The Great Outdoors, Refined: Carolina's Outdoor-Living Boom
In a climate made for it, the state's designers are building outdoor rooms as considered and luxurious as anything indoors.
The Carolina climate practically demands outdoor living, and the state's designers are finally treating the outdoors with the seriousness it deserves.
Rooms without walls
Outdoor spaces are being designed as genuine rooms — with full kitchens, fireplaces, weatherproof furnishings and thoughtful lighting. The pool house has evolved from utilitarian shed to elegant pavilion.
The mild climate makes these spaces usable for much of the year, extending the home into the landscape.
Blurring the boundary
The best designs erase the line between inside and out, with retracting walls and continuous materials that let one flow into the other.
For a region blessed with long, temperate seasons, the outdoor-living boom feels overdue — a recognition that in the Carolinas, some of the finest rooms in the house have no roof at all.
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