Fall in Love with Your Patio

The evenings are getting cooler and the sunsets are coming earlier. As you enjoy your patio, grilling dinner, chatting with friends or admiring the sunset, you might think, “Gee, I wish these times would never end.” The good news is, they don’t have to end, at least not yet. A little cooler weather is no reason to abandon the outdoors. Extend the patio season into autumn with these tips.

Add Lighting

If you have a single wall-mounted light, you know it can be a bit harsh with a spotlight effect. Multiple light sources, balanced throughout your patio area, create a soft glow that makes an outdoor space appealing. Consider a second or third light with a milder bulb in each. Scatter a few lanterns, either hanging or on posts. String Christmas-style lights, not with red and green bulbs, but with warm seasonal colors like orange and yellow, or go with classic white. For an extra festive touch, have candles and candlesticks ready to go. There are plenty of fall-scented candles, think pumpkin and apple, to enjoy.

Make It Comfortable

Don’t let a nip in the air put an end to your party. Have some blankets on hand. If your outdoor chairs aren’t already plush, make some seat pads available. Provide throw pillows. As with the blankets, choose colors and patterns that celebrate the fall season. An outdoor rug goes a long way toward making your patio an extension of the house. People gravitate to spaces that have elements of both inside and outside.

Add a patio heater or two in strategic locations. There are electric wall mounts that warm over 200 square feet. Stand-up models on wheels run on the same type of propane tank that powers your barbecue grill, and some include a bar table for folks to gather around. When there’s plenty of light and heat, no one’s in any hurry to leave.

Start a Fire

Brick or stone fireplaces are nice, but you have to add wood and deal with smoke and ashes. For comfort, convenience and cleanliness, there’s nothing like a fire table. It’s fueled by an LP tank, and specially designed glass fire beads not only hide the gas piping but provide an attractive glow. The natural gas fire pit table comes in a variety of shapes including square, rectangular, circular and oval. These inventive devices support all sorts of fun. You can use the table surface for food, drinks, playing cards and board games. Roast hot dogs and marshmallows, or cook an entire meal. This attractive feature will become the focus of your patio, a place people will flock to not only in the fall but any time of year.

A fire pit table is usually sold separately, but some include matching chairs. Add accessories such as burner covers and glass fire bowl guards that block the wind.

Decorate

Create the mood for your autumn soirees with some seasonal decorations. Swap out your summer throw pillows for ones with fall colors, and add some matching blankets. Also, use the plants of the season to surround your parties with autumn festivity.

If you like natural flowers, consider mums, asters, zinnias, pansies, and rudbeckias such as black-eyes susans and cornflowers. Ornamental grasses serve to fill in. Include seasonal produce such as pumpkins and gourds. These come in a variety of colors, shapes and patterns. White ones add an appealing accent. Other choices are corn cobs, cornstalks and fall wreaths. Artificial flowers are also attractive and last year after year.

Plant flowers around your patio perimeter or display them in pots and garden urns. Pumpkins and gourds can be stacked on the ground or set on surfaces, but there’s no reason to stop there. Fill an outdoor table with a collage of flowers and produce. For a rustic flavor, arrange your vegetation on and around a stack of crates or boxes. Let your imagination fly as you intermix these with outdoor sculpture.

Keep an Autumn Evening on Hand

Have ready all the extras you’ll want to entertain or to enjoy a special evening with family. These could include candles and candlesticks, vases, tablecloths and place setting with fall designs and seasonal plates, bowls and mugs.

Protect Your Investment

As autumn edges into winter and the times comes to put your patio to bed, protect your furniture with appropriately designed patio furniture covers. They come in sizes and shapes to fit just about anything in your outdoor space. Use one on each chair or employ an oversize cover that protects an entire dining set. Some are specifically made for fire tables. You can get them for odd-shaped objects such as umbrellas, high-backed chairs, loveseats and ottomans. Also, a bottle of liquid protector will safeguard your stainless steel items from rust.

Transform your patio for fall, enjoy it for the entire season and lovingly put it to bed when the snow finally flies. You’ll have an outdoor space you’ll enjoy autumn after autumn.