Barclay Butera’s Luxurious, Curated Outdoor Spaces

From lush luxurious settings with running water,

To enchanting retreats,

To romantic cottage exteriors,

To opulent California exteriors for large living outdoors, “The creativity that is going on today in outdoor space design in incredible,” said Barclay Butera, renowned West Coast interior designer and author.

“Outdoor has become a higher priority than some rooms in the house,” he said. Barclay’s own inviting poolside space, outside his West Hollywood home, is shown above and below.

Barclay Butera was the featured speaker at a recent #HPMKT luncheon seminar, where he shared his unique point of view about curating an outdoor space and providing a seamless transition from the inside out. The seminar was moderated by Cindy Hodnett, Editor of Design Today, shown below with Barclay.

 “The outdoor room creates so many opportunities for interior designers. We can now create high-end designs for outdoor living with beautiful materials and colors,” he said.

In fact, outdoor furnishings have been the fastest-growing category in furniture for the last decade, from 2005 to 2015, said Norman Hamilton, vice president of designer sales for Castelle/Pride Family Brands, a luxury, custom outdoor furniture company that sponsored the seminar. According to Casual Living/Furniture Today Progressive Business Media, outdoor furnishings sales have grown over 69% in the last ten years. 

The living room setting above is the Trento deep seating group from Castelle, crafted of cast and extruded aluminum with hand-applied antiquing, along with a state-of-the-art firepit. Firepits are the single most sought-after outdoor item, according to the survey.

“The outdoor room is the largest room in the house and it is 3 rooms in one,” Hamilton said, “It is living room, dining room and entertaining/family room.”

“It’s all about gathering with family and friends to enjoy the outdoors together,” Butera said.

The same design aesthetics that influence interiors are now influencing outdoor spaces, said Butera, adding, “Indoor has influenced outdoor and vice versa. People love to fling their doors open to the outside and have a seamless flow between outdoor and indoor.” 

Trends in outdoor include “the rooftop experience, which has become very important,” Butera said.

Color trends in outdoor, according to Butera include “tangerine, blues and yellows, and fine black stripes next to lots of color.”

With his design firm based in Newport Beach, Calif. and showrooms in Hollywood and Utah, Butera is known for approachable elegance and glamorous, West-Coast chic design. He has just published his fifth coffee table book: Barclay Butera Modern Living (Gibbs-Smith, 2016)

Do Barclay’s luxurious outdoor spaces have your creative juices flowing, and are you longing to see more? Good news! Stay tuned for more in a second Hadley Court post dedicated to luxurious outdoor spaces. This one will have a distinct Americana flavor..