fire escape.
You goal should be a space that evokes some kind of emotion. However, if the space is small, sometimes the color needs to be loud, or at least the pattern should be loud. Something needs to motivate you to spend time out there among the bees. Or maybe your life is loud so your outdoor space needs to be soft. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of feeling your design. It’s crucial.
I’m realizing that now you might be like, “ok, so then how do I come up with a color palette?”. Ok ok ok. Short version: stick with a “theme” like brights, pastels, black and white, or neutrals. There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to outdoor decor. Just know what kind of feel and look you want and design away! How you want to feel will guide your palette effortlessly. If you want to feel happy and light: color, calm and relaxed: pastels and neutrals.
Maybe start with a palette of 3 colors first and then you can always add more accents. I think 3 is a good jumping off point, because we are working with a small space and you don’t want your brain to explode from sensory overload. If you don’t know what colors would look ok together OR if you want your space to be a different color palette than everything you’ve seen (go you!), then check out this blog post I wrote about my favorite FREE tool to create color palettes. It’s addicting and lets you save all your palettes.
Remember to be patient with yourself, because learning how to design a small outdoor space should be fun and lighthearted! Think of all the relaxation you’ll be doing there. It will be heaven because you are literally creating an outdoor oasis for yourself.
Pro tip: My advice would be to have the main color be the larger furniture pieces such as chairs, love seats, tables, and then your 2 accent colors with rugs, pillows, planters.
Step 3: Plant Selection
So, you’ve nailed your space plan and your color palette. What’s next? Fill in the blanks with plants! Today, I’m going to go over my tips for veggies, flowers, and herbs.
In my own outdoor space, I have a mixture of flowers, herbs, and vegetables. I’m a self proclaimed urban gardener, I’m so urban, in fact, that I still kill a lot of plans accidentally. YOLO. You don’t have to do everything perfectly. Learning how to design a small outdoor space is just as much about the plants as it is about the decor. Plants are decor! So don’t worry, even if you’re a plant killer. Your local nursery will tell you what to get (hint: sedums and drought resistant plants).
There are many ways to go with your plant strategy. You could do all flowers, a mixture of shrubs and flowers, all succulents and sedums, tall wildflowers in pots, vegetables, fruits, and herbs, the sky is your limit. I would try (if you can) to research the flowers that bees love the most and don’t get those. The space is already small, you don’t want to design this gorgeous area just to share it with a bunch of bees making your experience terrible. I made that mistake. But I am older and wiser now and don’t spend as much time running back indoors when yellow jackets fly into my face.
With plants, you can keep in line with your chosen color scheme or go with a totally different palette. The only thing I would not do would be to have your main color repeated in all your plants. You know, too matchy-matchy. For example, let’s say you have a red love seat, you don’t want to also add a lot of red flowers. But blue flowers would look fantastic, as would other jewel tones and of course white and yellow.
Remember: opposites attract. Think of your color wheel. Maybe what looks best would be to choose flower colors that are opposite your color palette. My original color scheme years ago was blue and orange. I got these beautiful blue bells and some orange wildflowers from California, then I added in some lavender and it was stunning. I played with opposites on the color wheel and the payoff was amazing because each flower caused the other one’s colors to pop even more.
Pro tip: build a vertical garden with herbs or flowers. You can also build a balcony container garden.
Veggies
If you want to make your space a functioning garden that produces food (and it is possible!), I recommend the square foot gardening strategy. First, you need to determine which plant hardiness zone you’re in. You can use this zip code tool provided by the USDA. Not every plant can grow everywhere, and I still mourn the loss of the beautiful bougainvillea that I can never grow.
I also recommend the good ol’ farmer’s almanac. They give you a gardening calendar and even a moon phase and zodiac calendar (lol). For veggies, I recommend cherry tomatoes (if you’re impatient like me), bell peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, onion, hot peppers. In the fall you can also grow things like squash and kale. Get ready for some delish pico de gallo and bruschetta all summer long.
Flowers
For flowers, I actually prefer the flowering sedum variety of succulents (hard to kill). I bought the most beautiful fuchsia flowering sedums at Monrovia nursery in the Hamptons. So posh, I know how it sounds. We go to the Hamptons most years on Memorial Day weekend, and we happened to be stuck in traffic right next to Monrovia. It was beautiful so we pulled in and I got some great plants! I’ve also bought from them online a couple years back, so they get my stamp of approval.
Also getting my stamp of approval is Great Garden Plants. I bought from them a few years ago and my plants have come back year after year. They are great quality at a great price (and there are sales). Even better: they make shopping so easy because you can choose your hardiness zone. Great Garden Plants has a great selection of balcony friendly flowers and lots of different options for sedums.
Herbs
I definitely recommend herbs. If you want a constant dreamy fragrance outside, herbs are your bestie. Throw a few rosemary bushes on your balcony and be in zen heaven forever. I’ve had best luck growing rosemary, basil, and thyme. Lavender, while beautiful, is really finicky and I’ve killed it 3 times. Same with cilantro. You could also grow chamomile and make your own tea!
And there you have it, folks, how to design a small outdoor space. We learned about furniture, color palettes, and plants and I’m confident you’ll be able to create something spectacular. Happy designing!
-Kristen