Aluminium Garden FurnitureGarden Furniture Design

[reblogged from haterawards]

  If you are planning to buy a table and chairs for your garden then the first thing you will need to decide on is exactly how much you want to spend.  There is a huge selection to choose from with furniture to suit any budget.

  A lot of the cost will depend on what it is made from.  Plastic is normally the cheapest option, with wooden or metal furniture costing more.  Obviously, with this type of thing it is very much a case of ‘you get what you pay for’.  You may find a plastic table and chairs for a small price tag, but it will not be big on quality.  The chairs will usually be very flimsy and the plastic will often lose its coating over quite a short space of time.  Read the rest of this entry »

[reblogged from wordpress]

  If you have bought some good quality furniture for your garden, then you are going to want to take care of it.  When the summer months are over it will need to be stored for quite a long time before it is time to get it out again.  It is over this period that it can easily become very dirty and possibly even damaged.  But by applying a little bit of thought you can keep it all in tip-top condition. Read the rest of this entry »

Many of you will remember, like I do, the days when garden furniture consisted of deck chairs and the occasional wooden table. Some people would splash out on metal furniture but, by and large, it was considered something of a pain of the butt (literally). Read the rest of this entry »

I think it’s fair to say most people consider garden furniture to be primarily for use in spring and summer; the times of the year when the weather is nice enough to allow you to sit outside. Or, as is the case in England, nicer than it is in the other times of the year, so we may as well make the best of it! Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re anything like me, you’ll sometimes find it hard to choose between the classical age and the times we live in now. Normally the classical age wins; but sometimes there are things these modern times offer that are sufficient to draw me away from my Hellenic-inclinations. Garden furniture is one of those things.

My natural choice in garden furniture is to go bold and strong; stone tables with high-backed wooden chairs or marble stools – furniture on which you can feast and hold court! Simple, flat designs that withstand pounding fists and the slamming-down of tankards – that’s the furniture for me!

However, as I get older I am often struck with the simple beauty of many pieces of modern aluminium garden furniture. Gone are the days when metal furnishings were limited to super-shiny angular tables and thin, tube-legged and uncomfortable chairs; modern metal furniture can truly bring an element of class to a garden, without feeling like an unwanted man-made impingement of nature.

By shopping around and doing some research before you buy, you can make sure your furniture compliments your garden rather than intrudes into it.

Modern designers use a huge range of materials to create garen furniture, including plastic, wood and metal.  Different materials have different advantages; knowing them can help buyers make the right choice when deciding which is the best kind for their needs.

Plastic garden furniture is relatively cheap, quite resiliant and naturally waterproof.  It can be left outside all year round without suffering too much damage and can be hosed-down if it ever gets dirty. It is worth being aware that water does get caught in the folds and corners of the furniture, allowing dirt to collect quite easily.  Plastic furniture rarely out-lasts higher quality furniture, but is quite a lot cheaper.

Wooden furniture is much classier than plastic, but is also a lot more expensive.  Although it is highly robust, it can suffer from exposure the elements and for this reason many people put it away in bad weather and treat it periodically to increase longevity and reduce the damage of moisture and mould.  The most common wood used for garden furniture is teak, which contains anti-fungal silica and is resilient to rotting, warping and swelling.  Teak is also quite fire-resistant and resiliant to acid and alkali as well!  If treated regularly, teak furniture can last a very long time.

Metal garden furniture is the most robust and resiliant of the materials used to make garden funiture.  Although rust is a problem for iron furniture, aluminium is a stylish and popular alterntive.  Lighter and shinier than iron, aluminium furniture is strong, resiliant, easy to clean and easy to move around.  High-quality aluminium furniture can be left outside all year long with no treatment and suffer no damage.

Different people will benefit most from differnt types of furniture.  Modern techniques mean that any materials will do their job well; a lot of the choice is down to the style.

Sometimes people get tired of their garden furniture and want to replace it – it’s natural.  However, instead of buying a new set of expensive furniture, why not consider painting your old set instead?  With a little time and effort, you can have a nice, new-looking set of furniture with a much smaller financial investment!  What’s more, painting your furniture can actually help protect it from the element, increasing its longevity.

Painting wooden furniture is fairly self-explanatory so, in this post, I explain how to go about painting aluminium garden furniture – a trickier job.  Before you start, remember to take off the cushions!  It’s also advisable to put the furniture on a surface where paint splashes and spills won’t be the end of the world – if you are using spray paint, make sure the area is well ventilated as well.

To start with, wash the furniture completely using a metal sponge and mild soapy water; you will need the surface to be clean and smooth before you start painting it.  Next up, you will have to apply a primer coat specifically designed for aluminium – this is important so don’t scrimp on it!  Beforehand, many people apply a thin layer of vinegar to the surface to etch the aluminium before the primer; this works well, but you must be sure to rub the vinegar off again before you proceed!

Once the aluminium is primed, paint on a base layer of oil-based enamel using either a brush or spray-can.  Spray is advisable for small pieces, due to its ability to provide an even coat and get into small corners.  Once the first (base) coat is done, make sure you let it dry before applying the second coat – otherwise you risk the old colour showing through.

Finally, leave the furniture to try in a cool, dry place – preferably where there are no insects to fly into it!

Aluminium garden furniture is very durable, highly resistant to corrosion and can be safely left outside in all seasons and all types of weather (hurricanes notwithstanding).  However, here is some advice for those owners of aluminium garden furniture who want to keep it looking extra special for the summer months.

If you are thinking about storing your aluminium garden furniture away over the winter, the first thing you should know is that this isn’t always necessary.  Aluminium doesn’t rust, rot or warp like most materials used for garden furniture; some companies even offer a lifetime structural warranties that guarantee replacement furniture in the event of any of the above.  What’s more, high quality cast aluminium garden furniture won’t fade, crack or chip either – meaning that no maintenance is required whatsoever all year round, even if you do leave it outside!

If you absolutely have to feel like you are doing something to protect your garden furniture during the winter months, consider applying some oil to it to further protect it from oxidation. 

If you are still not convinced and want to hide your furniture away from the cold and the snow, then be sure to stack it the correct way up.  Putting your furniture upside-down allows moisture to collect inside hollow legs and tubes; when the cold comes and this moisture freezes, there is a chance it could damage the furniture you care so much about.

My advice is to buy from a high quality retailer and leave it out all year round with confidence!

As modern homes become ever-more fashionable, so too does aluminium garden furniture continue to rise in popularity.  Here is some advice to help those people with aluminium garden furniture keep it looking classy.

First and foremost – read the care instructions!  The manufacturers didn’t put them there for fun; they are genuinely useful pieces of advice that will greatly improve the longevity of your furniture.  Different types of aluminium require different maintenance so, if nothing else, find out exactly what your garden furniture is made from!

Most the time, simply hosing your garden furniture down is the best way to keep the aluminium clean.  For tougher cleaning jobs, add some mild soap to the mix; nothing to strong, because this may well damage the finish.  Other things that could damage the finish included suntan lotion and insect repellent, so be sure to clean these off as quickly as possible if they come into contact with the frame.  It’s frustrating I know, considering the abundance of both lotion and repellent that we use over the summer months – the time for which we bought the furniture in the first place!  If you don’t have a special finish to your aluminium garden furniture, it really helps to rub a little car wax over it now and then, to keep up the shine.