Help me chose my garden furniture pls? What do you have?

[Whatisthename]

I have a new deck and want something comfy for it. I’d love an outdoor sofa but can’t find one without spending £££. Rattan stuff is quite expensive plus how long does it last? Will it start rotting? Isi have room to store cushions but that’s a real faff in spring/summer each day! What do you all do?

I don’t beed a massive set and not worried about matching tables etc as I have a fold up one should we eat outside, which we don’t do often due to flies... any suggestions??

I like rattan and it doesn’t rot if it’s the normal plastic rattan, just hose it down once a year, where as wood needs treating.

We have a cushion box for our cushions.

@Bluntness100 thanks, so I wouldn’t have to replace it after a couple of years? Is it comfy? If like a small sofa or small corner type sofa or just two comfortable relaxing type chairs, not the sort you sit at a table. Or one of those double day beds!!! Sadly I don’t have much over £500 to spend!

Iv seen a couple of rattan day beds with an overhead hood thing but I’m guessing that would have to come off and would look stupid most of the year round....

Anyone else?

We have a pretend Rattan corner thing in the summerhouse. I find it comfy to sit or to sprawl on and I have been known to fall asleep on it. My brother has something similar though and finds the back too low to sit on for long periods of time.

We have a wooden table with a bench but even with cushions it has never really been comfortable because the seat isn't deep enough and your thighs kind of hang over the edge.

Thanks @TwoZeroTwoZero that’s what I’m worried about buying online... I want it to be comfortable so I can sit/lay and read outside as apposed to sit up and eat a meal?

Do you have to cover rattan? I’m worried about spending the money and by 2 years it needs replacing? Does spending more mean better value with rattan?

We got a rattan set this year, a sofa, 2 chairs and a coffee table, it's super comfy and the cushion covers are waterproof and washable. We haven't got a cover for ours, I've ordered one but I wish we'd bought one sooner as we have spiders that have taken up residence inside one of the chairs. I'll definitely be covering it when it's not in use and in the winter months it'll probably go in the shed covered up

We have one very like this one: www.argos.co.uk/product/2070739?clickSR=slp:term:garden%20corner%20sofa:2:169:1

We bought it two years ago. It has sat out the whole time without being covered and still looks as good as new.

Our rattan set has a ten year warranty when you use the official cover and we have a cushion storage box in the garden for over-wintering.

@UnfinishedSymphon that’s exactly the sort of thing I want! For some reason Argos won’t deliver to my area, this has been since beginning of lockdown!

@HoratiotheHorsefly where did you buy yours from? The most warranty I can find is 5 years.

I want to make sure I get one with backs that are high enough. A lot of them are too low and not comfy to sit on for long..

I've had wooden, rattan effect, and metal furniture over the years. The only one where the price really made a difference in how long they lasted was with metal bistro sets (Fermob sets last forever and a day).

I have the cheap and cheerful Ikea plastic rattan sectional sofa on a balcony. It has weathered 2 winters without a cover and looks no different. I think they have lasted better than some of the more expensive furniture I have in my garden and are more comfortable. They also have storage in the base. I keep the showerproof cushions in waterproof bags (also Ikea) in the base.The only drawback is that they only have single seat cushions but you could buy double/triple ones elsewhere if you prefer that (for lounging).

Don't forget, if you want to use them for both lounging and dining, the sofa style chairs are lower than dining chairs, the same as an upholstered sofa.

We don’t eat outside in summer, one of dc has SN and hates flies and just gets too stressful. Most I will do is take a coffee/snack out. Good point about the height though.

These are the Ikea ones I have (Solleron):

www.ikea.com/gb/en/rooms/outdoor/rattan-garden-furniture-pub64ba31c1

@orangenasturtium gutted as corner sections aren’t available online and I can’t fit in my car to bring home

In grey that is. Also not all the cushions available online. Gutted.

We have this , didn’t pay that much though

Bought a cover that fits over the entire set but once weather really turns we will put the cushions in pub shed

Really comfortable

Oh yes, that is the other drawback, they only stock them in the summer, so unless you get in fast at the beginning of the season, it is hard to get everything you want online.

Are you sure you can't fit it in your car, have you checked the packaging measurements on the website? The boxes were quite small and light, I am pretty sure they would fit on a back seat. You could always take them out of the box, as they are flat pack, the individual pieces would likely fit on a backseat. The biggest pieces are the back/side pieces, which are 82 x 74 x 20. The other bits are all flat panels that you assemble. Are there any taxi/delivery companies near you that do Ikea pick up services?

I have Keter fake rattan. A 2 seater sofa, 2 chairs and a table.

Meant to say I got mine from amazon.

We have just ordered online from club rattan but it’s costing more than what you want to pay. Amazon had some good deals and did have corner sofas for about £500. I was very interested in customer reviews and they had good ones. Lots of places had sold out, the one we are getting doesn’t need to be assembled apart from the table. The table can rise and fall so be coffee or dining table height. If your ordering online search out customer reviews.

DH is building a small shed type thing to store the cushions in behind the actual shed. He is also building a retractable sail shaped canopy which will be attached to a fence panel he built inside the actual fence and tree for when it’s wet, he loves DIY.

Yes I just looking in amazon and have seen a couple...

@Whatisthename we bought from a company called Katie Blake, saw them advertised on FB. Had a look at the reviews and decided to go ahead. Because they were delivering direct we couldn't actually test them out beforehand but we e been really pleased with it. We got a corner sofa.

Thanks @HoratiotheHorsefly I’ll have a look.

Katie Blake looks great but too many £££ sadly