Extending your indoor space into the outdoors can be as simple as installing a patio or as complicated as a screened in roofed porch. Garden rooms are a way to use every bit of your backyard, side yard and yes, even your front yard.

The first step is to make a list of the different activities that take place in your yard, or that you would like to take place. For example: Your toddlers may need a play space close to the back door where they have a grassy area, sandbox and perhaps some play equipment to climb on.

If outdoor dining is one of your pleasures you'll need space for a table and chairs and some sort of outdoor lighting. The alfresco dining room shouldn't be too far away from the kitchen or you probably won't use it as much. Keep in mind that while placing the dining room under a tree provides shade it also provides a roost for birds and their droppings.

Think of your rooms outside in the same manner as you do the rooms inside. Most rooms have flooring which outside could be grass, stone, brick, gravel, or cement. They also have walls for privacy. Outside rooms can have hedges, borders, pots, or vines growing up trellis to differentiate the area from the surrounding yard. While inside rooms have ceilings you don't need a ceiling outside with a beautiful blue sky.