Successful retailing amid the outdoor living boom means staying abreast of rapidly changing consumer tastes in backyard products. To help keep your product lines up to date, AQUA has partnered with design megasite Houzz to bring you more content about outdoor living, from pools and spas to outdoor kitchens and patio furniture. Here, a Houzz expert explains a rising trend in patio furniture: the barely-there look.
Outdoor furniture is an integral part of a garden, providing a comfortable place for relaxing and communing with nature, enjoying the company of others or taking in the view. Beyond the practical, however, furniture can bring life and imagination to the landscape.
A solitary bench under a great oak conjures up the vision of a boy retreating from the summer heat to read "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn." A circular configuration of chairs might evoke the warm feeling of an evening gathering with friends. The stately rocking chair sitting on the front porch has my grandfather smoking a cigar and watching us youngsters play ball in the street with the gang of neighborhood kids.
Outdoor furniture can and should be used to enhance the enjoyment of outdoor spaces and add a little personality to your poolside patio, garden nook or front porch. But there are times when furniture can detract from the overall experience of the landscape. Such circumstances call for barely there, nearly invisible furniture.
Photo by Prideaux Design
This sleek, modern pool and patio design is complemented by see-through wire chairs. The chairs provide comfortable seating without competing with the panoramic view.
Photo by Elad Gonen
See-though, ornate and tying in with the surrounding colors, this furniture sits lightly on the deck. The modest scale of the furniture is well suited to a small space.
Photo by Jane Ellison
This ring of chairs could be the perfect place for a book club gathering, a casual office meeting and so on. The placement of the furniture has purpose and enhances this woodland setting without blocking or taking away from the view. Because the furniture is lightweight and barely there, the space can accommodate a lot of people yet feels fairly open.
This bistro set demonstrates the power of the barely there concept. The furniture adds a subtle note of playfulness without being in your face about it.
Photo by Randy Thueme Design Inc.
The large boulders used in this coastal landscape provide abundant seating around the fire pit while maintaining the naturalistic feel of the site. Built furniture would clutter the foreground, detracting from the rugged beauty of the place itself; this rustic seating solution blends with the surroundings.
Photo by Clinton & Associates
The color of this patio furniture blends with the color of the patio floor, creating an appealingly tranquil composition and maintaining a feeling of spaciousness in this outdoor room.
