Household Fixes

Making outdoor patio furniture covers is easier than you think. By making your own covers you get the design and colors that you want. Making your own covers will also save you money. I have seen patio set covers made out of a variety of different fabrics. There is no right fabric. The choice of fabric is up to the individual taste.

It is important that your patio furniture be protected from the elements. The amount of protection your furniture will need is dependent upon where you live. Those people that live in tropical areas will want to protection their furniture from the blazing sun or salt spray every chance they get. The tropical sun will remove an entire layer of varnish in less than 6 months. Unless you don’t mind sanding and re-varnishing you best acquire some covers for your patio furniture.

The first step to making your own covers is material selection. There are more factors to consider than color or pattern alone. The price point of the material is going to be dependent on the quality. There are some specially formulated materials which are more weather resistant than others, which will obviously be more expensive than a generic fabric. This is not necessarily always the case, so it is important that the material you choose is worth the cost, both in terms of protective value, as well as esthetic appeal.

Now you are ready to design the shape of your patio covers, and take measurements to cut your material and assemble it. When creating custom designed covers, you must think in terms of the volume that your furniture occupies. Most pieces can be simplified into very basic shapes, such as rectangles, cubes and tubes. Covering a table will require you to create a simple box, cutting the top and side cut a few inches larger than the table measurement to allow for seams and a little extra ‘wiggle-room’. You will also want to create a slight widening taper towards the bottom so the cover slides easily over the table without getting stuck halfway down.

Creating a custom fitting cover for your chair is as simple as creating essentially a cube with one side shorter than the other. The back will be a rectangle measuring the same as the back of the chair, and the front will measure the same as the front of the chair, either as high as the seat, or the top of the arms if your chair has arms. The sides are slightly trickier, since they are not rectangles, but rather they are cut with one side as high as the arms or seat at the front, and the other side cut to the height of the chair back. Make sure that all your pieces have a seam allowance, and a bit of extra size so they will slip easily over the chair once constructed. As with table covers, you can add a hem with a drawstring at the bottom if you chair covers need extra securing.

With a little planning, and a little measuring and a little sewing, you can see how easy it is to create your own set of completely custom outdoor patio furniture covers. The best part about making your own set is the ability you will have to create an entirely unique look for your back yard or patio, not to mention the cost savings compared to having a custom set of furniture covers made to order.

Tags: b, backyard, f, furniture, g, garden, garden furniture, h, hobbies, Home, home and garden, home design, Home Improvement, home;accessory, house and home, o, outdoor decor, outdoor design, outdoor furniture, P, patio furniture, patio furniture covers
Posted in Home | No Comments »

I have loved the effects of outdoor lighting since I experienced a wonderful courtyard dinner in Mexico. I became charmed with the beauty of outdoor patio lights as we listening to a harpist and nibbled on the most outstanding cheese plate I had ever seen. We sat in the courtyard garden surrounded by outdoor art sculptures. It was the first time I had recognized the power effects of outdoor lighting and outdoor art. I was simply enchanted and have been so ever since. Since that night I admired outdoor lighting and outdoor art everywhere I go.

I have tried to replicate the feeling of bringing the indoors outdoors which is what properly placed outdoor lighting should do at my own homes. I have met with some success and I love to continue experimenting with the effects of outdoor patio lights. In choosing outdoor lights there are a few things you should always consider. I have listed a few important factors below.

1. What purpose will your outdoor lighting serve? Is the lighting to be strictly functional or atmospheric or perhaps both? A certain amount of bright outdoor patio lights are necessary for general safety and well being. These lights should be placed at every door including your garage door. These lights need to be bright to serve their purpose. Other types of lighting can be for mood or atmosphere. This type of lighting does not need to be bright and really should not be too bright. Lighting for effect can be quite dim or use very small bulbs. Mood lighting should be played with to find something perfect.

2. Where to place your outdoor lights. Lights for atmosphere can be placed in trees shining down or at the base of trees shining up. You can high light any outdoor art you may have or a swimming pool. You can use rope lights to highlight trees or a fence in the distance or often lovely and simple white Christmas lights make a nice year-round romantic setting. As mentioned above, the lights for safety need to be by each door of your house at a minimum and it must be relatively easy to change the bulbs. If the light requires a 20 foot ladder to change, you might go months with a burnt out bulb and that is not at all safe.

3. What type of light are you looking for? There are a number of relatively new types of outdoor patio lights available these days. There are solar lights. Solar lighting has become less expensive but these lights are slightly unreliable and often give off poor light. It goes without saying that the placement of solar lights is important to their function and cannot be counted on in cloudy or rainy areas. Solar lights will likely work best as mood or effect lighting and should not be used as safety lights. Of course, the most popular and energy efficient are LED lights. These lights can be used as both safety lighting and atmospheric lighting. The price of LED lighting is very reasonable and these are the lights most recommended.

Tags: backyard, exterior lighting, garden, garden decor, garden lighting, lighting, outdoor lighting, remodel
Posted in remodel | No Comments »