Finally going through with that backyard makeover you’ve been dreaming of? We’re glad to hear it! Now is where the fun begins. Before thinking about the products, or the contractor, you need to think about the style you want for your outdoor living space. This step is an important one because it needs to be based on your needs and lifestyle. In fact, different backyard designs require different degrees of maintenance. In this article, we will be breaking down four styles: Modern, Traditional, Rustic and Eclectic, while showing you what you need to take into consideration before selecting your match!

First things first: What are your needs?

Before anything else, you need to ask yourself what you want out of this space you’re renovating. Is it for the kids to play around in? For you to relax? A space for entertaining? Or a little bit of all three? How you use your outdoor living space will help you identify what needs to be done to it. Furthermore, determine the degree of maintenance you’re willing to put in. Some homeowners love working in the yard, whereas others hate it. This is an important step because you need to design an outdoor living room that best suits yo

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Featured product : Industria paver in Shale Grey

Consider the old before going in with the new

Before understanding the extent of your backyard makeover, it’s important to know what can be saved and what must be fixed. We recommend you take a walk around your yard to see what you like and don’t like about the space. Make a list of what you want to keep and what you want to renovate. Do you have a lovely rose garden that is being devoured by surrounding wildlife? Consider adding in a fence. Adding a little new to save the old! This will essentially help you draw up a plan of your renovation that you can later discuss with your contractor or landscape designer. 

Modern Landscape Design 

When considering style, it is important to consider the maintenance required for each one. Modern design is defined by clean edges and an uncluttered look. It is characterized by paver patios with a few planters here and there, mostly all potted. As put in this HGTV article, modern backyard design has much more to do with materials than it does with plants. This style is all about low maintenance. Say goodbye to hours of upkeep, mowing the grass and taking care of the garden! This style suits those who love a minimalist, sleek look without all the hassle. It is also defined by pale colors, monochromatic looks and plants that require little attention, such as Japanese boxwoods, bamboo, foxtail ferns and mountain laurels. If you’ve gone through the previous steps in this article and have determined that you’re looking to create a low-maintenance outdoor living space, a modern design is for you! When choosing your modern patio pavers, think of sleek, large-scale and monochromatic colors such as our Industria Smooth patio slab. If you’re looking for a slab that stands out from the crowd, we also suggest our uniquely shaped Hexa 60 slab. Finally, our new Industria Triangle paver is the ultimate modern patio paver for your next design if you’re looking for creative flexibility! Discover its three textures and start designing the landscape of your dreams!

Featured product : Hexa slab in Beige Cream, Chestnut Brown, Greyed Nickel and Onyx Black

Traditional Landscape Design

On the other side of the spectrum, you will find traditional backyard design. This style is characterized by natural stone and plush gardens. If you search for traditional landscape designs on Pinterest or Houzz, you will discover hundreds of pictures featuring quaint English-style courtyards, stepping stones and large gardens filled with a wide variety of plants and flowers. To the contrary of modern design, traditional design promotes natural spaces and vows to create an outdoor living room within the natural surroundings. You will find paver patios, but they will have the appearance of natural stone and will be surrounded by overgrown foliage, giving the appearance that you are sitting in the great outdoors. Some great pavers and slabs for this style includes our new Everest patio slab, our Antika paver and Blu 60 Slate slab. It goes without saying that a traditional landscape requires a lot of maintenance. The more gardens, plants and flowers you have, the more you need to maintain them. If you’re the Martha Stewart type and love to spend hours of fun in the yard, trimming plants and taking care of your flowers, then traditional design is the style for you! Maybe throw in a garden fountain for an extra enchanted garden feel.  

Rustic design

You’ve probably heard of rustic design a million times by now. But what does rustic design actually look like? For many, a rustic home can very well be a cabin in the mountain, as it can be a quaint farmhouse in the country. Which is it? Well, both incorporate the same features that define rustic design: natural elements.

Rustic design is characterized by natural and organic elements: Think wood, greenery, raw materials that have come directly from the earth. Rustic design is also unpretentious and laidback. These spaces have been designed for comfort, peace of mind and pleasure. They feel welcoming and relaxed and are almost always surrounded by nature. You’ll most likely find that rustic backyard designs incorporate an earth-toned color palette, and natural textures. Keep it monochromatic and free from splashes of color.

At Techo-Bloc, we offer a wide selection of rustic patio pavers and rustic patio slabs that are indistinguishable from raw materials. These pavers and slabs offer an authentic look with a patented technology that guarantees low maintenance on your end. For example, our Klean-Bloc technology offers an advanced protective barrier against everyday wear and tear. Enjoy the beauty and character of natural materials like travertine and wood grain, without the worry or maintenance. Our most popular rustic patio slab is Borealis. This slab looks like real wood but is offered in a more durable material. If you’re looking for rustic patio pavers, it doesn’t get more authentic than our Pure or Blu 60 Slate pavers. Both offer long-term durability in a texture that is indistinguishable from natural stone! They’re also offered in a few different colors, offering you complete versatility in design.

Rustic Chic

Now what if you’re into the beauty of nature, but not so much into maintaining it? Introducing Rustic Chic! This style is characterized by a desire for natural elements that are low-maintenance. In these spaces, you will find natural looking products made of concrete, such as natural stone lookalike pavers, slabs and retaining walls, as well as wood lookalike concrete stones. It's really a win-win. You get your natural elements without having to maintain them! In a Rustic-Chic exterior, you will find a mix of concrete patio and grass, again mixing nature and minimal maintenance spaces. You will also find gardens in planters built with natural looking retaining wall stones. Sure, you'll have to tend to the garden and mow the grass, but the idea here is reducing maintenance time. The concrete to grass/garden ratio should be 1:1.   

Eclectic design

What is eclectic design you may ask? Eclectic is a design style that few of us can put our finger on. Unlike all the other designs, it’s a mix of different things. In fact, what makes this design unique is that it doesn’t adhere to one particular characteristic. People who love eclectic design choose what they feel is the best of different decorating styles and create their own blend.

Eclectic design is a mix of old and new, a mix of colors, patterns, textures and scales that have all been thought out, although it can appear cluttered. Eclecticism involves incorporating pieces from different time periods and styles and creating a look that is uniquely you.

To create an eclectic backyard design, think of monochromatic background colors with strong accent colors. Create a well thought out blend of materials, textures, colors and scales, with an emphasis on unique, handmade items of sentimental value. If you’ve traveled or have some countries on your bucket list, take the best architectural elements from your trip on the Mediterranean, for example, and blend them with your own style. A mix of two cultures is the perfect recipe of an eclectic design!

Eclectic landscape design is also a celebration of contrasts. Luckily, at Techo-Bloc, our wide selection of textures, scales, shapes and colors allows you to get creative and to design a unique blend in your outdoor space. Our Ocean Grande slab, for example, with its sandy-shore texture will make you feel like you’re beach-side in a tropical destination. Mix this slab with different colors, textures and patterns to create an eclectic design that reflects your unique self.

Featured product : Ocean Grande slab in Beige Cream

To sum up, the style you choose will depend on your needs and lifestyle. If you follow these simple steps, there’s no room for error.

Not sure which style represents you? Take our Backyard Style Quiz to find out!