Hosting friends and family around an outdoor fire pit is a fun way to spend summer evenings and chilly fall days. If you want to establish a place to engage with others and spend quality time with loved ones, then how you arrange your furniture sets the tone for how you spend your time outside, especially in Colorado. Kate Hartman Interiors is here to help!
How To Arrange Furniture Around An Outdoor Fire Pit
There are many options for fire pits and outdoor furniture and even more ways you can set them up. The perfect mix will combine comfort, functionality, style, and quality. Finding pieces that check off all of these boxes will elevate your outdoor experience and create a cozy atmosphere around your fire pit. If done properly, this may become your favorite feature in your home.
1. Understanding Your Space and Its Purposes
One of the first steps to decorating and interior design is to understand the space you’re working with. If you get a fire pit that is too big, you may not be able to fit any furniture around it. You could get large pieces of furniture that aren’t functional and leave little to no room for the fire pit (or might even be a fire hazard). You don’t want your space to feel claustrophobic by too large pieces or too empty by too small pieces. If you have a hard time knowing by eye what space you have, take the time to take measurements and get a plan in place before you start purchasing ill-fitting pieces.
Also, consider how the space will be used. Is it primarily for reading, talking, or knitting beside your spouse in the firelight? Do you want to have the ability to host dinner or after-dinner chats and fun around the pit? Do you need to make it child-safe? Taking your current and desired lifestyle into account is an important factor to consider as you make your plans.
Once you understand these aspects, you can start creating a space that allows you and your guests to appreciate the serenity and warmth of a fire pit.
2. Circular Seating for Long Conversations and Socializing
For those who love having many friends over for good conversations by the fire, and perhaps accompanied by a bottle of wine or two, arranging furniture around the fire in a circular formation is a great option. It’s not difficult for people to see each other, which helps foster meaningful connections and encourages conversations. You could opt for a rounded sofa and cushioned sectionals or cushioned chairs to boost coziness and create an outside living room. With the fire pit front and center for all, it sets the mood for both serious times and good laughs.
If you need furniture that is transitional and provides extra seating when not used for other purposes, swivel patio chairs, hammocks, and backless picnic benches can easily be moved to allow everyone to face each other.
3. Dinner and Larger Parties
Perhaps you’re able to host dinner outside or open your patio as an extra space. Lighting the fire pit is an excellent way to add ambiance to your dinner party. While it may not be the center of attention during dinner, having a few chairs, benches, or tree stumps set up around it allows your guests the option to converse by the fire after they’ve left the dining table. If some guests get nervous in social situations with larger groups of people, having a few seats around the fire pit creates a soothing atmosphere where they can connect one-on-one with people. This can be done with a few seating options instead of a large sectional couch.
4. The Peaceful Nights Alone
Maybe you generally prefer not to invite people to your home. You still deserve a peaceful place to unwind at night in front of a cozy fire. A couple of cozy and cushioned outdoor recliners, rockers, lounge chairs, or hammocks set up either beside the pit to admire your garden or around it to admire the fire, are great for people who like a quiet night outside without many distractions. Get comfortable and curl up with a good book, have some quality time with your spouse, or work on your next artistic endeavor with the peace of a crackling fire.
Kate Hartman Interiors
Interior design choices can be overwhelming. If you want a nice space that combines elegance and comfort, then contact Kate Hartman Interiors today. We are an interior design firm in Colorado with a strong portfolio of clients with various styles. Fill out our client questionnaire today to get started.