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56<br />
Bringing the<br />
Indoors Out<br />
Get truly comfortable in the garden<br />
by turning it into a fully functioning<br />
outdoor living room, warm and well-lit,<br />
with relaxing seating and lovely<br />
finishing touches.<br />
This decorative textured<br />
rope light has a warm<br />
white solar bulb with an<br />
amber filament. After<br />
charging during daylight<br />
hours, it works for up to<br />
eight hours at a time.<br />
LED solar garden light,<br />
£65, ellajames.co.uk<br />
Made from recycled plastic<br />
bottles, this rug can withstand<br />
moisture, mildew, mould and<br />
UV light. Its design is reversible:<br />
simply flip over for a new look.<br />
Fab Hab Tokyo outdoor rug<br />
in burnt orange, £59.95,<br />
cuckooland.com<br />
Woven around a strong metal frame in<br />
a smooth egg shape, this hanging<br />
chair is made from durable<br />
materials that look just like<br />
rattan. It’s big enough to<br />
snuggle up in with a book and<br />
a glass of wine.<br />
Indoor outdoor hanging chair,<br />
£425, coxandcox.co.uk<br />
This tiled table contains its own fire pit (or ice bowl) and is surrounded<br />
by four low-level dining chairs with weather-resistant cushions.<br />
Ava four-seater tile firepit outdoor living set, £899, dobbies.com<br />
ALL THE INGREDIENTS FOR AL FRESCO LIVING<br />
• If you’re planning on spending lots of time outdoors<br />
this summer, and keeping those sunny days going well<br />
into the evenings, think first of providing shady spots, and<br />
then of some form of warmth. Pile up blankets and throws,<br />
for sure, but consider a gas or electric heater or – more<br />
romantically – a fire pit.<br />
• To extend day into night you’ll need outdoor lighting:<br />
some functional, simply to see what you’re barbecuing or<br />
pouring into a glass, and some decorative, just to make<br />
the space look and feel gorgeous. It may be relatively easy<br />
to add a protected outdoor plug socket (ask a qualified<br />
electrician), and add a dramatic floor lamp or set of fairy<br />
lights. Alternatively, there’s a vast range of good-quality<br />
solar lights to choose from these days and, of course,<br />
candles and night lights look incredibly pretty, and can be<br />
protected from breezes with lanterns and jars.<br />
• Seating is all-important, whether it’s upright seats and a<br />
table for dining, bar sets for informal drinks with friends<br />
or sofas and squashy chairs for lounging. These days,<br />
outdoor furniture can look just like your upholstered living<br />
room furniture, but of course there are always the classics<br />
of outdoor rattan, wood and metal. Look for versatile<br />
furnishings such as rise-and-fall tables that take you from<br />
coffee to dining, or pieces that are grouped around their<br />
own fire table. Have fun by adding cocoons, hammocks<br />
and swing seats as occasional spots for relaxation.<br />
• Finishing touches pull the whole indoor/outdoor look<br />
together, from patterned outdoor rugs to piles of cushions,<br />
plus quirky outdoor eating sets and colourful glassware.<br />
With imagination and flair you can have great fun setting<br />
up a welcoming garden ‘room’, a truly special place to<br />
spend the days – and nights…
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