|
Author: Kathleen Wilson Article source: http://advertising.theeagle.com/. Used with author's permission.
Many times when the weather becomes sultry, the only place we want to be is in our favorite chair on the porch, sipping ice-cold lemonade! So, if we are to spend our summer months languishing with Mother Nature, why not treat our "outdoor room" to a little freshening up, and make our time outdoors more enjoyable! Here are some great, easy ideas you can use to add your own personal style to a much used "summer home"!
Treat your outdoor space just like an indoor room when you think about decorating it. Mother Nature has got the ceiling covered in most cases, but you should think about floors, furniture, accessories, color, and, yes, walls, just like any other project! Choose a theme, even if it's just color!
Use existing fencing, tall plants, trellising, etc... for your walls, or just imply that walls exist by arranging your furnishings as if they did!
Dress up old patio furniture with cushions (easily made out of leftover fabric), a little paint, and maybe some stenciling or stamping. Details bring that "homey" feeling to the space. If you don't have furniture, buy those inexpensive resin chairs and make cushions out of a bright cheery fabric.
Tables can be made out of a lot of "junk." Stepladders make great little drink tables. I found one of those large "spools" used by the utility companies in my yard when I moved in - it's a bit weathered, but turned on its side, it makes a terrific table! Paint leftover squares of plywood and set them on top of unused large pots, or on a birdbath. Two pots and a larger piece of wood make a great coffee/breakfast table.
Tiki torches are relatively inexpensive, and add great ambience! Forget that expensive outdoor lighting set!
Make luminaries out of recycled cans to light a walkway. Remove labels, fill with water, and then put in the freezer for a couple of hours. When they're frozen, use a hammer and nail to poke holes in a pattern, similar to punched tin. Stars, hearts, butterflies, even just zigzag lines will let the light shine through in an interesting pattern. (The freezing of water prevents the can from denting when you punch it.) Thaw, drain, put some sand, dirt, or gravel in the bottom to anchor a votive candle - instant charm, for the price of the candles! This is great for a party or barbecue, by the way!
Paint those boring planters! Once again, a few tubes of craft paint and a little imagination can make all the difference. Nothing fancy is needed- stripes, dots, squiggles, sponged-on shapes all can make designer accents. How about gluing on some stones or shells?
Since we are already painting planters, how about free ones? I recycle kitty litter buckets, plastic ice cream buckets, coffee cans, etc... Just poke some drainage holes in the bottom, paint and decorate, and plant!
Take the time to dress up your outdoor spaces…it doesn't have to cost a lot of money, and it will help create a relaxing sanctuary to wile away those lazy days! (If you actually have any of those!) Kathleen Wilson is an author, national columnist, and editor of The Budget Decorator. You can find hundreds of free budget home decorating ideas and sign up for her free online newsletter at her website at http://www.TheBudgetDecorator.com
Taking In the Good Criticism and Leaving the Rest Behind
Learn how to take in constructive criticism while leaving the idiotic statements behind.
10 Steps When You Need Help in Your Business
You start off alone. Be it as a solo business owner or a manager looking after a part of a larger business. It gets busier, you get distracted from what you wan...
Top Seven Ways to Promote your Ezine
Your ezine builds customer confidence and trust
when you give free tips, articles, and resources. Clients and
customers buy only when they trust you. Expand you...
Buying a Franchise
Buying a franchise is not for everyone. This guide will help you evaluate whether buying a franchise is right for you.
Successful Advertising
The Internet, the largest market in human history, has
millions of folks in its audience. How do you reach those
folks? EZINE ADVERTIZING The best way of reach...
Everybody Loves Raymond....You Should Too!
Popular TV Series Provides a Powerful Marketing Lesson Small Business owners spend a great deal of mental effort and time trying to dream up the next big market...
How To Seal The Deal In Seven Seconds
Can you close a sale in just seven seconds? If you make a great first impression, you can do it even faster. Seven seconds is the average length of time you hav...
Analysing Adverts for the Creative Response
The fundamental rule is: if you are going to apply for advertised jobs then only apply for the right ones. Don't
waste time by applying for the ones you've no ...
How to Turn Your Marketing Into a Money-Making Machine - Examples of solid Marketing
Step 3 in creating your own Money-Making Machine!
A World of Possibility
Negative talk can be destructive for the person talking as well as for the listeners. Learn strategies for using the negative energy positively.
Create Your Own Security
Our lives are changing a a faster pace than at any other time in history. In trying to understand and respond to the changes occurring in our work and personal ...
Is Google Fair?
Is Google Fair? From a new webmasters point of view, it may seem google has no interest in you, and favours established websites.
Over 50 And Changing Careers? Youd Better Have a Plan
If you're over 50 and considering a career change, you need to be aware of the challenges and prepare accordingly.
The Rosicrucian Council of Three
Please check into the statements I make in this article. You will not believe it at first.
Balance Transfers Can Help You Stop Putting Money Down The Drain!
As you probably know, interest rates are at all time low right now and if you aren't getting the best deal from your credit card company then they owe it to you...
Downloading MP3s Made Easy
The MP3 movement started out with a huge audience of music enthusiasts on the internet. The MP3 digital music format has had, and will continue to have, a huge...
How to Improve Page Relevancy for Improve Google Ranking
You need to do enough exercise to keep your site properly indexed with search engine.i am providing some tricks that can help you in improving page relevancy.a...
Debt Management Plans – A Way to Survive the Debt and Come on Top
Debt Management Plans (DMP) is placed one step beyond credit counseling and a stone throw short of bankruptcy. But, is this for you?
Hair Transplantation: A Great Option for Dealing with Hair Loss
Hair Loss is an issue troubling many males and females regardless of age. Hair transplants is one method for dealing with hair loss.
Writing Articles - Six Mistakes To Avoid
Writing articles is probably the single best way to generated free traffic to your web site. Just watch out for these mistakes.
Analyzing Traffic – Visitors V. Hits
A key component to every web site is traffic analysis. When analyzing traffic, it is important to understand the difference between hits and visitors…and why bo...
Excellence is Never an Accident
Excellence is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction, skillful execution and the vision to see obst...
Now, Do You Have Any Questions?
"Who is that hot babe in the picture?" isn't the type of reply an interviewer expects to hear when he or she invites you to ask questions near the end of an int...
Tips for Finding the Best Agri Mortgage and the Best Agri Loan
The Research Rates of Agri Mortgage: First thing, when finding an agri mortgage is to check the interest rates and the rate movem...
|
Print this page