Ever since I was a child, I have absolutely loved tropical living. This stems from us moving to Florida when I was just 2 years old and growing up there and leaving when I was 16 (not my choice!). Since then, I have come to appreciate the island and tropical feel of Florida and other warm climates. Because I am living in Pittsburgh for the time being, I wanted to create my own little paradise right in my backyard. Thankfully, I have a deck and a yard so I got to add even more things to my outdoor living area to really make it like my own little retreat.

Up top on my deck, I have a glass table top with a wood frame, I have a really beautiful set of sturdy wrought iron chairs with pillows and seating pads that are a lovely blue color (water!), and I have my good stainless steel grill, umbrella and chaise lounge (also with blue pillows and seating pads). Also, on my deck I have a tower heater which always makes it warm and it gives off a nice warm light (no pun intended!).

I don’t know if it’s because I grew up in Florida or what the deal is, but I hate hate hate cold. So when it came to picking out a heat source, this was my number one option. Obviously there are also other options as well such as fire pits and fireplaces, but since I already had a lot of stuff on my deck I needed something tall and skinny rather than short and wide. Along with all of this I added in a few small palm trees and some plants.

In my yard I have more of a relaxation area than a “entertainment” area. I added in a fire pit that has ceramic tiles on the top of the pit around where the fire is, and a wrought iron and wood mixed “case” around the pit itself. I also added in more seating down here, but we do not have a table. Well, not in the traditional sense anyway. We have a set of four very puffy and incredibly comfortable wicker seats along with a table in the middle of these four chairs. Then, I have my own personal hammock which I absolutely love!

I also have my garden down here so I figured it would also be a nice addition to add some bigger palms down here as well as some “Floridian” shrubbery and plants. It works out perfectly for entertaining, but I can also enjoy time with my significant other or on my own. In all simplicity it is my home away from home, that being my home in Florida which is decked out to the T! This is my winter home obviously, but it’s actually even nicer because seeing palm trees in Pittsburgh is, well, a little unnatural. Seeing them in Florida isn’t!

We also have a lovely pool down in our home in Florida which gives a really nice focal point. Since I do not have this in my home in Pittsburgh, I had to figure out another way of going about this. I think that is probably the number one tip I can give any person – create a focal point. Something that everyone will notice when they walk in and build and create around that focal point.

Let’s be honest here, when it comes to a lot of our homes, we know that they will not be the place we grow old. I know this is the exact case for me. For right now I have a town home. It’s incredibly spacious and beautiful, but going through the house I notice that there are a lot of things I would like to change and a lot of things I would like to add. Unfortunately, I do not own this town home and we have to follow the rules set by our landlord, so I can only do so much before they cut the check for my return deposit up and use it as a kinder!

But, when I get my home in Florida, I have quite a few ideas on what I would want to do. I plan on moving there in 6 months, but upon taking a tour of the home I still noticed there were things I wanted to change, mainly outside! Once I started checking into indoor remodeling versus outdoor remodeling, I came to one big conclusion: Doing stuff outside of your home is much less expensive! Also, upon checking out some questions I had for a local real estate agent, I learned that there are two reasons people change or remodel their outdoor areas.

1- They want to do it for themselves

2- They want to do it so when they sell the home, the project will add on value to their home.

Number two is definitely true – ask any realtor out there and they will tell you that by adding things to your outdoor living space, you can add on hundreds to thousands of dollars on to the price tag of your home. Not only is this a nice option for the buyer because they don’t have to do anything – except for BUY, but they also say that having a nice outdoor space is like baking cookies before a buyer comes to your home. It makes it irresistible to them, especially if they are the kind of folks that like being outside a lot. Of course if you get any outdoor furniture for the home, you would take all of that with you.

But, even the “look” of the outdoor furniture (chairs, tables, firepits, fireplaces, umbrellas, wicker seating) is a great way to WOW your buyer. They will see how nice the outdoor area is and it will become all the more important to them. One of the things you do not want to do when you are selling a home is to A) leave it untidy and B) take the furniture and outdoor seating areas away. Let them see how nice and relaxing it is to whet their appetite! Again, I have to go back to the old trick of baking cookies before a buyer comes to see the house. Just adding that extra layer of visual relaxation will get the buyers thinking about outdoor BBQ parties, romantic dinners and dinners with their families. It sparks a certain interest!

Adding a really nicely designed living space outside your home has become quite easy. But, it also allows you to add space to your outdoor living area without having to spend a lot of money like you would with an indoor remodeling project. The thing about an outdoor living space is that its so versatile. You can use it to entertain your friends and family for a cook out, you can use it for you and your significant other for a romantic dinner, you can use it to just sit back and relax and you can use it for family dinners enjoying all the outdoors have to offer!

In order to create an area for this, you first need to start thinking about the different aspects of outdoor living and the creation you want to put into it. First off, you need to start thinking about the size of your space. Using a dining table or chairs that is too big in such a small space will make things more difficult for you. On the other hand, using a table that is too small in a large space will make it look out of place. Next, you need to consider the style you want to create.

You can either use the same home decor you are using in your house or you can create a whole other atmosphere and do something tropical, laid back, jazzy, classical, traditional, etc. Also, when creating your style, consider adding in a focal point like a waterfall, fountain or a fireplace or firepit! Next, you need to consider the seating area. If you have a small area to work with, consider using a small bistro table and two chairs. If you have a larger area, use a larger table and more chairs. You can also add in different seating areas in the space, if you are looking for a way to fill up space.

One of my favorite options I have seen before in a magazine was a table, chairs and an umbrella on one side of the space and a sitting area on the other side of the space using fluffy and comfy club chairs and an end table in the middle. This is especially nice if you have a lot of company. Lastly, you need to consider your lighting. You really have an array of options to choose from, such as solar lights, pole lights, ground lights, stringed lights, lamps, etc. In addition to all of these factors, you might think of extra options as well such as wildlife ie; if you have or want birds, hummingbirds or other wildlife around your outdoor area, you can add in humming bird and bird feeders.

Honestly, I like to keep the birds at bay, but I do have a koi pond out on my patio that adds an extra layer of sereneness and relaxation! No matter what additions you do for your guests and to entertain, just always remember that this is your home and your “area”. So, if you like something specific, do it! If it makes you happy and you like the sound or sight of it, take a chance and try it out!

It seems like over the years more and more people are starting to take advantage of their outdoor living areas. They are beautifying them, fixing them up, making them look nicer and more relaxed. This can merely be proven by driving through your own neighborhood and taking a look at some of the people that live in your area – especially in the summer time. You see new gardens getting started, patio dining tables and chairs being brought out, grills being rolled out, etc.

Not only are these outdoor living items being used outdoors in residential areas, but they are being used in almost every single restaurant and bar as well as other businesses that have outdoor seating. I live in Wexford PA, and we have quite a few places in the summertime that open their patios up and decks up to customers such as myself. The reason for all of these places doing this?

Well, first off, as with your own home, it’s all about using the space you have! You might not have a ton of space in your yard or on your patio, but if you utilize what is available to you as far as outdoor living furniture goes, you can actually end up maximizing your space. It’s also incredibly comfortable. It used to be that we and the businesses and restaurants we went to either don’t have outdoor living areas or they had really uncomfortable chairs and tables to sit at.

Not anymore! Now you can choose from an array of patio dining tables and chairs including different sizes, shapes, materials and colors. You can match them with the same theme your indoors have or you can go completely different. You can have seating for one or two or you can have seating for 10 or 12 possibly more depending on the room you have. You can “save a tree” by using bamboo or teak or faux wood, you can have a classically traditional style with wrought iron or you can be sophisticated and modern with a ceramic tile table top and a glass or steel interface.

The choice is absolutely up to you! Personally I have a more modern style so I specifically chose to use a stainless steel grill, wine cooler and refrigerator, glass and wrought iron tables along with dark wicker or teak furniture with calm greens, browns and blues incorporated into my pillows and couches. I love it. It’s definitely my own personal get away! I still have enough room to move around, as do my guests, but it’s comfortable, serene and just plain relaxing.

I also chose to incorporate a fireplace into the outdoor area because I know that we get quite a few cool nights in the summer time, but I also like the light and worth it gives off visually. For the fireplaces and pits you can, again, choose from all kinds of colors, styles, sizes and materials – use whichever ones you feel that you want to have in your outdoor area. Yes, you will entertain here. But, it’s also important that YOU enjoy it!

Dinner is by far one of my favorite meals. Blame it on the Chef in me. I absolutely love creating food (and eating it!), but I also love entertaining and I try to do so as much as often! One of the things I have been doing in my house as of late, is actually moving our dinner parties outdoors. Now, I know what you are going to say, don’t the bugs bother you? Well, to be honest, they did at first. But, since this is a new house, I wanted to get all brand new furniture for the outdoors, so along with that, I always bought one of those Bay Window Gazebos.

The Bay Window Gazebo is a steel construction with deluxe powder coating finish, instead of the traditional heavy gazebo. Bay window style frame creates a wonderful lookout for your backyard or garden. They come with zippered mosquito netting and ground stakes so you can actually “tie” up the netting for keeping it more open, or you can untie it and this way none of the bugs or anything gets it. I love it. It’s definitely one of my favorite items for the outdoors!

If you have a lot of bugs in the summer, this would be an awesome addition for you. Other things you should check into as far as outdoor patio furniture goes are options like a table and chairs, obviously, as well as a heat lamp, fire pit or fireplace for those months where it gets a little chilly outside. We actually started out with a heat lamp that used the same type of gas for our grill, but as most of you know, this gas can get expensive.

So, we moved from the heat lamp to the fire pit and we haven’t looked back yet! The fire pit is great because once again its something you can completely customize as you see fit. There are different materials to choose from, you can choose from the top most part of the pit or fireplace (tiles, marble, ceramic), you can choose from the type; firepit with top or a gas urn look. You can also choose from a variety of sizes and shapes as well.

For the dining tables and the chairs, you can choose from a wide variety of shapes and sizes from small little bistro tables for two made out of wrought iron, on up to big beautiful glass tables for 10-12 people. It really depends on how much you will be eating outside and how many people you have over when you entertain! I have a very large family and group of friends, so I need as much room as I can possibly get.

Sometimes the table isn’t even enough, but we have a table extender as well, which was another great thing we invested in because we use it A LOT! If you can find a patio dining table extender and have a lot of family and friends – buy it! You will get a lot of use out of it!

When you start to think about the different types of outdoor patio dining tables and chairs for your outdoor living area, you might start to wonder what is available to you. Well, one of the first things I would tell you to do, before you even bother to look, is to measure your deck or patio area to find out what size you can get. I know myself, I know if I go looking first, I will be sorely disappointed once I start figuring out the measurements. So, save yourself a little heart ache, and measure first, look second! Once you are done measuring your area, you can start looking at actual future.

You can buy tables one of two ways. You can either buy just the tables or just the chairs, or you can buy both. Usually when shopping in a store, you will find that the prices are lower if you just buy the entire set. But, there have been times that I occasionally don’t like the table with the chairs or visa versa so I just buy both separately! Then, you will start to see different shapes of tables. The most popular shapes include round, oval, square and rectangular. These tables will also come in a variety of colors (wood and metals) as well as materials such as wrought iron, metal, plastic and different kinds of wood such as oak, cherry, teak and bamboo.

FYI If you get a wood table and/or chairs, make sure they are sealed so that water and sun don’t damage them! Next, you want to start looking at the chairs. Chairs are like tables in that they come in a wide variety of colors (wood and metals) as well as materials such as wrought iron, metal, plastic and different kinds of wood such as oak, cherry, teak and bamboo. They also might or might not come with pillows and seat pillows as well. I prefer chair or seat pillows for two reasons. First off, it’s comfortable!

Secondly, it allows me to customize my outdoor experience even more because you can choose from colors and patterns on the chair pillows. The last thing you want to look at is if the table has an option for an umbrella. Sometimes the table will come with an umbrella, sometimes it won’t. Mine actually didn’t, so I went out and bought one of those ones that slants and swivels. I love it. I spend as much time as I can outside, especially once it gets warm, so comfort for me is more important than price.

If you can’t afford something that is incredibly expensive – don’t! Stay where your budget is, possibly going up a few dollars or down a few dollars. Just don’t go too far above your budget or you might start regretting it. This is something you are supposed to enjoy, not glare at it every time you sit on it or by it! Have fun and use this stuff as much as you can!

Personally, I absolutely love being outside. In the summer and spring months you can find me sitting on my deck, in fact as soon as it remotely warms up, I get the grill and all my outdoor patio furniture out. Thankfully these days, you don’t just have to wait until it gets warm out though! I am a big “warm” weather person and I hate the cold weather. With this, I have decided to not only sit outside in the warmer months, but enjoy the cooler months as well.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not exactly sitting on there in the snow or anything! But, if its 50s or 60s I will gladly bring out my fire pit to make for a warmer climate! When choosing outdoor furniture for your own deck or patio it’s always a good idea to stick with products that have material that will stand up to the test of time. Honestly, I take all my pillows inside once it’s the rainy or snowy season. But, for my wrought iron benches and my teak furniture, I usually leave these outside.

You are more than welcome to cover them if you want to, but I actually find that I like the way teak looks once its become aged. It’s almost like a leather couch or a nice pair of worn in jeans. Over time, the warmth of the teak starts to come through and I really start to like the look of it! You should also consider the space in your outdoor area. If you have a smaller space you might be thinking you can’t fit anything in that area.

Wrong! They have a lot of very cute bistro tables with a small table and two chairs, they have small glass and plastic tables, benches for two people instead of three and much more. Among your material choices as far as the frames on the furniture, you also have a variety of choices for that. Back when I was in college I couldn’t afford too much, so I got a plastic table and chairs. But, once I reached adulthood, I found some really cute glass tables and chairs, wooden, bamboo, teak, oak, cherry, wrought iron, etc.

The choices really are endless as far as what is available to you. You can also mix and match with what is inside your home or you can do themes or something completely different than you would usually do. I set my backyard and deck up in two different ways. My deck has more of a tropical vibe (think tropical plants, a beach mural on the wall, a hammock) and my backyard has a sweet little English tea garden where I go to get away and relax!

I love spending time in either of these places, but the deck I primarily use for entertainment – which is one of the biggest reasons I got a pretty big glass table and nice comfy chairs. My table fits about 10-12 people and it has an umbrella for those really sunny days!