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Implementing this concept, the starting-point is selecting the ideal paving for outdoor areas, bearing in mind its importance as a structural and decorative feature that can shape the garden’s identity and guide the relative furnishing choices.
In this article, we’ll be looking at how to design a paved garden, with solutions for all requirements: styles, furnishings, materials and lighting. A design method for making the most of every space with the Marazzi collections.
The garden as an extension of the home: why you should take care over its design
If you want to enjoy your garden all year round, its design and furnishing play a strategic role: choosing paving tiles and wall coverings matched with those used in the interior rooms generates an attractive dialogue between indoor and outdoor spaces. Porcelain stoneware is an invaluable aid in this process, thanks to the variety of effects and sizes that make it ideal for creating visual and functional continuity. Style and convenience merge to provide a durable yet aesthetically satisfying basis for defining the look of every part of the garden, with matching solutions that reflect contemporary home design trends.
Where to start: assess your garden’s size, exposure and paving
Every effective outdoor project starts from a careful analysis of the area’s characteristics: size, exposure to sunlight and type of surface are fundamental factors that will guide your stylistic and functional choices. Whether you have to furnish a small garden or decide how to furnish a large garden, every context requires tailor-made solutions that will make the most of the area available and ensure it is truly a pleasure to live in.
Green or paved spaces? Design ideas and inputs
When defining an outdoor project, a distinction has to be made between entirely paved spaces and more natural gardens where vegetation plays the dominant role. A tiled garden is convenient and easy to look after: it provides firm, clean surfaces, ideal for accommodating dining areas, lounge corners or permanent furnishings with no need to worry about damp or subsidence. Used in this context, porcelain stoneware allows you to deploy material effects – such as stone, concrete and terracotta – to emphasise the style of your garden and ensure outstanding performance even outdoors.
A mainly green garden, with a lawn, gravel or bare earth, has a more natural character but demands constant care and imposes limitations when it comes to choosing furnishings. As a result, many garden projects opt for a combination: a tasteful alternation of furnished areas and plants elegantly differentiates the zones used for different purposes – for example, a paved dining area next to a lawn dedicated to relaxation.
Is your garden large or small? Design solutions for spaces of all sizes
Making the right, smart choices when designing a small garden will ensure optimal use of the space available. Effective use of verticals is an excellent strategy: hanging flower baskets, equipped walls and trellises for climbing plants will make the garden appear larger and recoup space for functional purposes. Light-coloured paving tiles, like those offered by the Marazzi stone or concrete-effect collections, will help to provide a brighter effect.
The furniture must be lightweight and multifunctional: an extending table can transform a dining area into a lounge corner in a few simple steps, while stacking or folding chairs ensure flexibility without sacrificing style.
In a large garden, on the other hand, the space can be structured in clearly defined zones. Stoneware-paved pathways provide visual clarity and subdivide the various areas, constructing a real outdoor “architectural plan”. Furniture can be more generously sized, from modular sofas to large tables seating 8-10 diners.
Integration with the surrounding environment becomes an important design priority: features like trees, low stone walls or natural slopes can be highlighted with matching ceramic solutions and clever use of textures. Alternating modules and finishes – for example, by combining a stone-effect stoneware with surfaces with a more tactile finish – can help to give visual depth to the overall effect. The garden becomes a landscape for living in, with all its features tastefully integrated in its design scheme.
Functional zones and furnishings: how to organise your outdoor space
The secret to making the most of your garden is to structure it by functional zones: dining area, lounge area, shady corners, solarium, play spaces or a vegetable garden can all be attractively combined, each with its own identity but blending perfectly into the overall concept.
Defining the functional zones with skilful use of materials and their sizes and shapes is one of the most effective ways of achieving a neat visual effect and convenience in use. With its many different looks, porcelain stoneware is ideal for distinguishing between the different areas with colours, textures and patterns: a stone-effect dining area, a lounge zone with softer colours, or surfaces with contrasting decorations that mark the passage between one outdoor ‘room’ and the next.
The furnishings of the dining area must be elegant as well as functional: spacious tables, comfortable chairs and light awnings create a space that’s a pleasure to use at even the hottest times of day. The lounge area can be furnished with outdoor sofas, loungers or poufs, completing the effect with outdoor carpets that increase comfort and define the mood. For shady corners, adjustable awnings or wooden pergolas are both attractive and practical.
A garden with a pool: stylish design ideas
There are many design and furnishing options for a garden with a pool, but the best solutions will combine convenience, style and high-performance materials. The pool edge is one of the most important features both aesthetically and in practical terms: anti-slip porcelain stoneware featuring the StepWise technology guarantees safety even when surfaces are wet, with no reduction in their beauty.
Furnishings must be both hard-wearing and comfortable: sun loungers with stainless steel or aluminium frames combined with breathable fabric are both ergonomic and durable, while side-mount sun umbrellas or sail sun canopies create light yet striking shaded areas. For entertaining, a bar corner with a low counter and sturdy stools transforms the pool area into a perfect location for cocktails on summer evenings.
The ideal Marazzi collections in this context range from Mystone Limestone, with a pale stone effect that evokes the natural beauty of the Mediterranean landscape, through to D_Segni Blend, perfect for anyone seeking a unique decorative touch. Lighting integrated in the paving and pool edge completes the picture to create a delightful evening ambience. This transforms the outdoor area into a luxurious, stylish living-space for use every day.
The role of paving: showcase your furnishings with porcelain stoneware
When designing a paved garden, the choice of material is fundamental in defining the area’s identity. With its aesthetic versatility and outstanding technical performance, porcelain stoneware is a design tool able to show off furnishings and decorative details to best advantage and establish a precise mood throughout.
When choosing the colours and finishes for outdoor contexts, it’s important to opt for surfaces that will dialogue with the natural light, the surrounding vegetation and the materials of the furnishings installed. Pale shades and the stone effect give spaces a greater radiance, while deeper colours and tactile textures create more intimate, cosier moods. The paving can be continued into the interior of the home – or vice-versa – to achieve visual continuity between inside and outside areas, breaking down barriers to enable a free indoor-outdoor flow.
The Marazzi collections intended for outdoor use are ideal for this purpose. Mystone, with its authentic stone effects, blends perfectly into natural landscapes; Slow, inspired by hand-made clay floor tiles, bestows a delicate warmth on even outdoor spaces, creating intimate, welcoming moods; with its accurate imitation of the finest wood, the exquisite yet practical Vero20 is ideal for beautifying areas surrounded by greenery. For cladding furniture, such as tables or counters, The Top ensures superior performance in locations exposed to the weather while still maintaining an elegant contemporary aesthetic.
Garden furnishing design styles: some inspirations
Every garden can tell a different story, also through the style chosen for its furnishings and surfaces. The Mediterranean look, for example, is constructed using terracotta-effect stoneware or natural stone paving, combined with light-coloured wood varieties, coarse fabrics and aromatic plants. This style conveys a mood of warmth and authenticity, perfect for relaxed, sunny locations.
For those who prefer a more contemporary aesthetic, the minimal, modern style embraces continuous surfaces, understated furnishings and neutral colour schemes. In this case, porcelain stoneware acquires an architectural function, with stylised geometrical forms that integrate with design items of immaculate simplicity.
In contrast, the rustic style makes lavish use of tactile materials: the wood look, carved stone and subdued lighting create a welcoming, lived-in ambience, giving the garden an intimate, homely air. Last but not least, in an urban setting it’s fundamental to make full use of every metre: compact, modular furnishings combine attractively with small-sized paving tiles in light colours, which will make even the smallest spaces appear larger.
In all these styles, Marazzi stoneware offers tasteful solutions that can easily be customised to interpret every design vision with elegance and authenticity.
A garden isn’t just an outdoor space: it’s a vibrant part of the home, and must be designed and furnished with care, functionality and style. From the choice of materials to selection of the furnishings, every aspect can help to create a place that will be a joy to live in every day.
Discover the Marazzi outdoor collections and be inspired by the infinite potential of porcelain stoneware to transform every space outside the home into an additional living area.
