Beautify a Wooded Hill with a Garden Bench

A garden bench is one way of beautifying a wooded hill in your backyard. In a previous home, we had such a hill in our backyard. At first, it was a tangled mess. But we didn’t want to get rid of it, either. It was part of the charm of the home.

If you’re faced with a similar situation, there are several things you can do. First, clear out selected brush and tangles. We left the mature trees but removed scrub and scraggly stalks. This one step made a tremendous improvement. It’s perhaps one of the most important things you can do to transform the look of your wooded hill.

Here are some other ways to embellish or beautify the hill further. Cut out a level spot halfway down, at the bottom, or anywhere in between. Install a garden bench in each spot that you clear. A garden bench provides a resting place from which you can catch glimpses of interesting wildlife.

Install stone steps. Use a large rock to create each step and mortar to secure them. Place the garden bench to the side of the stone stairway. If there is no natural ground cover, plant some. Or fill in the gaps. You can further emphasize each garden bench with some potted flowers on either end.

I Should Have Known about the Folding Teak Table

A folding teak table brings the old card table idea up a huge notch. Don’t get me wrong. I have used basic card tables for many functions, including extra seating at holiday dinners and easy seating while renovating a house. I have also used a card table on the back deck, for lack of better furniture at the time. Let me tell you, it took some effort to clean up and still didn’t look quite the same afterward. If I had known at the time about such a thing as the folding teak table? Well, I didn’t know.

I can think of multiple uses for a folding teak table in improving the quality of a staycation. It’s a great piece of furniture for small decks like mine. Whenever you want to get the table out of the way, you just fold it up and stow it.

It would also make a great accompaniment for a remote picnic somewhere. Have you ever sat on the ground where the grass was a little too tall, and walked away with chiggers or other insect problems? Well, I have. And if you haven’t experienced it, now is not the time to start. A small folding teak table fits in the trunk of most cars. Just tow the table along with you and pack a picnic lunch, and you’ve created a memorable afternoon for your family or special someone.

A folding teak table also becomes a handy tool for an outing in the park when the picnic table isn’t large enough to seat your family and hold your food. And, yes, I’ve had a few tight squeezes in this area, too. What better piece of furniture could there be for a staycation than a handy folding teak table?

How to Match Other Furniture to Your Mission Glider

A Mission glider follows the simple principles of mission-style architecture. This style emerged from the missions in California and the West. A Mission glider incorporates the straight lines, square corners, and flat slats and armrests common to this style of furniture. For a simple patio design, I think a mission glider is one of the best choices available.

Unless your patio is quite small, you might wish to place additional furniture around your mission glider. But not all Mission furniture looks the same. So how do we match other furniture to a Mission glider?

Here are a few areas I’ve compared among Mission furniture:

• Width of slats. Some pieces incorporate thin slats, while others use wide slats. If you attempt to match pieces with similar widths in the slats, the other furniture will look like it belongs with the Mission glider.
• Shape of armrests. Some pieces have perfectly rectangular armrests, while others offer armrests that flare on the hand ends. Use furniture with shaping that mimics your Mission glider.
• Cushions. If possible, purchase all cushions in the same style. These will help to hide differences between Mission pieces that you purchased separately.

When you pay attention to these key areas, I believe you’ll be more successful in matching additional furniture to your Mission glider.

An Auto Tilt Umbrella with Options: Made in the Shade

Relaxing in the outdoors is fun with an auto tilt umbrella. I don’t like to sweat when I’m trying to relax. This is why an auto tilt umbrella seems like a good choice to me, even better than a regular patio umbrella.

An auto tilt umbrella is about options, first and foremost. It allows the user to change the angle of the canopy to adjust to a moving sun throughout the day. I love options. Don’t you?

If you shop around online, you’ll find more than one auto tilt umbrella that comes with your choice of canopy colors. In fact, I’ve seen some that offer 30 choices, from solids to stripes to flecks to plaid-type patterns.

I can stay cool all day under an auto tilt umbrella that even fits whatever color scheme I want. That’s what I’m looking for. Made in the shade? I think that phrase definitely applies.

Remember to check the materials of the canopy to ensure that they will remain colorfast and resist fading. Any auto tilt umbrella that doesn’t have a good canopy isn’t worth the money we might have paid for it.

Organizing with Potting Tables

Let’s face it, no one wants to spend their vacation organizing. But this is one of the reasons people choose to stay at home during vacation, to finish projects around the house. Potting tables help gardeners to organize, but they offer some alternate uses for other types of organization, as well.

Potting tables provide work space and organizing aids. Some models include bins and shelves, others hooks and drawers. Because of the combination of work space and organizing tools, potting tables make great work stations for a number of other pursuits.

Crafters who don’t have space for crafting rooms often find their supplies strewn out all over the house. If you knit, crochet, sew, bead, scrapbook, or quilt, potting tables may offer the solution you need to get organized during your staycation—and actually enjoy part of it doing fun things. Potting tables offer crafters supply storage in the same location as the work space. And if you truly claim the table as your own, you can leave your work out on the top. No more cleaning up the supplies every time you take a break so they won’t be in someone’s way.

Potting tables are often designed not just for function but for beauty, as well. So you can use potting tables to organize indoor messes without someone saying, “Where did you get that ugly thing?” Use your vacation for organizing, and your family might be just as pleased as you.

Decorating Your Outdoor Swing and Private Getaway

If you plan to sit in your outdoor swing for very long, you will probably want to add cushions or pillows. Cushions transform your outdoor swing from an occasional place where you sit to a more luxurious place where you lounge in comfort. If you truly want to create a private getaway, you will want to coordinate your cushions with other accents. Think about color schemes, shapes, patterns—whatever elements you can repeat throughout the area as a theme.

Next, consider plants. You can add ground foliage, flowers, ornamental grass, or bushes to the area. You may plant directly in the ground, or you may gather potting soil and planters to create more portable arrangements of plant life. You might wish to buy outdoor swing cushions after you choose your plants. Sunlight levels in the area of the swing will affect which plants thrive there. (more information can be found in "Garden Teach You How")

You can also continue the design of your private getaway through other accents, such as water fountains, ponds, garden sculptures, or bird feeders. As you coordinate cushions, plants, and other accents, you’ll find a private getaway coming together with your outdoor swing as the centerpiece. Comfort, luxury, peace, and privacy, all rolled into one corner of your yard.

An Outdoor Swing Plus Shade Equal a Private Getaway

Bring home an outdoor swing, and you’ve got the main building block for your private getaway. The second building block is shade. Position the outdoor swing based on the available shade. It not only enhances your comfort on warm days but also shields you from damaging overexposure to the sun’s radiation. You have several options for positioning.

Of course, you can hang your outdoor swing from a joist in a porch roof. The overhang guards you from the sun and rain. You can also set up your swing under a tall tree in your yard if you buy a frame. But really, you can place an outdoor swing with a frame anywhere in your yard. Provide shade with a canopy or an offset umbrella.

Finally, you may construct an arbor or trellis on which to grow climbing vines and flowers. Depending on the size and positioning of the arbor, you can increase or decrease the amount of shade that falls on your outdoor swing. These plants could even form a natural privacy wall to increase your enjoyment of your private getaway.

Regardless of your method, once you’ve set up your outdoor swing and provided a sufficient amount of shade, you’ll have the basic things you need for your private getaway.

Outdoor Rocking Chairs: One of the Best Things for Relaxation

Your next vacation might be right outside your door. Literally. For years, outdoor rocking chairs have elicited a sense of peace and relaxation. Did you know there’s a physical cause behind this?

Several medical studies have drawn the conclusions that rocking physically encourages relaxation. It lowers blood pressure and breathing rates. Rocking chairs have even been used to treat lower back pain, shorten hospital stays after surgery, and reduce the amount of pain medication prescribed to patients. A couple outdoor rocking chairs on your porch might aid both your health and your ability to relax. And aren’t these two very good reasons for a vacation, or a staycation?

Outdoor rocking chairs also give you the benefit of interaction with nature and other people. You can observe animals in your yard, plants in your garden, neighbors on the street. Throw in a tall glass of lemonade or iced tea, and you’ve got all the makings for a lazy afternoon.