yvonne gordon

The Irish Garden, June 2006, Vol 15 No 5

Garden Furniture
Outdoor living is a big theme in many gardens and like any other room, the garden needs furniture. Yvonne Gordon finds out how to choose between the different kinds available and how to maintain your garden furniture.

Bringing the indoors outside and extending the living space has been a feature of contemporary garden design for the past few years. Having dinner or breakfast outside is no longer confined to holiday time. Decking is everywhere and full sets of garden tables and chairs are offset by matching recliners, hammocks and patio heaters, all essential for our new outdoor living style.

So what furniture should you choose and what maintenance is involved? The main choices are between wood, metal and resin. Wood is a warm attractive material for garden furniture, while aluminium is light and easily moved, and less bulky in appearance. Resin is light, not as durable, but more affordable. Steel is used too, usually in the form of stainless steel because of its durability and strength. Some brands actually combine wood and aluminium or steel. The range of materials has not changed all that much over the years but the use of materials and their combination has become much more sophisticated.

Don O’Doherty of Ironcrafts in Co Meath has been in the business for 22 years and has a large selection of garden furniture in all types of materials. One of Ironcraft’s main collections is from Nova – a range of furniture in a variety of materials, steel as well as aluminium and wood.

Nova’s cast aluminium collection includes tables with lazy susans (built in turntables), armchairs, recliners and footstools. The advantages of cast aluminium are that it is rust and maintenance free. Tubular aluminium is rust proof, light weight and weatherproof and this is teamed this with hardwearing resin weave and aluminium mesh for texture and contrast in the furniture.

If you prefer wood, hardwood can be very versatile and practical. Teak contains rich natural oils that protect this strong timber and allow it to weather. Another advantage of wood is the traditional workmanship that can be used in the designs.

Whether to choose timber or aluminium is a personal choice. With timber, there is more maintenance involved. Aluminium can get quite hot in the sun and for this, accessories like cushions might be useful on a hot summer day. Most garden furniture retailers will sell a range of tailor made cushions, as well as parasols and cleaners, as part of a garden furniture collection.

Bear in mind that all wood will require maintenance, no matter what type you have. "From a maintenance point of view, it doesn’t matter if you have a piece of cheap white teal or expensive teak or hardwoods, all timber is going to require maintenance," says Don. "Generally if people look after teak, there’s no reason it won’t last for 80, 90 or 100 years." Don recommends using the well-known brands for maintenance and following their instructions. He adds that water-based preservatives dry more quickly than some other types.

Planning your garden furniture to blend in with the rest of the accessories in your outdoor space - such as sheds, fencing, arches and pots is better than making a hasty purchase as soon as the sun appears. "Garden furniture is not just a purchase you make and change in a few years - this is something that can be carried on for generations," says Don, adding that furniture will last well if you treat it well. Some manufacturers give a ten-year structural guarantee.

You can leave furniture outside all year round but it will last longer if you have storage to protect it from the elements. One of Don’s tips is to keep a close eye for wear and tear on furniture. "You can stop anything going if you catch it in time," he says. "If you notice a chip, put a daub of paint on your finger and seal off that mark with it."

Marianne Caplice, manager of Powerscourt Garden Pavilion in Enniskerry, Co Wicklow, says that this year, furniture shoppers are looking for quality but also innovative design and something extra in garden furniture. A revolving hexagonal table that can be converted into a smaller square is just one example – it can change shape from a 4-seater to accommodate eight people.

The new Four Seasons range has a wicker effect which is created using hand-woven vero synthetic fibre. There are glass-topped tables and chairs with cushions in the collection and they are fully weatherproof. "Outdoor wicker is UV and weather resistant, has no maintenance and looks like something out of holiday brochure," says Marianne. The range comes in a variety of contemporary colours and fabrics – one striking suite is black with lime green cushions.

As well as traditional wood, Maureen says that ceramic is also becoming popular for furniture such as tables and it can look really striking. Maureen says that different sets of furniture meet different uses and people are definitely buying more than one set. For example, you might have a breakfast set outside the conservatory door, such as a small four-seater table, with a larger party scene on the patio.

There’s always demand for the unusual, and a wooden seat or coffee table from Durrow Design will be a great talking point. The pieces, from Asia, are made from teak root. They are shaped with a chainsaw and sanded before being finished with a hand sander and coated with hardwood oil. They can be used indoors or out and can be waxed if they are for indoors. "They are a feature chair, they go in a natural setting" says Durrow’s Fintan Leonard. "There’s something different and unusual about them. They are a nice set-piece for a garden, you can build a display around them." The collection ranges from single-seater chairs up to three-seaters which are about 2m long, and come in different shapes and sizes. Curved or L-shaped ones are great for corners and the pieces are A-grade teak so very hardwearing.

There are plenty of other materials on offer on the market too. Atlantic Homecare sells a range of cost effective resin furniture ranging from patio tables and chairs to sun beds and deck chairs, as well as a collection of wooden sets and aluminium sets.

Fibrestone is one of the materials used by Habitat in its Tico outdoor furniture range, which comes as a table and four stools. The Koto range of outdoor tables, benches and chairs use mixed materials, with a slim, powder-coated steel frame with rich oiled teak slats. The tables can be rectangular or round. Habitat has a huge range of colourful and light folding chairs, umbrellas, hammocks, picnic blankets, garlands, torches and tableware to go with the furniture.

Mixed materials are also used in the Salerno set from Outdoor Living & Home in Ashbourne, Co Meath. The set is made of weatherproof tubular aluminium and textylene mesh with an extending teak top table. Outdoor Living also has a stylish Roma set which uses tubular aluminium and teak.

If you’d like a more classical look for your garden, try an architectural salvage yard for stone benches and cast-iron tables. Many of these are imported from large houses and villas abroad. Some salvage companies also reproduce these in heavy weight material, so they look the same but cost a fraction of an original.

If you’re shopping for garden furniture, plan what uses it will have and how it will blend in or contrast with other garden surroundings like fences, decking and sheds. Don’t pick something heavy if you need to move it around a lot. It’s a good idea also to work out how much maintenance you are prepared for. However whatever material or finish you choose, or combinations of materials, remember that like indoor furniture, garden furniture will last years if you treat it well. It’s not just a once off, seasonal purchase but something you can enjoy and relax in for years to come.

Caring for wooden garden furniture Most garden centres and DIY outlets have a selection of garden furniture restorers, cleaners and oils. To clean garden furniture, try something like Ronseal Garden Furniture Cleaner. Just spray it on, scrub and rinse off. It can be used on new or previously treated timber. Over time, garden furniture can become weathered and discoloured. Cuprinol Garden Furniture Cleaner is a gentle cleaner, less harsh than bleaches or cream cleaners. You can restore the natural colour of the timber without damaging it by using products like Ronseal Furniture Reviver on hardwood or softwood. Simply brush it on, leave for three hours and scrub off. Hardwood furniture loses its colour and turns grey, which is fine with some people but if you prefer to keep it looking restored and in good condition, Cuprinol Garden Furniture Restorer is designed to restore the original colour of teak or other hardwoods. You don’t need to strip or prepare the wood, just brush it to remove dirt and put the product straight on to bring back the original colour. Cuprinol Teak Oil is also good for hardwoods. You can apply it during winter, over the Garden Furniture Restorer. It protects against weathering and replaces any natural oils that have been lost over the summer due to weathering. Ronseal also has two options for maintaining your hardwood garden furniture. Ronseal Hardwood Furniture Stain is designed to protect exterior hardwood from the damage and discolouration caused by natural weathering. It has a clear finish and four wood shades and gives increased water and UV sun resistance. Or you can use Ronseal Hardwood Furniture Oil, this product replaces the oils essential to help prevent hardwood from drying out. The Bondex range of wood care products can be used for various kinds of garden wood – decking as well as furniture, fencing and sheds. Bondex Decking Oil restores life to a tired deck. Bondex Quick-Drying Wood Stain brings colour and a fresh look and Bondex Teak Oil is designed for teak furniture to improve its appearance and colour. Whichever product you use, make sure the wood is clean and dry. Carefully follow the directions on the tin. Always use a good quality, soft bristle brush (if using the stain) or a lint free cloth (if using the oil). Inspect all coated areas during the year and reapply further coats if necessary, following the application instructions. Some furniture on the market made with softwoods, such as pine and spruce, is less hardwearing than hardwoods. Most of these will have been made with pressure-treated timber and need no treatment for preservation, but they can be stained to change their colour. If the wood has not actually been pressure-treated, Cuprinol Garden Furniture Preserver is ideal for untreated softwood garden furniture as it can help it look good and prevent rot. Softwood garden furniture left unprotected over time will lose natural oils and colour. To prevent this you can use Ronseal Garden Furniture Stain. It protects and colours your wood. It comes in a range of traditional wood and contemporary colours. If you want clear protection, try Ronseal Garden Furniture Protector. It gives a superb water-repellent barrier without adding colour to the timber. It can also be used on hardwood furniture. If you’d like to add colour to your garden furniture and give it a new lease of life, try Cuprinol Garden Shades. There are four colours – Holly (green), Sage (light green), Iris (blue) and Black ash (black). The colours are suitable for anything in the garden such as benches or seats and they are water-based, so harmless to plants and pets. The colour touch-dries quickly in two hours and has an opaque matt finish but allows the texture of the wood grain to show through, looking quite natural. It can be used over weathered furniture, old wood or new. When you treat wooden garden furniture, you might also consider your decking, if you have it. Wooden furniture looks well on a deck, but the latter must look as clean and well-cared for or it will spoil the effect the furniture, according to the Wood Marketing Federation. Just like furniture, decking is made of hardwood or pressure-treated softwood. While this does not need anti-rot treatment, it does need to be kept clean. It should be swept regularly to prevent the build-up of dust and fine debris. It can be brushed down with a stiff bristle brush, even scrubbed down occasionally, and there are excellent cleaning products available. A power spray can be used in conjunction with these for best results. Stains of various kinds can be used to bring up the colour of the wood and to refresh decking that has become stained by weather. Clear wax coatings can be used to seal the wood and reduce moisture uptake that leads to swelling. Use products made for exterior application.

© Yvonne Gordon 2006