1. SCRUB IT UP!
Get out the hose, bucket, and cleaner and give your outdoor space a good scrub! Don’t forget the ceiling of a porch. Wash the windows around your porch or patio and keep them sparkling!
Start now to wash down patio furniture and porch rockers.
It’s also a great time to wash down any umbrellas and outdoor seat cushions too.
2. PAINT IT TO LOOK FRESH
Painting a porch is a HUGE job, let the professionals do the job!
We are also talking about things like rockers and tables and swings and such. Make sure they are not chipping (unless that’s the look you want). It only takes a couple of hours to make a rocker as good as new! Try a fun new color this year!
The time to start painting is not when you want to be rocking and sipping ice tea!
3. ADD POTTED FLOWERS
Plants bring life and oh, such beauty to an outdoor living space! The more the merrier!
The planting process… and it is a process… begins by inspecting your pots, giving them a good scrub and planting them with seasonal flowers and plants.
When planting annuals in pots it’s a good idea to give them a dose of time released fertilizer like Osmocote.
4. ADD A RUG
Nothing defines an outdoor space like a cool rug! And there are sooooo many great rugs and lots of sizes to be found! Start looking now and enjoy the coziness and added color and texture a rug brings!
5. CREATE A SPECIAL AREA
A bistro dining area, a summer reading spot or a nice place to swing and count the fireflies are all examples of fun spaces to create outdoors! Do you like to get up early and read the paper with your cup of coffee? Why not create a little space outdoors to enjoy your morning ritual. Make it special!
6. USE OUTDOOR CURTAINS
Curtains are a great way to “frame” an outdoor living space and give you the privacy and shade you may need. No wonder they are so popular right now! And they look so beautiful fluttering in the breeze! Big, easy to create WOW factor and drama!
7. DON’T FORGET THE PILLOWS!!!!
Don’t you love bringing indoor elements outdoors? Pillows are a fabulous way to do that. They are textural and add color and also a nice soft place to land!
Make sure the pillows you use are filled with poly-fiber and not feathers. We want pillows that can get wet and dry easily! There are so many great pillows made for the outdoors that are weather and sun resistant. They are your best bet!
If you have lots of outdoor pillows, now is the time to get them out and see if they need to be cleaned up or mended!
8. LIGHT IT UP
Add lanterns, torches and solar lights to your outdoor space. What a wonderful way to add mood lighting! They can be moved around unlike wired lighting.
