CREATING YOUR OWN BACKYARD PARADISE

You love your home. You love your pool. However, you feel as though your backyard isn’t living up to its full potential. You have the space and you have the design sense. So, where do you start? What’s the first step to take to create your own backyard oasis? A few factors to consider would be safety, freedom or range of movement, and most notably, sensory immersion. With these factors in place, it's possible to feel like you're on a vacation without ever leaving your home.

CHANGE THE LANDSCAPE - Implementing design elements that engage all of the senses simultaneously creates a fully immersive experience that is conducive to fun and comfort. What we see, hear, smell, taste, and touch is what constructs our reality. By adding plants and colorful flower arrangements to the design of your backyard paradise, alone, you can achieve this. Plants and flowers are visually stimulating, fragrant, they attract birds and butterflies, and they provide shade to the area. Changing the landscape of your backyard should be high on your priority list.

COMFORTABLE SEATING - Creating an area dedicated to relaxation and comfort is essential to the creation of any backyard oasis. Outdoor seating options can range from large beach chairs to outdoor sectionals. It is not unusual to find outdoor seating with built-in storage compartments as well. Another option would be elevated tables and stools. This option may save space and allow you more control with placement. It is important to note that comfortable seating should always be in close proximity to the amenities of the outdoor space.

STRUCTURAL - Canopies, gazebos, cabanas, and large retractable umbrellas are all great structural options to implement in the design of your at-home paradise. A fire pit can add to the texture of the space, while engaging your senses as well. The flare of the flame, the crackle of the wood, the heat emanating from the pit, all do their part to draw you into a sensory experience, connecting you to the space. Lighting is also of structural importance in this regard. Lighting sets the ambience, and ambience sets the mood. ylee Dean of Kylee Dean Designs laments that for many, Interior Design is viewed as a simple task of picking fabric and paint, or simply renewing a space with a splash of color.

WATER SOURCE - An alternate water source such as a small pond, or even a fountain will provide for constant movement and resonant sound in the environment you create. The sound of moving water is one of the most relaxing sounds that we can experience as humans. The reflective properties of water allow it to spread light and cast shadows. The movement of the water adds to the energy of the space.

COOKING STATION AND BAR - An Outdoor kitchen and bar can be used as another way for people to be drawn into their environment. The smell of food cooking and the taste of cocktails completes the experience, and engages the remaining senses. Coupled with comfortable seating, your outdoor kitchen and bar space can feel like an exclusive lounge. Temperature control solutions would be helpful in this area, as well. Using misters in the summer and heat lamps in the winter allows you to feel as if its always the perfect weather in your personal paradise.

PULLING IT ALL TOGETHER - Once you have made changes to your landscape, chosen your seating and arranged it comfortably, added structural elements for shade and energy flow, and developed your outdoor bar and grill, it is time to share it, Hosting private events and parties is the perfect way to see the functionality and comfortability of your new personal paradise. This is where any unaddressed safety concerns would be revealed as well. How do your guests interact with their environment? Are they at rest, or in motion? Is their motion restricted? Answering these questions will help you to make modifications to the space as you go, allowing for maximum comfort and enjoyment.

For Kylee and her Team, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. The nearly twentyyear luxury design veteran views design as an intimate journey, the marriage of a space to change and the will of her client, of bending the room or rooms into something more beautiful, of transforming an area into a compelling, fulfilling aesthetic.

The resulting effect can be incredible for those who get to experience the new space.

It doesn’t happen by accident. Kylee works closely with architects, builders, contractors and engineers to maximize talent and optimize outcomes. She says with a gleam in her eye that she loves designing secret spaces, including all things taboo. More on this subject will require a one on one with Kylee who asserts that confidentiality is guaranteed for her clientele.

Kylee’s clientele shows a pattern…they are professionals within their own industries, understand the value of time and trust that Kylee and her Team will manage their project with impeccable detail. Her design Team is known for delivering white glove, concierge level service to her clients, helping to manifest the best luxury experience and avoiding what can too often be a stressful endeavor.

The artistic journey always begins with an initial contact (walk-in, email or phone) where The Team assembles important client and project information for the principal designer. After that, every project requires a two-hour consultation during which Kylee and her assistant walks through the project room by room, gathering information and defining a specialized scope of work. When a client chooses to hire Kylee Dean Designs, they will receive an email update every Monday and the firm endeavors to keep all projects on time and on budget.

Whether it’s a massive penthouse project like her signature work on The Strip, a modern new build from start to finish, or a luxury redux in one of the better edges of the valley, Kylee is eager to change spaces and lives with her vision for something more beautiful.