Ever-so-Humble Fabric Awnings Enhance Home Getaways
Awnings professionals launch online resource, www.DesignWithAwnings.com, helping landscapers and homeowners create staycation retreats with fabric awnings.
Roseville, MN, (PRWEB) June 26, 2009 -- The confluence of environmental, cultural and economic conditions is driving many families to reconsider vacation travel plans. As Americans retreat to their own homes to rest, relax and reconnect with family and friends, increasingly they are seeking help to create comfortable outdoor living spaces.
Enterprising landscape architects are capitalizing on this trend by helping families escape to their own backyards. In June 2009, the Professional Awning Manufacturers Association (PAMA) launched the Design With Awnings website (www.DesignWithAwnings.com) to demonstrate how fabric awnings and canopies are vital elements of contemporary landscape design.
The term "staycation" was coined by Canadian comedian Brent Butt, whose sit-com character couldn't afford to tour the world, so instead imagined exotic travels while sitting in a lawn chair in his yard. What started as a comic tale has evolved into reality for many American families, who are yearning to create worldly experiences close to home.
"Landscape architects are embracing the staycation trend by designing backyard spaces that promote and encourage family togetherness, interaction and relaxation," says Michelle Sahlin, Managing Director of PAMA. "Fabric awnings and canopies are playing an important role by adding style, functionality and sustainability into backyard landscapes."
Long an element of home and garden design and function across the world, awnings and canopies are enjoying a resurgence in the U.S. as a way to create the feel of faraway places right in one's own backyard. From a French bistro, to an Asian market, to a Caribbean retreat - fabric awnings help invoke an international setting.
With a vast color palette and myriad design options, awnings and canopies add appeal and function. Bold, vibrant red and orange fabrics create highly effective focal points. Earth tones and organic greens can be employed as unifying elements in plush, wooded and even desert gardens. Gentle blues and grays present engaging contrast for balance or repetition.
Regardless of design objectives, awnings and canopies provide shade and protection from inclement weather, and are more economical to build and maintain than comparable masonry and wood structures.
From a conservation landscaping perspective, awnings contribute to sustainability; placed on or near a home, awnings and canopies can reduce energy consumption for cooling by 25 percent in some climates.
About PAMA
The Professional Awning Manufacturers Association (PAMA), a division of the Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI), is the only international trade association committed to the awning industry. PAMA membership is open to companies who are current members of IFAI and manufacture or sell awnings, as well as those who supply goods and services to the awning industry.
PAMA also hosts www.AwningsToday.com to educate homeowners on the aesthetic and energy-savings benefits of adding awnings to their homes.
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