Creating a Welcoming Patio for Entertaining with Signature Homes

Summer is in session at the Bakers and we are so thrilled to be able to celebrate our first Summer in our new Signature Homes house!   I’m sure it comes as no surprise that we love to entertain, and during the Summer months we love to be able to do that outside.  When we were considering building, one of the most important things to us was the outdoor space.  Signature Homes provides so many options for customizing outdoor spaces, and top on our list was making sure we had the largest covered outdoor space possible.  The very first upgrade we decided on was extending our patio, and we are so glad we did!  P.S. In case you missed it, you can read more about our design process with Signature Homes here!

With entertaining in mind and thoughts of spending long Summer days outside with our little one, the patio was the very first space we wanted to finish once we moved in.  We wanted to space to feel welcoming and comfortable.  Styled, but lived in.  We wanted our friends to be comfortable bringing their kids to hang out, sip cocktails, and play until the sun sets.  After all, one of our favorite aspects of our community is the concept of building our life here, and to me that means creating meaningful relationships with our friends and neighbors.  Here are few tips for creating a welcoming entertaining space that we incorporated into our patio design:

1. Use furniture that is both stylish and functional, and be sure to incorporate as much seating as possible! One of the reasons we wanted to expand our patio space was to make sure we could include enough seating for our guests and ourselves to be comfortable.  The accent tables make sure each seat has a place to put drinks.  And one of my favorite things?  The beautiful gold coffee table opens so we can store toys inside!
2. Don’t overlook the warmth that accessories such as a rug and pillows will bring to a space. In addition to bringing some color and style, the pillows provide a little more cushion and comfort for our guests.  Rugs and pillows are always easy ways to pull together and space and make it feel finished.
3. Include a bar cart so you have an easy place to serve drinks for your guests (and yourself!).
4. Add some greenery and flowers! Incorporating plants allow your space to feel more welcoming and are an inexpensive way to bring some style to your space.
5. Don’t forget some blankets. While we won’t use them anytime soon, the thought of watching football on the patio during cool Fall evenings is something I’m super excited to experience!  I love the easy access of having a basket full of blankets available.

I have no doubt that this space will be one of our most used spaces in our entire home!  Want to see more patio and other home inspiration?  Be sure you’re following Signature Homes on Instagram.  It’s one of my favorite accounts to follow to keep up with home design trends!

Thank you to Signature Homes for sponsoring this post, and for creating the most incredible community for my family and me!