With Spring quickly approaching, what are your plans to spruce up your garden?!

Garden parties have become increasingly popular as families explore safer ways to get together, creating fun “stay-cation” opportunities by transforming their homes, gardens, and even their greenhouses into great entertaining spaces! Whether you enjoy hosting regular garden parties or gardening with your kids and grandkids, we have identified a few tips to help transform any garden into an outdoor oasis that your guests won’t want to leave!

1 | Tap Into The Versatility of Greenhouses

Residential greenhouses and conservatories are beautiful architectural features that add visual interest to your garden and help prolong your growing season, but many overlook the fact they can double as fun, gathering spaces too! Filled with natural light, they create an inviting and relaxing atmosphere, making you feel as though you are outside while safely indoors. We often hear from our clients, that while they adore growing their beautiful plant collections, they frequently find themselves inviting friends and family to gather inside the gardens too! Hosting garden parties, smaller friend and family gatherings, book clubs, and tea parties, not only are the views inside beautiful, but with the right placement of your greenhouse or conservatory, you can capture stunning views of the property.

2 | Outdoor Extensions of Greenhouses and Conservatories

Take advantage of Mother Nature’s beauty for your décor by hosting outdoor gatherings in your garden. With the extended space, you can offer a variety of different activities for guests without a ton of set-up! Larger activities such as popular lawn games, volleyball, and swimming can be planned as part of the landscape for any time use. When guests are tired of playing games in the yard, they can retreat to the comfort of your greenhouse or conservatory to enjoy a refreshing drink. Take advantage of the seating you already have inside to protect any refreshments served from insects. The large glass panes will provide a comfortable place for guests to sit and eat while still feeling a part of the outdoor activities.

Alternatively, you can enjoy the same benefits when hosting corporate and business events in this setting. A true statement piece, conservatories and greenhouses can be incorporated as destinations within the gardens for guests to enjoy a nice stroll through your collection before entering the main attraction under the stars.

3 | Design Your Conservatory To Fit Your Lifestyle

Planning the perfect garden is not just about having the most beautiful plants and décor, it has to fit your style of living also. Consider some of these functional and beautiful ideas for your conservatory or greenhouse!

Create the ultimate Game Day party space

Designing your custom conservatory can be an exciting journey. If you find your family hosting game day parties often, consider designing your conservatory with all the essentials from a mounted TV to a minibar or small kitchenette! Statement pieces such as a stone fireplace, custom detailing in the woodwork, and the inclusion of bifold doors are ways to enhance your experience year-round. Bifold doors will also allow you to expand your gathering into the garden, creating a seamless transition from indoors to outdoors for additional activities while the games are on inside!

Comfortably host cookouts without the bother of bugs and insects

Often, designing the landscape surrounding your custom greenhouse or conservatory can be just as important as the conservatory’s design itself! How do you envision the flow from your conservatory to the outdoors and how you would like to experience these spaces together?

Cookouts are a fun summer activity to gather with family and friends, but if you are close to water or experience annoying bugs and insects during the summer months, your party may get cut short by intruders. For a retreat away from the main house, consider building your conservatory within the gardens or down by the water. Surrounding the building, add a beautiful outdoor bar and grilling station with a fire pit and additional seating to roast marshmallows. Then, when bugs and insects become an annoyance or the weather is less than ideal, retreat to your conservatory to continue the fun while staying surrounded by nature. Being away from the main house, incorporating a powder room may also be a valuable addition to the conservatory.

From a cozy, intimate gathering space to a secluded private retreat

Imagine… wandering through the brush of your garden down a narrow pathway to uncover a beautiful, quaint outdoor glass jewel for you to slip away to. Conservatories and greenhouses in these settings are fun for book clubs and tea parties, but they also serve as private retreats to unwind and reconnect with your partner one-on-one.

This secluded jewel was designed to be just that. Made of sapele mahogany with accents of copper, stained and leaded glass, brick, and stone, this secluded retreat houses an indoor hot tub, wine cooler and warm fireplace to serve as the perfect retreat at the end of a long week.

Showcase your plant and art collections

A work of art themselves, these glass jewels can also be a place to showcase your collections. Whether you have an exotic plant collection or are looking to craft a showroom for your prized art collection, think about designing a space that compliments the beautiful collection within. You could add a living plant wall, colorful chandeliers or light fixtures that will reflect off the glass to create beautiful light displays or even a water feature such as a fountain or waterfall to cascade down the wall! Pair these features with a few interesting, conversational pieces to make your conservatory or greenhouse truly stand out!

For more inspiring conservatory and greenhouse designs, view our conservatory and greenhouse portfolios!