...because home doesn't happen overnight.
09.23.13 / Outdoor Furniture!

It’s here!

deck sofa 1

The outdoor sectional + chair + coffee table we bought for the deck arrived and, even though nights are getting chilly around these parts, we went ahead and set everything up. Because we’re impatient. Assembly was non-existent. The only thing we had to do was remove the furniture and cushions from boxes then place everything where we wanted it. These shots aren’t styled AT. ALL. Like I mentioned before, I probably won’t focus on this outdoor space anymore {at least not hands-on} until next spring.

deck sofa 2

As for the furniture layout, I taped the dimensions of the furniture onto the deck before we ordered it. When all the pieces were removed from the shipping boxes, we knew exactly where we wanted what. Painter’s tape doesn’t lie. The arrangement and proportions of the furniture are perfect! The longest side of the sectional sits parallel with the back of the house. The side chair is opposite and angled in. This leaves plenty of room for foot traffic from each of the adjacent patios and it feels as if you’re walking into/through a real room. Similar to not shoving furniture up against all the walls of an interior room, the outdoor furniture “floats” in the center of the deck away from the edges.

deck sofa 3

We deliberately left a gap between the house and the back of the sectional. This way, we have easy access to an outdoor water faucet {it’s rarely used as we have another one on the front of the house}, cable hookup and electric meter.

deck sofa 4

We’re really happy with the furniture. The cushions are comfy. You can’t feel the wicker-like base through them. We knew from reading reviews that we’ll probably need to add some throw pillows to further improve back comfort but the sofa is not at all uncomfortable as-is. It’s comfy! In fact, once we sat down to try it out we didn’t get up for a long time.

deck sofa 5

The outdoor fabric and synthetic rattan are quality materials. The cushion covers are zippered and machine washable so they can be removed and cleaned easily. Whenever we purchase/paint something white, we always get a few raised eyebrows because apparently kids + white = incompatible. But, what I’ve discovered with kids + white is quite the opposite. White has a way of looking clean even when it’s dirty. {Unless it’s really, really filthy.} Something about the brightness of it tricks the eye. So, no, we aren’t scared of the white cushions getting dirty. They are outside and we have kids. They are going to get dirty. Not a big deal. I’ll wash them from time to time and they should be fine. I’ve also thought about putting some kind of plastic storage tote behind the sectional to toss cushions and pillows into when it’s raining but I won’t be babying the furniture. I don’t have time for that.

deck sofa 6

When we ordered the set, I wasn’t too keen on the coffee table but it’s growing on me. It’s nice and low with a tempered glass top perfect for resting drinks and snacks on. I can’t promise I won’t tweak it later on down the road but, for now, it works.

deck sofa 8

I purposefully took these photos on a sunny day and left them unedited so you could see how much of our uncovered deck is shaded by the house’s deep overhang. The deck is on the north side of the house. These photos were taken shortly after noon. The sectional and coffee table are completely shaded and the side chair is in full sun. In the dead of summer, the coffee table and part of the sectional might receive a little bit of sunlight but, for the most part, they should stay shaded.

deck sofa 7

This is the view looking over towards the dining patio. {Don’t mind the massive dirt and weed hill in the background. That mound is leftover from our excavating days. We’ll use it to backfill around the deck at some point and, eventually, we want to add a kitchen garden to that part of the yard.} The deck and patio furniture don’t match but they complement each other well.

There are two things I should point out about the new deck furniture just in case anyone else is looking to buy.

1) The furniture is pretty light and easily moved around on the deck. We haven’t noticed it shifting when we sit down but if we do, we’ll probably come up with a way to clamp adjacent sectional pieces together. Also, I could see heavy tornado-like winds blowing these pieces all over. But, that’s what tornados do I guess.

2) The rattan pattern isn’t consistent from piece to piece so adjacent pieces of the sectional don’t match up exactly. We were prepared for this though, as the sales pictures are quite accurate. It doesn’t bother us but it might bother someone else.

deck sofa 9

All in all, we’re really happy with our purchase! We’ve already spent hours relaxing on the sectional and taking in the view from the deck. I’m scheming ideas for throw pillows, greenery and a way to disguise the electric meter. It would be nice to have solid plans in place so once spring comes next year, I can act quickly to bring them to life. I’ll keep you updated!

This post was not sponsored in any way. I just love sharing good stuff!

Click here to check out who won the DwellStudio duvet set!

images: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

26 Comments

23.September.2013

Ooh! I love the rattan! You’re going to have so much fun on this deck next year. Maybe we can just skip winter this year?

23.September.2013

The furniture looks great! I love it!

Are you at all worried that the one chair that does get sunlight might lose coloration though? I was just wondering.

23.September.2013

I love the look of that furniture! Is the fabric going to soak in rain or will it repel it? I have mostly avoided cushions outdoors because as a child, they always seemed to hold in rain water and morning dew and took forever to fully dry out.

23.September.2013

There’s chance of rain this week…so I’ll let you know!

23.September.2013

Not really. It’s water and UV resistant but if it does fade it won’t be the end of the world. I used to worry a lot about little things like that…but just recently discovered that it was holding me back from doing/trying many things. If I were to worry too much about outdoor furniture fading in sunlight, then we would have a naked deck for the rest of our lives. I will be sure to write a post this time next year to let everyone know how the furniture is holding up!

23.September.2013

You will love this. You may think you love it now, but you will love it even more as the years go by. An outdoor sectional is just so nice for lounging, reading with a glass of wine and a throw at night, and having a bunch of folks and kids all gather round. We have the same type of outdoor furniture (large sectional with chair and coffee table, different rattan/wicker look) – and we love it. We’ve made it through three summers and it has held up great. [Side note and in answer to Sarah above, the cushions repelled water really well the first summer but this summer I noticed that it takes them much longer to dry after a heavy rain.] We put our cushions indoors for the winter and cover the rest, which I think helps with the longevity of the product, but leave it out in the summer, rain or shine. Enjoy – it looks great!

23.September.2013

Young House Love painted their electrical/water meter boxes the color of the brick. Still there but much less conspicuous!

23.September.2013

Love it Dana. It looks even better than I thought it would! Its great to see everything coming together.

23.September.2013

Looks awesome. Just a word of advice, if you live in a cold climate at all (I can’t remember), bring your cushions inside in the winter, even just in Space Bags in your garage. I sell outdoor furniture in Chicago and you wouldn’t believe how many people have to replace their cushions because small rodents burrowed into them in the wintertime.

Also, turning cushions on their side helps them dry quicker!

23.September.2013

It looks fantastic! In my opinion, fall is the best time for outdoors anyways. Although you are in Ohio…

23.September.2013

I have white cushions outside for about 5 years. They get wet a lot here in south Florida. Sometimes they get moldy, but the best most amazing miracle solution is I pour bleach on them and rinse with the hose. They come out looking brand new. Once they were really black and it worked great. The outdoor fabrics are bleach and fade resistant, so apparently you should be able to bleach a color, but I haven’t tried that! I bleach them every summer if they need it.

23.September.2013

It all looks great! Where are you going to store the furniture during the winter or do you plan on leaving it outdoors?

23.September.2013

Thanks for the tips! We have plenty of room in our attic for the cushions during winter and we plan to cover the wicker frames.

23.September.2013

We will store the cushions in the attic {lots of room up there since I cleaned it out this past spring/summer} and cover the wicker bases.

23.September.2013

The furniture looks stellar! A pergola over the sectional would be swell!

24.September.2013

Your new furniture is beautiful and I am very Jealous :)

P.S I love the decking too.

24.September.2013

Total deck envy (yes I typo checked)! Such a good point Dana re not worrying about things too much. It’s not a financial thing but a lifestyle thing…I don’t have $ to throw around but I’m certainly not going to keep the plastic on the sofa either! Yes, certain items need TLC but too much foofing = less enjoyment = why buy in the first place? I bought a wool rug a few months ago, it’s hard to clean and control the shedding but 100% worth it terms of comfort. It’s kinda like my gran keeping the good china for good, in 60+ years of use it’s still as new, kinda sad really to not use lovely things!

24.September.2013

Hi there all the way from Australia, Perth. Love your outdoor lounge. We bought one in white synthetic rattan which is very similar to yours. We have had it for just over 5 years and it has remained outside the whole time. It is under a Patio but still gets the elements and it looks as good as new. We hose it down about twice a year and thats it. Love it and I am sure you will have some great outdoor parties around that lounge.

It looks so good in your space! So glad you guys are enjoying it.

03.March.2014

[…] of you want to know what’s become of our outdoor furniture this winter. We don’t have room for it in the garage. We don’t have a shed. We […]

26.May.2014

How has the couch held up? I’m thinking about pulling the trigger for my backyard

26.May.2014

So far, great! We only got a few weeks use out of it last season and stored in under heavy duty covers over the winter. I washed the cushion covers and stored them – along with the cushions – in the attic over winter. The real test will be this summer. I have some throw pillows on the way to cozy things up. We also came up with a way to keep the furniture from sliding around on the Trex decking…I’ll be sharing that soon!

30.May.2014

[…] finally dragged out the outdoor furniture we bought last year after finishing the deck. You can read more about how we stored the furniture […]

10.July.2015

[…] been scheming ways to disguise the electric meter on the back of our house for nearly two years. I had always pictured a slatted trellis with planters hanging from the eave in front of the […]

30.September.2016

hey! I’m wondering how your furniture has held up for the past few years? I’m looking around now and love your set. do you have any additional tips/recommendations after having it for a few years? thanks!

05.October.2016

Do NOT let children play/sit on it without the cushions/glass tabletop. We had a neighbor kid put his foot through the table earlier this year (I didn’t have the glass top on it yet) so now I’m on the hunt for a new table :( The same kid also stood on the arm of the chair and made a small hole. The cushions have held up well, but I store them in the attic in the winter and pull them off during wet weather in the summer. They do take a bit of effort to keep them in shape. I wash them at the end of each summer before storing them.