5 Common Mistakes to Avoid When Choosing Outdoor Furniture

However, there are also plenty of mistakes that could be made, here we have revealed the 5 most common mistakes when choosing patio furniture and how to avoid them.

Incorrect Measurements

You have to be extra careful when measuring your patio or decking area or wherever it is you plan on putting your outdoor furniture. If you don’t get it right, you could end up with garden furniture that is far too big for your space or far too small.

You can avoid this mistake by measuring the area as a whole and then measuring the space for different furniture styles. For example, if you are planning to go for a corner sofa or corner dining set you need to know how much space you have for each side of the corner sofa. Alternatively, if you are planning to go for a sofa set you need to know whether you have space for a sofa and arm chairs. Or if a dining set has plenty of room for you to actually sit at the table with the chairs pulled out rather than just the space for the set itself.

Choosing on Appearance Only

Whilst appearance and aesthetics are a huge part of choosing your garden furniture, it shouldn’t be the only reason you choose something – your garden furniture needs to be practical as well.

You should regard style and design in your search to choose something that not only looks great but is also comfortable and works for multiple purposes. For example, if you are looking for furniture for your holiday home sun loungers might be a good choice, however, if it’s for your back garden you might want something that can be used more often but still offers an element of relaxation so a corner sofa or casual dining set would work better.

 
Don’t choose something that looks great but doesn’t match any of the colour schemes in your garden as you’ll find it doesn’t look as great in that position. Always consider the other elements of your garden before making a decision.

Choosing the Wrong Material

Garden furniture is available in many materials from wood to outdoor fabric to resin rattan weave to metal and many more. Each material offers benefits and negatives and it is important to do your research before committing to a certain material. Choosing the wrong material could lead to a lot of maintenance and possible damage.

For example, whilst wood is a common choice for garden furniture if you live in a particularly damp area it could rot quickly and will require a lot of maintenance to keep the colour intact. Whereas, rattan garden furniture is much more weatherproof and requires little maintenance but does require more research into what type of resin rattan you are purchasing as PE rattan is weatherproof but cheaper alternatives like PU or PVC are not nearly as weather resistant.

The three main factors in deciding what material to choose are whether it is weatherproof, the amount of maintenance required and then how the material looks.

Choosing Cheap Outdoor Furniture

It’s easy to be sucked in by a bargain, but buying cheap means buying twice and ultimately spending more money. The cheaper the furniture the more likely it is to not be a weatherproof design. Some examples of this include steel framework on rattan furniture – it is much cheaper than powder coated aluminium but steel rusts and leaves orange stains on your patio, whereas aluminium is rust resistant.

 
If you are looking to save money but still want quality furniture, do your research and find the item you are looking to buy and then hold out for bank holiday or out of season sales. Of course, you run the risk of your chosen item going out of stock so always make sure you’ve picked a few items you like.

Buying on a Whim

Garden furniture should not be an impulse buy. Don’t buy and hope for the best. You should have a plan when it comes to garden furniture and your outdoor space, or you might regret it later.

Plus, if you buy your furniture on a whim that probably means it was a cheap purchase, likely from a supermarket and not a proper garden furniture retailer and this leads back to the point above that you have probably compromised on quality for price.

Choosing your garden furniture should be an exciting and fun experience. If you follow our top tips you will wind up with garden furniture of great quality that will fit perfectly in your garden and look great for years to come.