DIY Network

Outdoor Living Room Create your own open-air retreat. From "B. Original" episode DBOR-107

Curl up in a cozy corner of your own outdoor hideaway!

Michele Beschen loves thinking outside the box—and even outside the house! The B. Original host turns her creativity loose on the great outdoors in this project, creating a homey outdoor retreat from flea-market finds and her own ingenuity.

See how Michele Beschen defines an outdoor living space and fills it with homey touches that stand up to the weather. It's enough to make anyone want to B. Original in the great outdoors.

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A pup tent gives kids their own space in your outdoor room.

General Tips

• Attach items to trees safely—for the tree as well as for you. Rope, chain and wire are great materials for attaching items without having to drill into the trees. On top of that, ropes and chains give you the flexibility to hang things at any level.

• Know your space. Before designing your outdoor room, take the time to get a good feel for a space. Is it shady or sunny? Does it have good drainage, or does it turn into a swamp after a heavy rain? Keep the nature of your space in mind when creating your design.

• Know your weather. Michele Beschen's meadow hideaway doesn't get much wind, but yours may be different. If your area gets a lot of wind, you'll need to adjust what you include in your room and how you attach it.

	Figure A
	Figure B

Define Your Space

Your outdoor retreat doesn't need walls, but it still needs definition. Here are some of Michele Beschen's tips for defining your own space:

• Decide how much space you want to work with and clear trees and brush, if needed. Play up what's left behind: Michele Beschen partially pruned several tree branches, creating an easy-climb "tree ladder" for kids (figure A). The short branches also make great places to hang lanterns or accessories.

• Hang a window. Michele Beschen bent S hooks in half and screwed one half into a wooden-frame window; she ran a chain through the other half of the hook to hang it from a tree branch (figure B).

• Stake out the area. Decorate large pieces of driftwood—or some of the branches you trimmed to clear your space—to set the boundaries of your outdoor room. You can always add a few tiki torches as well.

	Figure C
	Figure D

Make it Your Own

Now it's time to open up your imagination and B. Original in your outdoor room. Remember, the sky's the limit—literally.

One of the ways Michele Beschen made her look work was by making indoor pieces blend with their new environment. She created a faux fireplace out of an old headboard, weaving branches through the woodwork and screwing them in place where needed. She added painted sticks for a whimsical look, along with rocks and leaves. Adding a giant candle to the center completes the piece (figure C).

Remember that anything you leave in your outdoor room will get weathered. Use rocks and other natural décor, and remember that metal pieces hold up nicely in the outdoors. You can even create a mini boudoir by covering a fold-up cot with weatherproof fabric, then softening the look with an overhead canopy (figure D).

Scour flea markets for inexpensive items that will hold up fairly well in the outdoors. Keep an eye out for metal birdcages of all sizes: They make great outdoor candleholders, showing off your candles while keeping leaves and other flammable debris away.

Here are some of Michele Beschen's finds that became part of her outdoor den:

A macramé hanger tricked out as a table...

Picture frames and metal artwork...

And even a "chandelier" made from a tiered vegetable basket and plastic jewels.

Creating your own outdoor living space is a fabulous way to enjoy the outdoors with your family—and an awesome exercise for your imagination. So get outside and B. Original with outdoor rooms!