Time to Take it Outside

Like last summer’s cotton clothes, patio furniture has a way of looking a little tired when it’s hauled out of the shed and into the light of day. If it’s time to replace some of your outdoor tables and chairs and maybe add accessories like planters and fire pits, you’ll find more choices that ever before at retailers throughout Sonoma and Marin.

The outdoor furnishing and decorating business has exploded in the last few years and shows no signs of slowing down. The trend is enhanced by advances in technology that have introduced innovations such as synthetic wicker and fade-resistant fabrics designed to outlast the inferior products of yesteryear (or last summer, for that matter).

At least a dozen North Bay shops, including several newcomers, offer an unprecedented array of outdoor seating, lighting systems, hammocks, and decorative elements such as lanterns, pillows and oversized plant containers. Consumers have their choice of traditional deck furniture, whimsical décor, clever accessories and pieces made with “green” materials. Prices range from inexpensive director chairs at places such as Cost Plus to $300 garden arches to $2,000 hand carved benches — and up.

Villa Terrazza, a new store on Broadway, opened this winter to offer an eclectic assortment of outdoor accouterments made to last a lifetime, including a round patio table made of volcanic stone quarried in Italy, hand-painted in blue, white and yellow, and then kiln-fired to produce a non-porous top. The shop also carries West Teak furnishings such as a curvilinear bench (which retails for about $1,000, though the store sometimes sells at wholesale). Owners Michael Robertiori and Theresa Deere are in the process of stocking the back of the site with shade covers, outdoor heaters, pizza ovens and grills and islands that can be customized.
Even Friedman Brothers, a local favorite, has responded to the outdoor living trend by adding new or improved items.

“People are moving outdoors” and they want better-made products and better warranties, said department manager Chris Plexico. He said the store is carrying more furnishings in rust-resistant plastic, resin and aluminum, as well as indoor-outdoor wicker. New this year are molded Adirondack-style chairs in hot colors such as turquoise, pink and violet, priced at $14.99 and a 10- by 10-foot gazebo that now comes with mosquito netting.
For large-scale garden décor and artifacts from around the world, head to ArteFact Design & Salvage at the Cornerstone Festival of Gardens, which specializes in recycled structural elements, wrought-iron fencing, stone fountains and enormous urns.

It’s worth the trek down Hwy. 101 to visit the Smith & Hawken mega-store that opened last month in Mill Valley, where you can find ‘indoor’ style products made of all-weather materials such as lamps and rugs, melamine and polycarbonate tabletop, wirework serving ware, and Sunbrella cushions and throw pillows.

In addition to decorative accents such as classy brass barometers, artwork for the patio or deck and festive strings of lights, the store displays various arches and trellises that can be linked to form “walls” to define an open area.

By contrast, the showroom at the two-month-old Marin Outdoor Living is an island of serenity where the stylish, eco-friendly chairs and tables are made from recycled cellulose, stainless steel, and/or sustainably farmed wood such as hardy machiche from Guatemala or epi from Brazil.

Another good-looking alternative to teak – and at a lower price point – is Restoration Hardware‘s Montauk line of outdoor furniture handcrafted of solid nyatoh hardwood. The store in Corte Madera also stocks an All-Weather Wicker Classic Collection of sofas, settees, lounge chairs and tables.

Fans of the natural look should also know about Reed Brothers in Sebastopol. Open only to the trade, the company is known for its custom-carved wood furniture, mostly made of redwood or what Duncan Reed calls “Sonoma Cypress,” especially prized for the beautiful way it weathers. Reed Brothers stocks hundreds of different items in various lines such as the Garden Collection, which includes a 38-inch-wide bench that would be perfect for holding court at a garden party.

Ideas for furnishings and décor can also be found at a number of offbeat shops like Beach House Style, which is all a-clutter with well-worn picnic tables, pastel wooden birdhouses, vintage white shutters, colorful paper lanterns, and perky nylon parasols sporting white and pink or chartreuse stripes.

At all these stores, you’ll find so many options for your outdoor lifestyle that you might want to just stretch out in a hammock and take a little nap.