When it comes to outdoor living spaces, designers often try to blur the line between indoors and out.
That is certainly the case at this year’s Street of Dreams, a six-home self-guided tour in Sammamish.
Though all the homes feature elaborate outdoor living spaces, The Retreat at Water’s Edge, the third home on the tour, is decidedly dreamy.
There you’ll find a large backyard pool, spa, fire pit, and a cabana with a full kitchen and a foldout wall bed hidden behind a plasma TV.
Mike Davis, general manager for Parmenter Homes, the home’s Woodinville-based builder, said all kinds of cutting-edge tricks helped create the indoor-outdoor oasis.
NanaWall Systems: These accordionlike doors allow homeowners to push aside an entire exterior wall. They’re used on the main house here and between the cabana’s indoor living space and an outdoor living room with a fireplace. Matching flooring in the two spaces also contributes to the near-seamless effect.
Heat: Large covered areas – including the outdoor living room and separate barbecue area – will not only protect guests from the rain, but also will keep them warm with energy-efficient radiant heaters built into the ceilings.
“You plan for that party on Memorial Day weekend and you have all these guests,” Davis said. “Now you have a place where you can still keep people covered and warm enough.”
Interior touches: Multiple ceiling fans, art, candles, rugs and other home accessories typically reserved for rooms inside help blend indoor and outdoor spaces here, too, in addition to a ceiling-mounted TV near the barbecue.
“Lots of people are starting to develop outdoor rooms,” said Judy Dai of Molbaks in Woodinville, which provided the furniture and accessories in and near the cabana. “You still want to have some of the elements and function of the inside.”
Each of the pieces, Dai said, is actually meant to be used outdoors, including the all-weather wicker and pillows with special fabrics designed to endure moisture.
Swim channel: Though the original backyard design included a 40-foot-by-20-foot pool, designers later added 30-foot-long swim channel to connect the water to the cabana.
“We want you to be able to swim over to the cabana,” Davis said, “without having to get out of the water,”
Reporter Sarah Jackson: 425-339-3037 or sjackson@heraldnet.com.
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