Is a backyard room right for you?

Outdoor Room by Inoutside
Author: Susan Redman

One of the best ways to enjoy looking out over your garden for extended periods is via the seclusion of a stylish backyard room, also called a cabana or studio – and, some would even say, glorified shed. If the ‘room’ is sited under gumtrees or between flowerbeds, the smell of eucalyptus, the buzz of bees and the song of birds are added pleasures. This is especially so if you use your small bolthole for daily work or a hobby. A backyard room will not only get you closer to nature, even when the weather lets you down, but it will provide you with the extra space you may not be able to squeeze out of your home. Whether you approach an architect, builder or pre-fab model maker to design your room, ask them the following questions to decide if a room out back is for you.

1. What do people want from a backyard room?
Backyard rooms come in many guises. Most are designed to adapt to a number of uses including that of home office. “A small cabin or studio is a place to escape the chaos of a having a home office inside the house,” says John Chesterfield, owner of Melwood Cedar Sheds. “This way people can enter their office and begin their day, leaving behind the household duties. It also means at the end of the day they can shut the door on their work until the next morning.”

Kristy Lochrin, co-owner and designer of Ablock Builders, believes people are increasingly looking for a unique space in their garden, yard or property to call their own. “There are many uses,” she says, “such as a craft room, a guest room, a space for relaxation, the list is endless.” In fact to support these pursuits, many companies are now pre-fabricating or customising small freestanding studios or cabanas for showroom or online order. They are then flat-packed, shipped to site and quickly erected on the homeowner’s property.

2. Why invest so much style in such a small space?
Even if it’s just used for storage, a backyard room is still superior to a shed for its insulation qualities and weather-proofing. “It’s great for dry storage – for things that can be affected by dampness, such as books and computer equipment,” says Chesterfield. Plus, it can be transitioned into a more conventional room whenever necessary, and there’s no doubt that a backyard room can add oodles of charm to the garden. It can even increase the worth of the whole property. “Not only do they look better than the traditional metal sheds,” says Chesterfield, “they can also be customised to match your house.”

3. Will I need council approval?
A lot of people choose to install a backyard or an outdoor room right at the bottom of the garden but just remember that if it’s positioned too near a boundary or fence, or it is over a certain size, you may have to apply for planning permission. However, in most cases, you won’t need approval. In NSW, for example, small backyard studios less than 20 square metres don’t require council approval. Although, as Chesterfield explains, there are a few additional requirements: “The structure should remain under three metres high and should be no less than 90 centimetres from any boundary.”

4. Where in the garden?
With local councils and governments acknowledging the multipurpose, multifunctional and multi-generational uses of single properties these days, there are few impediments to installing small-sized extra accommodation out back. “The beauty of a modular backyard room is that it can be easily placed into the backyard of any property, from a single-fronted terrace to a rambling suburban garden,” says owner and director of Backyard Room and ArchiBlox, Bill McCorkell. “Ideally it should be sited according to passive design principles, such as somewhere that is protected from the hot summer sun while taking advantage of its warmth during winter, has good cross-ventilation and so on.”

If you decide to put your backyard room in the middle of the garden, it should be accompanied by some complementary landscaping otherwise it might look like it’s just been plonked there. The structure itself has to appear nestled into the landscape and look inviting. After all, it will be the first thing you see when stepping outside.

Similarly, when your backyard room has a pathway to it and a purpose-built garden around it, escaping to the ‘office’ each day becomes exponentially appealing.

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5. How will the seasons affect the position?
If you choose a shaded spot, remember that it will get cold in winter and therefore some form of heating is a must, not to mention good lighting, to make up for the lack of natural light. For opposite reasons, don’t put your ‘room’ in a position where it will be exposed to the baking rays of sun in mid summer. Short answer: find a compromise position, perhaps north-facing, protected from the westerly sun and near a deciduous tree that will offer shade in summer but allow for direct sunshine through the cooler months.

6. What about privacy?
If you are using your backyard room for a special purpose that could be noisy, perhaps as a teen retreat or a musician’s studio, then siting your cosy cabana away from the main house and neighbours is wise.

7. What’s the best way to connect the ‘room’ to your home?
“The placement of a backyard room within a garden depends on the function of the room itself, the aspect of the site and the architecture and indoor-outdoor flow of the home,” says landscape architect and designer Steve Taylor of COS Design. “I like using a simple rule that convenience is king. If it is easy, convenient and in your face [visible to you] when you are inside the main house, you will be more likely to use it.”

Combined outdoor areas, culminating in the backyard room beside the pool, for example, can look more like house extension in appearance, and therefore creates a better connection. “For me an outdoor room is a space within the garden in which you can carry out an everyday function of life,” he says. “Whether it be entertaining, alfresco dining, lounging, reading, relaxing or sitting by a fire, there really is no set definition to an outdoor room as long as it is outdoors and surrounded by fresh air and greenery.”

“A single garden can consist of many separate outdoor rooms or a single multifunctional outdoor room, there really aren’t any rules,” says Taylor.

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The connection between the house and the outdoor room can be achieved in different ways. McCorkell says his clients position a modular or studio in relation to their main home (and this goes for any standalone backyard room); ie, in close proximity or via an easy walk. Others tend to position the ‘room’ to suit their individual site in terms of light, views and what space they have available in their garden. Whatever the circumstances, however, one thing is for sure, so popular are these ‘pods of personal space’ becoming that even squeezing them into a tight corner, as seen here, will please.

“Everyone needs their space to work, think, read, entertain or pursue their creative interests,” says McCorkell. “Backyard rooms should be designed on the premise that adding space should be simple and affordable. Plus, it’s a great way to enjoy your garden from a different angle.”

8. Does a backyard room need to be enclosed?
If all you require is a semi-enclosed area for alfresco drinks, you can probably build a fairly simple open structure – such as this glamorous lounge and pool-house style cabana by landscape designer Daniel Tyrrell.

“Aspect becomes even more important when the room is not completely enclosed. “The room should be orientated to the best aspect of the garden – the sun and the view. This allows living areas to more naturally ‘spill’ outside,” says Tyrrell. “Close to the kitchen is also important – access to food and drinks is handy!”

The popularity of the outdoor room is growing rapidly in Australia, says Tyrrell. “It creates an outdoor destination for people to go to and interact. It invites you into the garden with comfortable seating and gives you the feeling of relaxation.”

9. Is the interior space cramped?
It’s amazing what can be housed inside a backyard room or studio. The owner of the one picture here is a commercial writer. “He is now enjoying the pleasure and productivity of working from home in a professional setting, rather than trying to work inside with the distractions of young children and everyday home interruptions,” says McCorkell. “This backyard room includes a built-in desk, shelves and the multi-purpose shelf-ladder (or ‘shladder’ as we like to call it), which gives access to a sleeping platform above.”

10. Can a pre-made structure be sited anywhere?
One of the small buildings Kristy and her co-owner husband Wes Lochrin created was for a family on a rural property. “It provides a getaway space for family members and visitors. Although it caters for hobbies most of the time, it doubles as a guest room when needed.” Most of the basics were included: “The family opted for an all-purpose mini lean-to attached to the exterior wall to be used as either a potting bench, camp kitchen, wood store, or chicken house.”

11. Can a backyard room be homely and self-contained?
Many backyard rooms, pods and small pre-fab outbuildings can usually provide all the basics: “This one [pictured here and above] has a double bed which is used as a lounge by day and a bed by night,” says Lochrin. “It has a pot-belly stove used to heat the room and boil water, and there is also a custom-made kitchen bench made from reclaimed hardwood with a concrete top. A water tank is connected to service the room, and there’s the option in the future of attaching a small bathroom in the style of a lean to.”

12. What about light?
As designers experiment with these stylish space-savers of the the backyard garden, it’s becoming clear that the more light the better the comfort factor. “Adding extra windows and placing the cabana so it faces north allows you to take maximum advantage of natural light and reduces the need for electric lighting,“ says Chesterfield.

In a more exposed outdoor room around a pool or deck area, for example, good quality well-planned garden lighting can add atmospheric illumination to the outdoor room and entertaining areas. “Garden lighting can make a huge difference to the way a garden feels after the sun goes down and directly affect how you use your outdoor spaces,” says Tyrrell.

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