Patio Designs—Use Software to Visualize Your Ideas Before You Build!

The first step in creating the perfect patio design is to get all your ideas down on paper. Do a rough sketch to help visualize what you want. In fact, do lots of rough sketches of different patio designs to get a feel for the space. Then once your design ideas are on paper, consider using patio or landscape design software to try out all the different variations.

TIP: If you want a deck instead of a patio, check out this review of Deck Design software.

When you've settled on the basic layout, patio or landscape design programs can help finalize the details like edging, contrasting borders, paver patterns and patio materials. When you can see an example of the finished product before you even lift a shovel, you'll be confident that you're building a custom patio that is designed precisely the way you want it.

Here's an example of a simple circular brick patio created with Do-it-Yourself Patio Designer, an easy-to-use Windows patio design program that sells online for around $30.

Patio design software has the following advantages:

• Provides you with sample patio styles you can use as-is or modify to suit your backyard
• Lets you select the paver pattern, patio border or stone edging easily
• Lets you display your patio designs from a variety of viewpoints
• Helps you calculate the material quantities and generate a tools checklist
• Creates printed plans to use during construction or to give to a builder

Product Review: Do-It-Yourself Patio Designer

Do-It-Yourself Patio Designer is a reasonably priced patio design software program that is available online. You can download it right away, or order the CD and have it shipped to you. Plus, included with the software is a free do-it-yourself ebook that features full color photographs of decks, deck construction, and building tips.

For $29.95 now $24.95, you can:

• Create or modify the perfect size, shape and placement of your patio including cutouts to accommodate trees, pools & other features
• Place pavers or slabs in a defined shape – circle, rectangle or line – or create a free-form design
• Add a complementary or contrasting border to professionally define your patio
• Choose patio materials: pavers, blocks, slabs, timbers, stone edgings
• Select the paver pattern: parquet, herringbone, runner, block repeats or combination
• Adjust the depth of your sand and gravel base
• See your new patio in plan view or rendered view, showing your paver and pattern selections
• Print custom plans
• Calculate material quantities instantly and create a custom shopping list to buy everything you need

More Resources

•  Do-It-Yourself Patio Designer is reasonably priced patio design software

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