Having a designated outdoor living space has pretty much become the norm here in Florida. Gone are the days of pulling out a lawn chair or two when guests arrive. Today, homeowners are designating outdoor living areas as full-time living spaces. Decked out with furniture, rugs, and decor that adds to the ambiance. Too bad your ultra-curious neighbors are always at the fence peering in your direction. It makes it hard to enjoy family time sometimes. Maybe it’s time to consider some lanai privacy ideas.
You have to admit it would be nice to have the extended family over for a graduation celebration or maybe a Sunday cookout without feeling like you’re on display. Placing a privacy barrier between you and your neighbors would certainly do the trick. We’ve got a few possibilities to share with you.
Hedge walls
It may take a few years to reach the ultimate goal when choosing a hedge wall as your privacy feature—if you’re creating it with tall grasses, vines, or shrubbery. It’s worth the wait though because it provides you with total privacy and is quite beautiful to boot!
However, many homeowners opt to install an artificial hedge wall. They are available at your local home improvement store and are relatively simple to erect.
You can enclose your entire yard if you need a large space to entertain family and friends. Or, if you’re going for a cozier retreat, just place your hedge wall around the area where you’re outdoor living room is located.
Herringbone wood walls
The herringbone wall is becoming increasingly popular for use both inside and outside the home. The aesthetic value is immense as they are stunning to look at from either side. Herringbone walls completely block the prying eyes of neighbors or passersby.
If you choose to install the wall yourself, be forewarned that it will take precise measurements to ensure the pieces fit together correctly. You want to form the classic zigzag design. If you’re handy with a saw and measuring tape though—and jigsaw puzzles don’t drive you bonkers—this may be the perfect weekend DIY project for you!
Stamped metal screens
These barriers have the industrial look written all over them. Various sizes of metal paneling create the wall. Installed vertically, the panels create a striking, staggered look. The panels normally come in one uniform color. However, homeowners are making their own statements by adding designs of their choosing.
Free-standing water walls
Water walls have become extremely popular swimming pool features, but their popularity stands on its own as well. Homeowners are using free-standing water walls to separate and divide the outdoor living area.
While they don’t afford much in the way of privacy, they make such a stunning statement that it’s hard to pull your eyes away from them. Add some colored lighting for evening entertaining. Surprise your family and friends when your lanai privacy ideas include such a dramatic effect!
Mesh screen enclosures
You might not consider installing a mesh screen enclosure as much of a privacy feature. While it’s true that screen enclosures don’t afford you and your family complete and total privacy, using darker screen colors provides more of a sense of privacy than you might think.
Moreover, many companies provide their customers with a customization feature should they choose to take advantage of it. Using digital imagery and dyes treated with added UV protection, virtually any picture can be printed directly onto the privacy screens. The results are truly amazing—and incredibly long-lasting!
Add your own furnishings and decor and you’ll create a space that is all your own. And, one your friends and family are likely never going to want to leave!
Added benefits too
In addition to adding an element of privacy that you and your family are going to notice immediately, mesh screen enclosures provide you with other immediate benefits.
They are:
• Bug blocker—Mesh screen enclosures are constructed using a finely woven screen. It keeps all manner of bugs out.
• Added UV protection—Mesh screen enclosures don’t block 100% of the sun’s UV rays, but they can block up to 70% of them.
• Added safety for children and pets—Imagine being able to run inside to grab this or that and not worry about your dog… or your three-year-old… disappearing from view in the seconds that you’re gone.
Build that wall
Once you decide on which lanai privacy ideas appeal to you most, it won’t take long for your creative muse to set in. Whether you start planting greenery, building water walls yourself, or hire a contractor to make your dream a reality, once it’s said and done, you and your family will never view hanging out back in the same way again.
Creating some boundaries to provide your family with a private space promotes a sense of well-being. Should you fully enclose the area using customized screens, you can create a get-away that gives you the sense of being anywhere in the world that you choose. The transformation can be so great that you will want to pinch yourself to make sure you aren’t dreaming.
You won’t be plagued by bugs, will gain a bit of shade, and will have a safe space for small children and pets to play safely outdoors.
Before you get started on your lanai privacy ideas, though, what about incorporating the pool? You could increase your private space to include both areas in one! Then, maybe, add a free-standing water wall right over there…
We’ll show ourselves out. You keep dreaming about how that new outdoor space is going to turn out.