Protect yourself and your deck from the blazing sun with umbrellas, cloth, built structures — or nature's perfect shading solution

Lounge as long as you like without getting baked, with one of these sun-screening structures for your backyard, deck or patio

Designers share secrets from a rooftop deck, a covered patio and a screened-in porch uploaded this week to Houzz

Sun beating down on your sandy gravel? Thick shade darkening your clay soil? There’s a ground cover here for you

Expansive windows, oversize doors, skylights, a covered patio, an atrium and a roof deck make the most of beautiful surroundings

Protect your soil from weeds and drought this summer with a living mulch of ground covers

Top off your patio with a chic cover to protect guests from wind, sun and summer showers

Love the look but don’t want the ruin? Learn how to have vine-draped walls without all the cracks and crumbling

Amish-milled lumber and local bluestone set off a focal-point fireplace beautifully in this comfy outdoor living space

Arched windows, French doors and sidelights get their due with treatments that keep their beauty out in the open