Patio Makeover/Part Three - The Finishing Touches
Patio Makeover/ Part Three - the Finishing Touches.
With the patio is built, the furniture made and plants planted, it’s time for my favourite bit, the finishing touches and all the fun you can have styling your finished space!
As I wanted to create an outdoor room I obviously needed all the accessories you have inside, just because it’s outside doesn’t mean you can’t have all your home comforts in your garden. Who wants to sit shivering in the cold on some hard uncomfortable seats outside in the dark? Not me!
Now I do get asked a LOT on Instagram about my garden and very specifically how I deal with all my soft furnishings, rugs and lanterns etc out there. What I do with them when it rains and where I store them. Now I’ll be honest yes it does take a bit more effort, but isn’t it worth it for the comfort and pleasure you can get from a lovely outdoor space? The sofa is as comfortable as my indoor one and it feels so welcoming and cosy whether its sunny morning out there drinking my coffee or sat by candlelight with a cocktail in the evening.
So first of all my favourite thing to buy, cushions!! And yes you want lots, seat cushions for the sofa and then lots of scatter cushions for the backs and chairs, and then get more, just because. I’ve recently been given a storage unit as well that doubles as a bench so that’s where some of my cushions will be stored (saves me running backwards and forwards into the house when a surprise rain shower hits!) I also store them in bad weather in our summerhouse but if you want a more comprehensive answer to the ‘What happens when it rains’ question I suggest you look here!
Then I like to layer up with some outdoor rugs. These have become increasingly popular in the last few years and there are so many to choose from these days. They are often made from woven polyurethane so can be left out all year round with no rot or damage. You can even get ones made form recycled plastic bottles which are a fabulous eco alternative. I’ve written a shopping post with a pick of my favourite outdoor rugs which I’ll share with you soon.
I know that outdoor rugs arent for everyone and some people might think having a rug in your garden is a bit strange! But I love how they not only add some pattern and texture to a space but will also zone a particular area, for example your seating or dining area and really pull together a space and make it feel super cosy. Plus if you’ve got ugly patio slabs that you hate they do a great job of hiding those!
Next and quite important if you want to sit out after dark is lighting. Now if you have an outdoor electric point you have all sorts of options but as we don’t we’ve lit our outdoor area with a selection of solar and battery lights, candles and a rechargeable outdoor lantern which also doubles as a speaker for music.
So we’ve strung three sets of solar powered festoon lights across the patio, you can buy them here. At £10 a string these are great value and they simply switch on every night as soon as its dark enough and will usually last all evening (depending upon how much sun you had that day) I find solar powered lights aren’t as strong as electric lights but they are obviously the environmentally friendly option.
I mix these with a selection of solar powered lanterns, fairy lights and candles. There are so many to choose from these days and if you worry about safety with candle you can even get battery powered faux candles that look amazingly realistic. Look here for a selection of good ones.
As I mentioned above we also have a rechargeable light speaker from Koble Designs, see it here. It gives off a great light with the option of different colour effects and as you can connect it to your wifi and bluetooth you can play your favourite tunes through it too, genius!
As with any indoor room I’ve added some extra touches to give this space personality. A firepit for chilly evenings, find the one we have here. A large outdoor mirror which you can buy here. Mirrors outdoors are fantastic, they bounce the light around and can extend the look of your space especially in a small courtyard garden. I’ve also added quirky touches, like rams head skulls, wooden sculptures from Bali, and Buddha statues to the space. Decorative wooden and metal trays from Morocco to arrange little interesting vignettes on and vases dotted around filled with fresh flowers. Again obviously some of this can’t be left out in the rain (though the mirror and ornaments on my fence are left out permanently and have hardly suffered any damage from the elements, for those of you concerned!)
Then finally and this was the item that I’d always envisioned and longed for in my garden for years, a stunning Balinese parasol, perfect for sitting under with a cocktail on a warm summer evening and imagining yourself away somewhere tropical and fabulous!
Theresa x