Project of the Month: October 2021
October 27, 2021 Project of the MonthClick here to discover details about this beautifully completed modern outdoor living project.
Click here to discover details about this beautifully completed modern outdoor living project.
Click here to discover details about this beautiful modern/transitional outdoor living project.
Customizing your patio isn’t just a great way to enjoy your outdoor space, it’s also a terrific way to showcase your style. The three owners of Houston-based Texas Custom Patios, husband and wife Rob and Katherine Douglass and Steven Schell, have learned an array of techniques for maximizing any outdoor space. They’ve discovered that the best patio designs are a blend of a home’s architecture and the owners’ personal style.
Creating the market. In 2004, Rob Douglass saw an opportunity. Working for the YMCA and living in Fort Bend County, he noticed “a lot of rooftops going up,” he says. “Although the new homes were on decent-sized lots, the new backyards had a 10-by-10 slab and not much else.” Douglass realized he could create a specialized service designing and building outdoor living spaces, dining areas and kitchens. He brought his wife, Katherine, on as partner and then enlisted the help of YMCA co-worker Schell.
Your new favorite room. In the ensuing 15 years, the company has grown to include offices in Houston and now Dallas. The team has created an array of outdoor living rooms, customized kitchen spaces, dining and living rooms with outdoor entertainment centers, as well as customized pool houses. “We’ve learned from all the mistakes,” says Schell, who has a background in architectural drafting as well as his on-the-job experience. “We spend a lot of time designing and building each job and have gotten pretty good at it. We can give our customers a good assessment on how and what they should do.”
Ready to fully customize your patio?
1. Extend Your Home’s Architecture
“A typical outdoor project gives people 500 square feet of shade and adds a dining space and a lounging space,” Douglass says. “We can also add kitchens and fire features, but our main goal is to match those outdoor rooms to the home’s original style.”
The patio of this Houston brick traditional home was created by extending the home’s wide overhanging roof line and then matching the trim detail of the original structure. The team added Craftsman-style columns and coffered ceilings with oversize beams to the roof’s interior. Two new French doors provide easier access to the outdoor space from inside. “The owners really liked the mix of the brick and the white wood,” Douglass says.
2. Make It Your Own
Designing a patio provides a great opportunity to design and build a new favorite room. “Most people really enjoy the opportunity to customize the space to reflect their style,” Schell says. This Houston pool house was originally designed to be an open porch with a contemporary flair. “It was partially enclosed,” Schell says. “However, the owners wanted both a fireplace and custom kitchen.”
Schell designed a waterfall island wrapped in white oak for the kitchen, then used large terrazzo tiles as a backsplash. He finished the floor with Pennsylvania bluestone. In the sitting area, a contemporary gas fireplace features ceramic fire balls. The owners liked the resulting space so much, they decided to transform it into a full pool house that could be used all year. Schell added glass windows and accordion-style glass doors.
3. Take Up Some Space
For comfort’s sake, don’t skimp on space. “In the initial planning stage, we ask in-depth questions,” Douglass says. “It’s important to consider exactly how someone plans to use a space.” By getting into the nitty-gritty of how many people will sit at a dining table, for example, or whether a family entertains a lot, the team can plan for the appropriate amount of square footage. “If you want an outdoor kitchen, you’ll need enough space to move around,” Douglass says. “You don’t want to be backing into the grill, for example.”
This 850-square-foot patio in Houston is ideal for entertaining. The natural stone work area includes a grill and a power burner for crawfish. Both the lounge and dining table can accommodate up to 10 guests. The white brick walls and tile floor are offset by a dark wood tongue-and-groove ceiling.
For more information or examples of Texas Custom Patios’ work, visit the Houzz profile.
This story was written by the Houzz Sponsored Content team.
We were recently featured in The Houston Chronicle for “How to Get Your Houston Backyard Summer-Ready!” A few tips and tricks from the professionals, read the full article here!
The Washington Post recently posted an article, “The new American status symbol: A backyard that’s basically a fancy living room,” basically saying stackable plastic chairs and charcoal grills are out…
But loaded, supersize, decked-out deck with an outdoor living room, dining area, 54-inch grill, full kitchen, bar, two-draft kegerator, oversize island, massive weatherproof television, elaborate sound system and semicircular fire lounges are in.
What’s not to love? You’ll take all of it? But when? How long will it take? So many questions, right? Knowing when to start building your backyard patio is half the battle and then knowing who to go with is the other battle. Picking out your design, working on the layout, and buying furniture is the fun part!
Texas Custom Patios provides a turnkey custom design project. Our specialty is building projects that look original to the home, including patio covers, pergolas, screened porches, room additions, guest houses, decks, outdoor kitchens, fireplaces, and custom patios. We do all the fun stuff too, you know … oversized islands, elaborate sound systems and stunning fire lounges.
Fire features are great, but the most popular way to bring the heat to your outdoor living space is with an outdoor kitchen!
We can customize your outdoor kitchen area to have whatever you want:
After you slice and dice outside, why not have dinner on the patio? Creating space for a dining table is perfect for entertaining family and friends.
Keep the party outside all night long, by adding a lounge space to kick back and watch TV, listen to music or just relax and look at your view!
And when you’re ready to come back inside, seamless transitions from outdoors to indoor are sliding to the top in popularity!
And when you take away the traditional doors and add seamless transitions to your home, it makes your indoor living space feel larger! Taking your holiday decor outside for some fun in the sun is fun, too!
We have all been stuck inside for too long! Everyone is ready to get out and enjoy a backyard get-together, so if you build it, they will come! Because after all, being outside is happy!
To read The Washington Post’s full article click here.
Since most of us have spent more time at home in the last 12 months than ever before, we have a new appreciation for making a house a home. And because everyone plans to stay home more in the future, but reintroduce guests, most want some sort of outdoor space to entertain them. If you have been dreaming of improving your home, now is the time to do it, but it comes with a longer-than-expected wait time. It makes sense though … while remodeling activity continues to grow, so does project wait time.
Here’s what to expect…
When a homeowner calls us right now – we are anywhere between 3-4 weeks before getting to do an initial appointment with them. Once we have done that initial meeting, it takes about 2 weeks to get a design back. Once the design is approved and the contract is signed, we are looking at an additional 12-14 weeks to start construction.
Remodeling wait times aren’t just in Houston either, this stands for the entire country.
With more homeowners reaching out to construction firms, architects and interior designers to upgrade their homes, the wait time to start a new project is also on the rise.
If you look at the chart above, you’ll see that demand for construction services is strong, as the average wait time to begin a midsize project rose to 9.3 weeks. A year ago, the national average wait time was 5.4 weeks, meaning the average wait time is almost one month (3.9 weeks) longer than the same period last year.
-Houzz
Another thing to consider…
Cost of projects have gone up due to rising lumber and material costs. Labor costs are also on the rise. This is always subject to change, but it’s worth mentioning.
If you’re ready to move full steam ahead, contact us now!
Click here to discover details about this contemporary project in Houston, Texas.
If 2021 is your year to build your outdoor oasis, check out these designs that are dominating. No matter your style… we provide turnkey custom design projects. Our specialty is building projects that look original to the home, including patio covers, pergolas, screened porches, room additions, guest houses, decks, outdoor kitchens, fireplaces, and custom patios.
Many times our customers come into the building process with only a small idea of what they want to do, we are here to bring ideas to the table, think things through and of course, build it!
Outdoor kitchens remain ruling as king, but don’t forget… big things can come in small packages. Even if you only have a little space, an outdoor kitchen can still be built! Big or small, outdoor kitchens and dining space continues to be very popular.
For those that have a little extra space, freestanding retreats are popping up in many backyards! This type of “patio” is nice because it’s separated from the home and really gives off the feeling that you’re on vacation!
This space above has a gable roof and vaulted ceiling. We used a stained tongue and groove with cedar beams. The columns are wrapped in hardie and painted – they have stone bases that match the kitchen fascia and the fireplace. All of this stone complements the pool coping. The flooring is a wide plank stamped concrete. Two large fans were also installed to create a nice breeze on those hot days of summer and again, make you feel like you’re on vacation!
Retractable screens are sliding into this list because they are functional and look nice! Most homes have a “hot spot” at least once during the day from the sun’s rays, these types of screens make it easy to block the sun in a moment’s notice. They keep the area cool and also keep the bugs out!
Folding patio doors just might be the hottest feature on this list (save the best for last?)… individual panels give the homeowner complete control, so it can be as open or closed as one would like. The large amount of glass opens up the space for that indoor/outdoor living feel.
Now let’s talk budget … a typical patio cover could be in the $25,000 – $45,000 range. Adding an outdoor kitchen and/or fire feature can add an additional cost in the range of $15,000 – $50,000. After an initial meeting, we give you an exact quote design. It is all based on the size of your project, how it is constructed, type of finishes and what all is included in your project. And before you know it… your sketch is built and you’re enjoying your outdoor oasis!
If you would like more information on how to budget for your outdoor living space, check out our budget blog, here!
Click here to discover details about this beautiful project in Plano, Texas.
Texas Custom patios of Houston and DFW has won a “Best Of Houzz” award for “Design and Customer Service” on Houzz®, the leading platform for home renovation and design. The custom outdoor living design builder was chosen by the millions of homeowners that comprise the Houzz community from among more than 2.5 million active home building, remodeling and design industry professionals.
The Best Of Houzz badge is awarded annually, in three categories: Design, Customer Service and Photography. Design awards honor professionals whose work was the most popular among the Houzz community. Customer Service honors are based on several factors, including a pro’s overall rating on Houzz and client reviews submitted in 2020. Architecture and interior design photographers whose images were most popular are recognized with the Photography award.
A “Best Of Houzz 2021” badge will appear on winners’ profiles as a sign of their commitment to excellence. These badges help homeowners identify popular and top-rated home professionals in every metro area on Houzz.
“We at Texas Custom Patios are thrilled to be named as a Best of Houzz winner. We take pride in our projects and are so pleased our designs have caught the eyes of so many Houzzers. And we always strive to treat our homeowners with respect and work diligently to provide great service,” said Katherine Douglass, co-owner for the custom builder.
“The Best Of Houzz awards are an emblem of trust and credibility for home professionals across the U.S. and around the world, and we are excited to celebrate this year’s winners,” said Liza Hausman, vice president of Industry Marketing for Houzz. “The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the critical need for people to feel comfortable before inviting pros into and around their homes, and the Best Of Houzz badge is a powerful way for pros to communicate the trust that homeowners have in their business. It’s just one of many tools on the Houzz platform that help pros to communicate their unique expertise, and homeowners to find the right professionals for their projects.”
You can see more of Texas Custom Patio’s work on Houzz!
We were very pleased with Texas Custom Patios and how our primary contact, Ryan, approached the job. He was very polished and professional and as issues surfaced during the project he was quick to deliver a solid solution. Well worth the investment. We are very pleased with the outcome of this patio and are happy to be a reference to anyone with questions.