Outdoor living design complements St. Paul home's exterior renovation

When it was time to update the exterior of this Minneapolis home with new stucco, windows and trim, the homeowners also wanted to add a backyard entertaining space as part of the project.

The back yard was the perfect spot for a large patio for dining and a space for a movable fire pit. The back door leading to the back yard and detached garage was utilitarian and didn’t reflect the character of the newly refreshed exterior of their home.

One-piece concrete steps were removed to create a VERSA-LOK pedestal stack staircase, making a stunning entrance to the back door of the home. One of Villa’s expert designers helped the homeowner select VERSA-LOK Standard Units in Bronze Blend with bullnose pavers in black for the step treads.

Willow Creek Cobblestone in Lakeshore Blend was used to create the fire pit area with a contrasting black border in Cobblestone to define the space.

Villa encouraged the homeowners to maximize the fire pit area by adding curved seat walls using VERSA-LOK Standard in Bronze Blend with VERSA-LOK Caps in a contrasting Charcoal Blend.

The circular dining patio was created with Willow Creek Circlestone in Lakeshore blend with a contrasting Cobblestone black border as well.

To help blend the patio with the driveway, the designer cut out the drive in a beautiful arc that mimicked the arcs in the patio and added a curved path to the gate between the back yard and the side yard. Landscape lighting was incorporated into the staircase and the seat walls to add evening ambience and a measure of safety.