Australia’s leading masonry manufacturer Adbri Masonry has announced their predictions of key outdoor landscaping trends for 2014 and into the summer of 2015.
Adbri Masonry Marketing Manager Karl Wood recalled one of the trends predicted last year was that of homeowners looking to ‘Make Better Use Of Limited Outdoor Space’ due to increasing pressures of urbanisation and decreasing amounts of personal space. This trend has been observed to be actively progressing, with homeowners returning to their love affair with the outdoor space, as they further embrace the tangible and intangible benefits of the Outdoor Room for improved health, wealth, wellbeing and peace of mind.
He predicts that 2014/15 will see the Outdoor Room return to being one of the most valued rooms in the house.
Adbri Masonry brand ambassador and landscaping expert Jason Hodges observes that the outdoor space is versatile enough to fit some of the most creative and imaginative ideas. People increasingly looking for an escape from their busy lives seek to restore balance by creating their own personal space.
Key 2014/2015 trends to transforming the Outdoor Room:
Organic edible gardens
Adbri Masonry and Jason believe 2014/15 will see a notable increase in the use of outdoor areas for organic gardening and edible gardens, especially by those looking to improve their health and wellbeing. Jason comments that no other space in the house can be so multi-functional or offer so much opportunity to improve the family’s health and contribute to their wellness. With home grown and organic eating becoming the norm, people want to not just enjoy eating organic, they want to grow it themselves, and the outdoor room is a great place to start. The outdoor room also provides a space for organic composts.
Jason recommends raised garden beds as a great way to start the organic adventure.
The new Family Room
As parents work longer hours and technology dominates the leisure hours, family activities once enjoyed in the outdoors are now becoming a fond memory rather than a regular reality. A recent Planet Arc3 study found one in ten Aussie kids played outside once a week; that 1 in 4 parents said ‘not having time to play with their children’ was one of the main barriers to their children not playing outside; and 85% of parents felt their kids weren’t spending enough time outdoors.
Adbri Masonry and Jason predict 2014/15 will see a trend towards the Outdoor Family Room, which will provide time-poor parents with a safe environment for children to play away from technology, and an easy welcoming location for the family to reconnect. Installing a paved courtyard area not only serves as a private play space, but more importantly, a place where memories can be made, from end of week family dinners to Christmas day celebrations. Families can enjoy a dedicated quiet space away from distractions such as TVs, iPhones and computer games.
The new Home Office
Improving mobile technology and flexible working hours are leading to an increasing number of Australians choosing to work from home.
ABS4 research found 1 in 12 persons worked more hours at home than any other single location in their main or second job, and that over 1/3 of these people replied their reason for working from home was to ‘catch up on work’. Jason believes it inevitably means that the line between home and office is becoming more blurred.
Given the distractions and comforts of home, focusing on work can become difficult and therefore, one should create an inspiring workspace. Jason observes the growth of Outdoor Offices as a strong trend throughout 2014/15 with the open and tranquil features of the outdoor workspace instilling a sense of calm and focus. Simple, easy to maintain garden beds, vertical green walls, paved courtyard spaces and water features are some of the recommended elements of the outdoor office space that together allow the user to be relaxed, inspired and focussed on the work at hand.
With increasing DIY education from suppliers and homeowner self-confidence, Adbri Masonry and Jason predict 2014/15 will see increased investment into the outdoor room and DIY landscaping projects.
