Intimacy and synthesis

Summer is well underway, and people are thirsting for that refreshing outdoor experience like never before. Luckily, you won’t have to sail the seven seas to find the perfect green haven: the past few years saw revolutionary changes in outdoor furniture design, meaning that you can bring paradise to your urban home with no effort. Our latest article will inspect a few schools of outdoor design that put the emphasis on the perfect harmony between our built and natural environment. Read on and find your inspiration for creating the perfect natural refuge in your home!

Hamali Block dining table, Byron Bay garden chairs /  Kun Design Jumbo lounge armchair

Mediterranean clarity

The fusion of seemingly different styles in one space, resulting in brand new and exciting looks, is becoming an increasingly popular choice for interior designers. The idea is that the characteristics of the two distinct design styles will perfectly complement, rather than drown out each other in their union. This fruitful alignment of stylistic differences is not exclusive to the space between the four walls, but can be brought outside as well: for example, the use of rustic and organic furniture with a hint of the Mediterranean don’t go against your wish for a clean and minimalistic outdoor look.

Kettal Mesh deckchair / Tribú Senja sofa

We have already touched upon the subject of organic minimalism in interior design in a previous article. It’s time to apply the compromising yet progressive tenets of this trend to your garden as well: combine the soothing colors of terracotta, beige and white with natural surfaces and fabrics such as wood, stone and flax! And don’t forget that the passing of time is on your side here. Materials showing signs of degradation are essential to an organic interior, compensating well for the airy layout of a minimalistic garden. The modular collections of Kettal Mesh and Senja are the perfect embodiments of the essence of outdoor organic minimalism with their beautiful wooden solutions, natural patterns and curvy, soft shapes. These furnitures are blurring the lines between the minimalistic and the natural, as well as the outdoors and indoors, resulting in a harmonious Mediterranean solitude.

Ames Caribe armchairs / Anthropologie Clear Skies hammock, Madam Stoltz bamboo stools

Bohemian garden life

Minimalist gardens are looking to breathe a calming, relaxing atmosphere into your outdoor quarters with their inherent subtlety. On the other hand, many are looking for their own personality in the face of their homes. If you’d like your close environment to mirror your unique and colorful presence, you better take a look at bohemian garden trends. Organic materials are the cornerstones of the modern garden, as beyond their gripping aesthetic qualities they are providing you with a sustainable alternative to home items. Because of this, the greatest furniture brands and manufacturers have their own lines of organic furniture, including rattan-, hemp-, flax-, sisal- or even coconut-based products that will become the unshakable basis of a relaxing outdoor experience. Furthermore, the real twist of bohemian styles is brought to the garden in the form of playful and bold color combinations.

Ames Maraca and Ames Caribe armchairs

The continuous popularity of maximalism is living proof of how wildly different and seemingly incompatible characteristics do not necessarily lead to visual chaos in the interior, but rather helps to establish an experimental mood where personality is the leading force of aesthetics. The key in creating the ideal eclectic garden is the brave use of outstanding and impressive colors, custom-made items and accessories, as well as vintage furniture with a story of their own, all of which can be summed up as essentially human qualities. It’s worth exploring the latest summer collection of Sebastian Herkner: the Caribe and Maraca armchairs were inspired by the culture and traditions of the indigenous people of South-America. Herkner aimed to come up with a collection that is infinitely personal and authentic, coupled with the use of organic and recycled materials. His chairs laced with traditional, hand-woven fabrics will be the highlight of any home, and the human stories carried within them are witnesses to the life of generations.

Antique Mexican furniture, Los Enamorados hotel, Ibiza

Antique romanticism in the garden

As modern people around the globe are becoming more and more disillusioned in the zealous and harmful nature of consumerism-driven societies, long-forgotten traditions and universal values are getting in the limelight once again. Rural romanticism puts the emphasis on our natural and cultural roots, but complements these with the aesthetic demands of the modern world, resulting in a fusion similar to organic minimalism. Here, traditional material use is introduced to a contemporary design environment, all placed in a lush and vivid natural spot.

Dimora delle Balze hotel, Sicily. Interior: Draga Obradovic, Stefano Guidotti / Lemdeena fixture

Cob houses, whitewashed walls and hand-carved details meet with fresh, modular furniture, mobile and multi-functional equipment and vintage accessories. The functional buildings of past decades, such as barns and wineries take up new forms in homes shaped by the warm notion of rural romanticism, meeting the demands of modern households with a traditional aesthetic palette. Walls are replaced by huge glass surfaces, letting in natural sunlight and opening up views to the outside world of green oases.

Just like your built environment, plants in your garden are also in service of delivering a touch of “antique” to your home: instead of those meticulously shaped, delicate lawns and hedges you should embrace wonderful and self-sustaining forest gardens. After some careful first steps in planning them, forest gardens become self-regulating in their constant growth. These green havens mostly consist of perennial plants, trees and other ground vegetation. This results in a complex ecosystem that will eventually kickstart the long term, self-sustaining life in the garden. Not only that, but these peculiar outdoor solutions provide perfect shelter for a variety of living organisms, including insects, reptiles, birds and small mammals, cranking biodiversity in your garden to the max.

Tectona Grandis Clipper dining table / Garden House Furniture Duo chairs

Whether it’s minimalism, eclecticism or the fusion of traditional and modern, there are an immense number of fantastic solutions available for you to reimagine your garden. And if you are still in search of the most suitable and perfect design choices for your outdoor sanctuary, make sure to visit S/ALON BUDAPEST in 2021, and bring your ideas and questions to experts and representatives of the biggest design brands! Let’s meet at the Budapest Arena between September 24-26!

Our professional assistant for the article was Kata Hortobágyi. Cover image: Manutti Minus dining table, Garden House Furniture Duo chairs