Outdoor Furniture, Patio Furniture and more!

Getting a cabana for your outdoor living area is invariably a great choice.  But, now that you’re set on one, be sure to make the best decision.  While the size of your cabana is dependent on the space you have available, how you’re planning to use it, and possibly your budget, the shape of your cabana is requires more thought.  Are you looking for traditional lines or something out of the ordinary?

Octagon Cabanas:  Octagon Cabanas are great for those who love the traditional look of a gazebo.  The octagonal shape is eye-catching and interesting, and will absolutely stand out among a group of buildings.

Rectangle Cabanas: Rectangle Cabanas are perfect for people that want to decorate a traditionally shaped space.  Arrange your patio furniture in the familiar arrangements of indoor rooms for seamless transitions.

Hexagon Cabanas: The romantic belle roof of the hexagon cabana is unique and striking.  Add some dreamy architectural lines to your landscape to feel like you’re in a paradise every day of the week.  Adding a copper filial to the peak completes the look.  These are great for outdoor living spaces, as well as home offices, studios, and other backyard escapes.

Elongated Hexagon Cabanas: If you love the belle roof, but need a little bit more room, the Elongated Hexagon Cabana is a fantastic solution. Providing more space in a more rectangular layout makes decorating easy and space a premium.  Also perfect for home offices and studios, the elongated hexagon cabana is also great for storage and outdoor dining spaces. Outfitted with a rectangular picnic table, this backyard structure is perfect for dinner parties.

Plan out your intended uses for your cabana, what outdoor furniture or other ideas you have for the interior, as well as how you want your landscape to look overall.  Talk to friends, family members, and a qualified expert about your options… but don’t get overwhelmed!  Choosing the perfect style for your cabana should be fun and exciting.

Tags: backyard cabanas, backyard structures, Cabanas, elongated hexagon cabanas, Gazebos, hexagon cabanas, octagon cabanas, Outdoor Furniture, outdoor structures, patio furniture, rectangle cabanas

If you put up some nice, just-plain-fall adornments in September, and added a Halloween theme later, at least, you won’t have to spend a lot of time on decorations in the next few weeks.  Because Thanksgiving is, of course, an autumn celebration, all you have to do is to de-spookify your landscape.

So, just take the fake spiders and webs off the trellises, pergolas, and arbors, and leave the sparkling, orange miniature lights.  After that, simply clear porch gliders, patio chairs, and chaise lounges, of all werewolves, mummies, and pumpkin-headed creatures, and put on the outdoor furniture covers.  Then, it’s only a matter of chasing a few ghosts and rubber snakes out of the yard, and you’re back to your beautiful fall outdoor décor, which is appropriate to the holiday at hand.

Leave the Christmas stuff for after Thanksgiving; and don’t let anyone pressure you into putting it up too soon.  Heck, you’ll need all of the extra time that you can get, in order to finish preparing your house and garden for the winter.  After all, some of those outdoor chores can be demanding, and, in many cases, very unpleasant.

Dealing with all of the fallen leaves, for example, can be a disagreeable job.  While, not long ago, they were still on the trees, in all of their brilliant, breath-taking splendor, they are now piling up on lawns, walkways, and roofs, causing all kinds of mischief.

One of their favorite pranks is to clog up gutters, and, thus, prevent the adequate drainage of water from the roofs of houses and other outdoor structures.  Although cleaning them out is a detestable duty, it’s something that must be done before winter arrives.  Otherwise, ice jams can form, and cause water to back up and, perhaps, seep into the house.

So, get the ladder out of the garden shed, and rise to the task; and don’t forget your heavy-duty work gloves and your scraper.  You can also make another helpful tool out of a plastic, gallon jug; just cut off the top half, hold it by the handle, and use it to scoop the leaves from the gutter.  Take out as much debris as possible by hand, before using the scraper to remove any built-up dirt and gunk; then rinse the gutter thoroughly with a hose.

While you’re up there, inspect for leaks, dents, and crooked pipes, and see that the gutters and downspouts are fastened securely to the house.  Furthermore, make certain that the downspouts are directing the water at least five feet away from the foundation of the house, and that they are not blocked.  To ensure that a downspout is operating properly, put a hose into the top, run the water, and check to see if it is running out at the bottom.

If there is a blockage, you may be able to break it loose, by packing rags around the hose at the top of the spout, to seal it off, and then running the water at full power; and if that fails, try using a snake.

Uh, a plumber’s snake, that is.  Not one of the rubber specimens that you drove out of your yard.

Yours Outdoors,

Kathy

Tags: Arbors, chaise lounges, garden shed, outdoor decor, Outdoor Furniture Covers, outdoor structures, patio chairs, Pergolas, porch gliders, trellises

Now that you’ve cleaned and repaired all of the concrete and asphalt around your house, it’s time to relax for awhile.  So, invite a few friends over, throw some steaks on the grill, and get the picnic table ready.  After you eat, sit back on your porch furniture and socialize, or take a snooze in the hammock.

Once you’re well-rested, you can start surveying the landscape again, with fresh eyes, to see what other tasks there are to be done before summer fades away.  For one thing, you may want to get a heads-up on the tree situation, as low-swaying, dead, or diseased branches can be quite hazardous, especially in cold, stormy weather.

For example, they can rub against, and damage, your roof, siding, and gutters, while steadily dumping loads of leaves and sticks.  They can also hurt other outdoor structures, such as garages, gazebos, sheds, cabanas, and pool houses.  Furthermore, in high winds, or when laden with ice and snow, they are famous for dropping entire limbs, or dropping entirely.  On top of that, they act as natural bridges and ladders to your home, for rats, mice, and squirrels trying to find places to hole up; and you don’t want to have these worries hanging over your head all winter.

Therefore, in order to preclude the impending peril posed by these precarious perches, it’s imperative that you pinpoint and prune them, pronto.  Identify the ones that are the biggest threats, and, as long as you can get to and remove them safely, cut them back, or cut them off completely.  If you see any branches that are obviously dangerous, but out of reach, or any that you’re not sure about, you may have to call a certified arborist and/or tree removal service.

This is also a good time to take another look at your deck.  By this point in the summer, it has probably been continually supporting a lot of people, pets, patio furniture, and planters; and it’s been constantly exposed to the elements.  If it has been treated regularly with a sealer, that shouldn’t be a problem; otherwise, it may have taken on a great deal of moisture.

Moreover, if it’s left to endure a winter of ice, snow, and rain, the wood will repeatedly absorb water, as it expands and contracts, and will develop cracks.  As they deepen over time, the water will penetrate further, and the deck will get weaker.  If you can’t remember the last time you sealed and/or stained it (or if you’ve recently moved in, and haven’t done it yet), do a quick test.  Just pour some water over the boards, and if it beads up, you don’t have to worry; but if it sinks in, the deck needs another treatment.

Besides looking for cracks, and making certain that it’s water-repellent, examine your deck, top and bottom, for loose boards.  Shake the railings to ensure that they’re secure, and inspect the stairs, too, as the expanding and contracting of the wood can also dislodge hardware.  Any nails or screws that are sticking up should be refastened, or replaced with galvanized deck screws.

There’s no over-emphasizing the importance of keeping decks strong and healthy, considering how many of them collapse every year.  So, remember – a check of the deck prevents a heck of a wreck!

Yours Outdoors,

Kathy

Tags: Cabanas, Gazebos, hammock, outdoor structures, patio furniture, picnic table, Planters, pool houses, porch furniture, Sheds

Centuries ago, in its first role, the gazebo performed in-the-round on rooftops.  Eventually, however, tired of playing such a lofty character, and wanting to seem more down-to-earth, it reinvented itself, as a separate, free-standing structure.

This was a bold move, as it risked a terrible loss of status; but, luckily, the transformation was such a resounding success, that it made the gazebo a star.  In my last entry, I began chronicling its endless run since then; and I believe I left off somewhere in the Middle Ages.

During the Renaissance, gazebos were in greater demand than ever; and no proper garden would be without one. Succumbing to the perils of such a high degree of celebrity, the more attention-grabbing gazebos became so outrageously extravagant that they actually caused scandals.

At the same time, many others remained humble, and served in the gardens of monasteries, as shrines, prayer houses, and places of meditation, where people could get in touch with their spiritual sides, or simply enjoy nature.

In the 14th century, France had four gazebos built at the Louvre.  The French style influenced those in many other countries, including England, where they surged in popularity in the 15th century.  In Elizabethan gardens, where they were commonly designed after the main houses, gazebos were used for entertaining.

During the late 1700’s, England, and other parts of Europe, got caught up in a craze for Chinese-style summerhouses.  This led to William Halfpenny’s 1752 book, ‘New Designs for Chinese Temples,’ which featured the first known appearance of the word, gazebo.

As is always the case, American audiences are the toughest.  This was especially true in this country’s early (a-hem!) stages, as the colonists were otherwise occupied.  So, gazebos didn’t get their big break here until the mid-1800’s, when the new middle class prospered.

They had some competition around the turn of the century, when houses were being built with grand porches, then made a comeback around 1930.  In the 40’s, patios had the edge for awhile, but some time during the 80’s, the resilient gazebo orchestrated a huge resurgence.

Indeed, the gazebo’s decision to come down from its perch really paid off.  After hundreds of years, it’s um, descendents, with their more grounded, approachable image, are more popular than ever, and still living the high life!

Yours Outdoors,

Kathy

Tags: gazebo, Gazebos, history of garden structures, outdoor structures