Patio Furniture

Pampering your patio

Outdoor entertaining is a great opportunity to show guests your garden, backyard or patio area. These are extensions of the living and dining room areas of your home. To get a change of scenery, enjoy the sunshine or simply catch a rare breeze are great incentives to decorate the outdoors area.

A novel approach must be taken when furnishing the patio, lawn or backyard. Whether it’s a backyard barbecue, pool party, or intimate family gathering, patio furniture merits equal attention to detail. It is not the same as decorating, let’s say, the living room or dining room. Try transporting the inside furniture to the outside and you will get the idea. It is the subtle intermingling of the natural outdoor tones, light, landscape and other visual cues that create the perfect patio setting.

There is a different design aesthetic when arranging furniture outside of the home. The most obvious are the open space and the natural elements such as greenery, wood, stone and sunlight. Weather is one of the most important considerations in selecting the type of patio furniture. Durable and weather-resistant materials have helped overcome the reluctance to invest in stylish outdoor furniture.

So many choices
Patio décor is neither too flashy nor serious. It must be urbane, elegant and inviting. It should also enrich the natural surroundings of the house.

There are many choices for contemporary patio and outdoor furniture across the country. Specialty retailers such as Spacify and The Ultimate Patio showcase complete and lavishly designed patio furniture sets for discriminating customers.

Visualizing the purpose of the patio will dictate its furnishing style. Placement of the pieces is also important. For example, if the patio area is always exposed to the sun, a retractable awning or garden swing with roof is necessary.

If it is to be a place to hang out and have some drinks with friends, maybe an outdoor patio bar with stools must be considered. Slate tiles are good material for a smooth and strong bar countertop. Ewins carries a 5-piece bar set and uses wood that is either reclaimed or FSC certified.

Dark Selunsar is an eco friendly dark and heavy wood similar to teak. It is imported from Singapore. It is a popular tropical wood used in everything from bridges, exposed home beams and outdoor furniture because of its density and natural resistance to decay and infestation.

Chaise lounges and wicker swivel rockers are perennial patio favorites to just relax and enjoy the outdoor views. They are spacious enough for stretching with an elevated backrest to while away the time.

Patio tables, chairs and sets
There are many shapes, styles and sizes for patio tables: oval, square, round and pub height tables. Glass oval tables, folding round tables or rectangle tables made of teak, resin, or stainless steel are timeless choices. The Tiburon Rectangular Dining set from The Ultimate Patio has a stainless steel and Javanese Teak tabletop as its centerpiece. Stainless steel and teak chairs with armrests are covered with durable Batyline fabric.

Patio furniture sets whose pieces have been meticulously selected and arranged make it easier for the first time buyer. It also saves time and effort since there is no need to individually inspect each item. Home Garden and Patio and Patio Life offer complete sets from the major manufacturers. You can browse by style such as contemporary, Mediterranean, rustic, traditional tropical and Victoria. Their extensive collections have all the material in the market: aspen, cast aluminum, cast iron, wrought iron, rattan, mahogany, wicker, teak/steal, rubberwood and plastic. They carry the following manufacturers: WhiteCraft, South Sea Rattan, Royal Teak, Emu, Cast Craft and Cayuga Designs.

Patio chairs are just as varied as the tables. You will find a host of styles and designs that include arm chair, lounger, ottoman, love seat, rocking chair, dining chair, sofa, glider, swing and bench.

For a casual family vibe, lounge chairs, Adirondack chairs and ottomans should complement the centerpiece dining set. Oversized Adirondack chairs, with their armrests and ergonomically contoured high backrests are wide enough to fit most body sizes into a comfortable reclined position.

These chairs are an authentic American design, named after the Adirondack Mountains vacation homes in New York in the early 20th century. While vacationing near Lake Champlain, a named Thomas Lee took a single board nailed a backrest to it. He dubbed it the Westport chair, and an American classic was born. Adirondack furniture became famed for their rustic durability, comfortable size and affordable prices. They now come in variants that include rocking chairs, and loveseats. Many designs have a rolled back (rather than a straight back and bottom) that tapers at the base to snug and support the body Wide armrests are ample to hold a refreshing drink or bottle. Adirondack chair are made from teak, cedar, pressure-treated pinewood, mahogany or heavy-duty resins.

Lights and accents
Little touches to complement the main furniture pieces give personality to your outdoors scene. Chair cushions, pillows and seat pads provide the color accents to wood chairs, benches and tables. Polyester or Olefin covering will keep spot cleaning to a minimum. Play up on the accents such as planter boxes, benches, and maybe an umbrella. Sturdy patio chair materials are rust-treated metal, teak, redwood, recycled polymer and plastic.

A rattan side table, wrought iron coffee table or wicker cubes expands the dining set and can be a place where extra guests can lounge for pre-dinner drinks and aperitifs. Bistro tables or folding café tables offer a subdued intimacy absolutely perfect for couples or newlyweds.

Coffee tables are present in practically every American home. They provide a cozy, comforting ambience A coffee table setup can include loveseats, armchairs and an end table for light meals or snacks.

Deep seating furniture is another outdoor option for easy relaxation on the porch or patio. Thick, plush and colorful cushions nestle comfortably on durable teak wood frames. Weather-resistant Sunbrella fabric is both water repellent and retains its colors despite exposure to the sun.

Sunbrella fabric is also used for patio umbrellas. Its colors do not fade despite repeated exposure to wind, sun and rain. 7.5 to 11 foot umbrellas are big enough to cover a square or round dining table. Two-tier umbrellas give a dressed up, symmetrical look when placed between two lounge chairs. Cast iron, plastic, steel and tubular aluminum are some of the main components of patio umbrellas.

Outdoor solar patio lights now come pre-assembled with no wiring needed. LED garden accents with hanging hook, ground stake and stand, and frosted glass lens give soft dramatic lighting to a dinner. It can also be unhooked from the ground stand and placed on the table as a lantern. Kettle lanterns, floor lamps, hanging lights, lampposts and table lamps are all classic outdoor lighting designs.

A note on the materials
Modern outdoor furniture incorporates several types of wood, fibers, water-resistant fabrics and steel. These materials provide an urbane charm and earthy aroma to the outdoors.

Wicker, for example, is technically a method of weaving different materials to make them pliable and strong. Twigs, cane, willow, rattan or bamboo are woven tightly over a metal frame to reinforce its protection against rain and sun.

The Egyptians used reeds to craft wicker baskets and boxes in 3,000 B.C. At the height of the Victorian Era wicker was a common indoor and outdoor furniture material. It drew its popularity from its lightweight, natural simplicity, grainy texture and extreme pliability that allowed it to be shaped into all kinds of designs from cribs to carriages. It was truly one of the earliest ideal outdoor furniture materials that became popular.

Rattan is a slender vine-like palm tree indigenous in Asia. Its skin is peeled before woven into furniture. Rattan’s splinter-resistant quality makes it the main component of wicker. Bamboo grass is hollow, lightweight and possesses superb tensile strength. It is interwoven to provide reinforcement to the other materials.

Cedar and teak are both resistant to weathering, decay and rotting. Eastern White Cedar and Western Red are famed for their natural beauty, strength and resistance to insects. Cedar furniture can survive years exposure to winter temperatures. Cedar requires minimal or no treatment. Repeated exposure to the weather will lighten its color to a silver or gray tone. This just adds to its rustic, old-world sophistication.

Teak is a tropical hardwood that contains natural oil that makes it dense and resistant to water. This natural oil is a wood preservative. This high oil and rubber content also makes it immune to rotting. The British used teak to construct ships. When wooden ships were replaced by steel, carpenters salved the timber to construct the first teak furniture.

Teak is also blessed with a natural golden finish that takes a long time before it fades. These qualities make it suitable for park benches, ottomans, tables and porch swings.

In terms of metal, wrought iron offers both elegance and strength. Unlike other metals, it has a high resistance to corrosion rust, especially when powder-coated. Wrought iron’s appeal to artists is its malleability. Once heated at the proper temperature it becomes soft and can be shaped into exquisite bar stools, dining chairs, plant stands, chaise lounges and loveseats.