“Those patio lanterns, they were the stars in our sky.” Kim Mitchell Finally, it’s safe to emerge from the confines of our homes after a winter that was too long, too cold, too snowy and just too wintry. Now we ache for long, warm days and evenings outdoors, sitting on our patios, decks and balconies doing a whole lot of nothing in particular. No doubt there’s a thing or two you want to add to your outdoor living space. If you’re looking for a comprehensive exploration of the latest in deck furnishings, you won’t find it here. Instead, I’m considering whether some of the latest offerings are going too far and possibly, too tacky.
Leafing through a flyer I noticed a new line of glow-in-the-dark items specifically designed for outdoor use. Plastic cubes and balls that run on batteries radiate vivid hues of fuchsia, orange and lime to set a mood and light the way to the barbecue or bar. This style of night lighting includes tall planters that are said to be waterproof and programmable with a remote control. To some eyes they might look cheap, but they’re not. A cube lamp that changes to eight different colours retails for about $120.
The budget conscious might be more interested in a blow-up ottoman. Inflatable, round outdoor footstools come in a bunch of colours and even feature piping that gives the impression of upholstery, although I have to think that you could only fool people from a distance. The advantage here is that you save your better quality indoor footstools from getting soiled and rained on and you pay only about $25 bucks plus the cost of air.
The Muskoka chair, as it’s known in Canada, gets lugged out and dusted off every spring. It was designed more than 100 years ago by a vacationer in the Adirondack Mountains and has endured with only one major design change in 1938 to round its back for more comfort. Niche furniture builders have also taken the classic Adirondack style and fashioned it out of boat paddles for the cottage or hockey stick handles for those who are counting away the days of summer until NHL season begins.
Many summers ago I hauled home a half-dozen colourful, resin deck chairs formed in the Adirondack style. They were new to the market and I leapt on them like a child of the 70s on a pet rock, choosing a combination of sky blue and mint green for various parts of my yard. Some friends scoffed at the synthetic imitation of the real-wood, time-honoured chairs but these fakes were light and easy to drag around the pool or carry up to the sunroom. And they were comfortable and maintenance-free. I left them out in the rain for effortless cleaning. Soon, they were available everywhere and they’re almost a summer staple now.
Regardless of their popularity, there are those who think the plastic chairs are tacky and I wonder if some of the new, trendier items emerging for outdoor living today will fall away like fads or, like the fake Adirondacks, will last a while.
Take paper lanterns, please. They look beautiful against the black of night but I don’t have the energy or time to take them down when it rains on my open deck. I suggested that the hot-pepper themed string of lights my husband brought back from the US south find a home in his workshop. But friends have them wound around their pool fence and they look just fine in their more party-friendly atmosphere. We have a neighbour with a front deck who believes that if one garden gnome is cute, fifteen must be adorable. Mercifully, they don’t light up and when the sun goes down, they disappear. Like beauty, tacky is in the eye of the beholder.
Those battery operated lighted flower pots, etc. might not be inexpensive, but they ARE cheap as in tacky! Resin chairs or tables for actual use are easier to use and relocate. I have had several different types including a “wicker” rocker which is marvelously comfortable.
For lighting I stick to solar in their various forms from post tops on the gate to small path lights. Traditional white lights for these are just fine, trying to eat by the light of a fuchsia planter does not appeal to me at all.
I even found a light set for the Christmas wreath which has teeny colored lights and is solar powered, no more dangling extension cord.
Brilliant! I have a lovely outdoor candle holder that I put out every year, it collects rain and bugs and leaves, and then I clean it off and put it away in the fall. Practical, it’s not!