Backyard Furniture and Outdoor Fun

Wood patio sets are the ever-popular choice for outdoor furniture. Be it a dining table and chairs set or a traditional porch swing or glider, wood patio furniture provides a uniquely rustic beauty that no other material can match. Many quality woods are used in patio furniture construction. Here is a list of the commonest woods and the advantages they offer. 

Cedar
Cedar is probably the most popular wood used in rustic furniture, either indoor or outdoor. Cedar is a magnificent, aromatic wood that contains a natural resistance to rot, insects, and weather. Unfinished or natural cedar will change color as it weathers, from a red-brown to a lovely silver-gray.

Cypress
Cypress wood is known for its durability and natural resistance to insects and rotting. Cypress wood is also very resistant to warping. It is a close-grained wood most commonly used in outdoor furniture. Many people prefer the look of distressed cypress, though an application of white acrylic stain will give your cypress patio set a striking antique-like finish.

Brazilian hardwood
Brazilian cherry is a very beautiful and respected wood. Brazilian cherry, also known as Jatoba, is a dark red-brown wood that is naturally very oily and takes a finish very well. Brazilian cherry is a dense and strong wood often used in flooring, carpentry, and furniture construction.

Pine 
Pine is very resistant to weather-related decay and insect damage, and along with cedar is one of the most popular woods for outdoor rustic or patio furniture. Stained pine patio sets are often extremely beautiful. Pine is a naturally knotty wood, which gives it a unique texture many people find visually appealing. It is recommended that owners of outdoor pine patio furniture stain their pieces regularly for continued protection.

Teak 
Teak is an extremely durable wood that has been used in shipbuilding and construction for centuries. Teak is a fine-grained wood and one of the most resistant to weather, insects, mildew, and rot. Outdoor teak furniture can be left unfinished and still last for many years.

Living Room Decor

Whether your living room is a 21 foot length with a large picture window at one end or you live in a tiny apartment and the living room is bijou to say the least, there are living room décor ideas to suit you and your budget. You can go for cozy chic and warm up your living space or go for open-plan with vaulted ceilings and an expanse of herringbone hardwood floor. At the end of your project you will have ended up with a space that you can live in comfortably, decorated according to the space you have available. Are you aiming for a peaceful retreat, full of serenity and harmony or a more user-friendly, basic living space where you feel comfortable slipping your shoes off and putting your feet up.If I was choosing a color scheme for my living room I would go to the cooler colors on my color wheel chart - the blues and greens which can be used in different shades to achieve a 'joined-up' look of cool elegance. I always make sure that, when I paint my ceiling, I use a light shade of the room's main color on my ceiling so, if my color scheme was blue, I would use the lightest eggshell blue I could find for my ceiling and then a slightly deeper shade of blue for my walls. If you have mouldings you could paint those completely white, or go for a darker shade of blue to both the walls and the ceiling. I would use matt paint on my walls and a paint with some kind of sheen on the mouldings.For windows, to add height, place the curtain pole as high as possible near to the ceiling. This will give your curtains plenty of drop to achieve an elegant drape. Modern décor arrangements always suggest that the fabric should be allowed to pool on the floor - never in my house. To me, artistic though it evidently is, this 'pooling' idea for the fabric is just a dust collector and, if you have dogs like I do, is just asking them to make a bed out of the fabric! Why did I mention this? Find out what the trends are, but that does not mean you have to follow the trends slavishly. Adapt styles to suit you and your lifestyle.

Garden Terace

One of the great things about summer is that we can expand our living space without enlarging the house or make a costly renovation. In many cases not even have to decorate too. Simply clean the porch or terrace and Drop in a comfy chair. Others may want to make a room outside on the terrace or garden and can be done at minimum cost.

A comfortable outdoor furniture enhances any room outside, but need not be expensive. Two chairs and a table with four dining chairs will really comfortable our space.

Many products are available in a wide range of prices and come ready to assemble. A plastic furniture, very cheap, will last a few years and is easy to assemble and clean. And we can always make them look a little more stylish by adding cushions. We can also make a modest investment and buy pieces of cast aluminum or wrought iron, which last longer. Any of them should be kept inside during winter to last longer, but are made to stand outside in the summer months.

Bedroom Inspiration

After you’ve saw Bedroom Inspiration today here I come with the 3rd part of this series, that will continue over time .Enjoy these pictures, and I hope you’ll leave from here a little more inspired. Don’t forget to come back because Bedroom Design Inspiration series is just at episode #3, and there are more to come.

Tropical stone garden

Imagine you have rocks or stones in your garden or around your house. What to do with all these rocks? Throw them into the neighbors garden is impossible - hence make the best out of it. Either dig a deep hole - about 2-3 meters deep and bury the rocks under fertile soil - by the end you will have a hill to be covered by plants and bushes.

If your garden is rocky and you love to move the rocks out of the garden - you may at least pile them up into one small location to create just one such small rock or stone garden to clear the remainder of your garden for other plants and flowers.

Garden Design by Andy Sturgeon

If you are looking for ideas for outdoor spaces I’m sure that Andy Sturgeon portofolio will give you some inspiration. “Andy Sturgeon Garden Design has emerged as a leading design practice earning a reputation for creating stylishmodern gardens that are a fusion of contemporary design and natural materials. Planting often features heavily and ranges from striking architectural schemes through to soft, naturalistic styles. Lighting, sculpture and furniture are frequently integral to the design.” – Via – Desire to Inspire

Garden Furniture by Patricia Urquiola

I know that winter is around the corner and is not certain to be thinking about the garden but …. the charm of the gardens is indisputable winter, when the leaves of colors covering the grass and there is nothing more romantic that sit outdoors heated by a blanket, and with a cup of hot tea or steaming sweet chocolate. These chairs are designed by Patricia Urquiola and they are from the Canasta Collection that are displayed currently in the autumn edition of Maison & Objet. These designer seats come with a designer price tag – 2000 Euros. – Via –Thedesignblog

Idea for underground parking in an urban environment

For those of you who always dreamed at your very own top-secret underground parking, like those you saw in movies here is an innovative design that aims to tackle the growing loss of front gardens to car park space in urban areas. A West London resident decided to combine the garden an the parking space together, and he has developed a unique design to deal with the loss of front garden areas to car parking space in urban environments. The final result is very practical and it shows how a beautiful garden and parking space can be combined to help maintain the aesthetic appearance of a street. Found via – 1, 2

Garden Furniture

These pieces of garden furniture from Made In Design can offer an amazing visual effect. As you can see from these pictures the possibilities are endless. You can create all kind of models for your garden just use your talent of gardener and will be perfect in your gardens, parks, golfs and green spaces. It is easy to look after, resistant and durable. If you are interested you can find more information about this product here. – Via – DesignersBlock

modern garden

This very stylish, modern 8 seater set intertwines premium 304 grade stainless steel frames and legs with solid grade A teak wood.

The large double extension table has chunky stainless steel legs and stainless steel V shaped table support. This is combined with a solid teak table top which extends effortlessly from a compact 190cm to a huge 280cm using a smooth butterfly mechanism.

Perfectly paired with 8 matching teak and premium 304 grade stainless steel stacking arm chairs. The chairs are constructed with stainless steel legs and frame. For comfort the upper arms, seat and seat back are made of horizontal contoured teak planks. These space saving stackable chairs are elegant, durable and practical.
The design allows a parasol to be used whether the table is compact or extended.

This stunning set is perfect for the modern garden, decking or terrace area.

garden furniture of natural construction material

Garden furniture made of trunks and big branches of naturally grown wood - and a bunch of creativity result in a full set of garden furniture home-made at zero cost while having fun being your own carpenter.

All these and many more garden furniture are self made - you too can make such beautiful natural garden furniture. Most of these beauties are made of free material that is just lying around your home, in forest or even in a junk yard ... like the 2 wheels of an old cart used to create the beautiful garden swing.

A garden swing made of 2 wheels of an old cart found often on farms or junk yards.A garden bench made from a trunk and a few pieces of naturally grown wood

Unique Handmade Chair by Reed Hansuld

If you are a fan of unique handmade furniture then these Handmade Dining Chairs from Reed Hansuld might be something you’ll like. With their unique design this sleek chair is available in a variety of domestic and exotic hardwoods, and features double tapered laminations, and mortise and tenon joinery. Now if you were captivated by this design you might want to take a look at the price, because this chair is available at around $2000 from Etsy.com quite expensive for my pocket. See the entire collection of handmade furniture from Reed Hansuld here.- Via – Furniturestoreblog