How to Maximise the Enjoyment of Your Outdoor Space

With spring now upon us, there is no better time to undertake the pleasure of designing, refurbishing and beautifying your garden in preparation for outdoor living during the spring, summer and early autumn months.

Depending on the size and shape of your garden, there may be a number of areas in which you can enjoy living 24 hours a day. With the right furniture and lighting, your garden will benefit from it's new look and heighten your living experience and add a fresh new dimension to your home.

Here are a few tips to get you started and ensure you maximise your garden space for optimum results.

Garden furniture

When choosing the furniture for your garden, before you begin spending any money it is important to consider what you wish to use your garden for. Is the garden to be used to entertain friends and family for barbecues and sun soaked days, or a place for the children to play? It's also worth noting the budget you have available, how much sunlight the garden gets and how hard it will be to maintain throughout the year.

All gardens will vary, so when purchasing a table and chairs think about how you will use them and whether they will be left outside all year round or stored away during the winter months. Plastic, aluminum and rattan furniture are all light and easy to lift. For windy gardens, solid wood and iron would be recommended. Don't forget that wood and metal furniture will need treating if left exposed to the elements.

Decking/Patio

Whether you choose garden decking or a stone patio design, attacking this as a DIY project is not as difficult as you may think. Either process will add a dynamic addition to your garden and become the entertainment focal point for any garden party.

There are various decking options available and may vary depending on the size of your garden. Decking looks really great particularly when you have a medium/large space to utilise. Major hardware stores have a wide range of products to choose from and some decking packs are easier to piece together than others. Deck tiles are particularly easy to construct providing you have a solid surface to put them on.

There are many types of stone paving available to buy, and some kits come with all the necessary equipment to complete the job such as squaring off kits, octant kits, etc.

Popular ranges include smooth, granite, weathered, textured, buff and York Stone.

Lighting

There's more to garden lighting than just providing one big light in every part of the garden. You can create atmosphere by situating lights in the right manner in strategic places around the garden.

Where possible, try to conceal the light source when lighting your garden, hide any uplighters amongst foliage and plants as a feature and consider adding waterproof LED lights into decks or patios. Ideally, not being able to see the light at all is best.

Most lighting options are either cable, solar or candle operated with each having their obvious advantages and disadvantages. Particular attention is essential when using candlelight due to safety, especially around children and pets.

Outdoor Heating

In order to extend those summer nights, patio and garden heaters are a perfect way to ensure comfort whilst entertaining friends and family.

There are a wide range of garden patio heaters that can be fuelled either by gas, coal, electricity or wood.

Ceramic patio heaters are powered by electricity from your home and can be fixed to the wall providing heat to the patio. They come in various sizes depending on the size of your garden. Starting at £150, the models with the highest power output can set you back up to £350.

Standalone gas heaters are also available with the added bonus of being able to move the heater where you need to. Prices start at £100 and use standard bottles of propane gas to create the perfect heat.

Firepits and wood burners are a more environmentally friendly option using wood and coal to create a "fireplace" style of warmth to your garden. These are considerably cheaper than it's gas and electric counterparts starting at around £35.

A great website to visit showing all of the above options is home and garden discount codes.

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