How to Choose Outdoor Sofas, Sun Loungers & Accessories

Introduction

Outdoor dining is not just about food and drinks. It is also an ideal place where people gather and chill, especially after a long day’s work. In order to keep your customers staying at your place a little longer after the meal, you should consider getting nice and comfortable outdoor sofas and sun loungers that give luxurious comfort. Besides, to optimize your outdoor décor, parasols, lighting, partitions, trays and cushions are all highly recommended.

Outdoor Sofas

Scenes

Try adding outdoor sofas to your:

• Outdoor Lounge areas in your bar, hotel, or resort as alternative seating
• Garden, patio, rooftop of your restaurant
• Poolside, lakeside, or beaches

Types of Sofas

Modular Sofa, Loveseats, and armchairs are the most popular types of sofas that fit in modern outdoor life.

Modular sofa, also called sectional sofa, consists of separate pieces of seating that can be combined into different configurations. As comfort and versatility is key to outdoor leisure and dining, a good modular sofa never fails anyone.

However, loveseats and armchairs play a complementary role in sofa combination. Though they are smaller than a modular sofa, they have an advantage that a modular sofa don’t have: an intimate space for two people or a private space for an individual.

Upholstery

Upholstered outdoor sofas are unarguably the most comfortable of all seating options. They offer unparalleled lounging experience and a classy look that could compare to indoor counterparts.

The quality fabrics, the most critical contributing factor to the comfort of the seating, are normally consisted of water-resistant synthetic fibres like olefin, polyester, and acrylic. Such woven fabrics share similar properties including anti-UV, anti-mildew, easy-to-clean and extremely breathable.

The best filling material usually consists of quick-dry foam, which is made to speed up water drain-off and evaporation, and to keep away from mould and mildew.

Rattan

If you are looking for a natural vibe for your outdoor spaces, check out the trendy outdoor rattan furniture. It is not just part of boho, vintage and tropical style, with a broad spectrum of earthy colours; it has become a perfect match to almost any exterior style.

Rattan sofas feature a rattan back and frame that is lightweight, durable and delicate woven patterns. The material itself is free from frequent cleaning therefore saving you a lot of maintenance time. Separated seating pad is optional for extra comfort.

Cleaning & Maintenance

Most outdoor furniture including sofas is made to be taken care as easy as possible. A few wipes over the surface of the sofa seating will be adequate for daily cleaning. Accidental stains won’t be too difficult to be removed with some detergent solution.

Sun Loungers

Sun Loungers vs. Day Beds

A sun lounger is a chair-like and bed-like device, typically found in all outdoor spaces like a patio, garden, or swimming pool deck. Some people might mix sun loungers up with day beds. A day bed is used as bed as for lounging, reclining and seating with a back and sides and comes in twin size.

Generally speaking, sun loungers are more likely to be seen as an alternative seating of outdoor sofa in commercial environment.

For example, a commercial sun lounger with a multi-position backrest that meets the different customer requirements for heights is very popular in the garden, patio, and swimming deck. Sun loungers that are fully padded are ideal for relaxing in garden but not so recommended for poolside. Plastic or aluminium, folding sun loungers are better suited to poolside or lakeside because they are lightweight, durable, easy-to-move and easy-to-store.

Swings

A swing is a kind of seating usually suspended from chains or ropes. Once it is in motion, it continues to oscillate like a pendulum until external forces brings it to a halt. The seating and the metal or wooden frame are known as a swing set, which are often found at playgrounds for children.

Therefore, a few swing sets can add a touch of fun to your outdoor dining environment. Imagine the adult customers are busy socializing with their friends without paying too much attention to their children, since the little ones are happily and safely playing around the swings.

Outdoor Accessories

Parasols

A parasol, or an umbrella, is designed to protect a person or an object against rain or sunlight. Traditionally, a parasol is used when protecting oneself from sunlight, with umbrella used when protecting someone from rain, though the two terms continue to be used interchangeably.

Not all umbrellas are suitable for outdoor use. For instance, umbrella that are not waterproof or transparent are clearly not a good choice outdoors.

A good commercial parasol includes necessary functions and designs, including a built-in crank for safe lowering, weather-resistant canopy that resists fading, and a tilt function to position the umbrella at your customer’s desired angle.

Cantilever parasols are intended for outdoor dining tables without a umbrella hole, therefore providing a more flexible mobility function. Some of the cantilever umbrellas do not necessarily include an umbrella base which is crucial to keep the item stable.

Lanterns

A lantern is an excellent choice to spruce the look of your outdoor dining and lounging area with practical utility. There is always a style of outdoor lantern that fits in your existing outdoor décor, and the major materials include metal, iron, wood, glass, resin and so on.

The ambience around the outdoor lanterns reaches its peak during night, therefore it is a powerful decorative accessory for businesses that open late at night.

Safety with using candle lanterns is a big concern for businesses. In fact, as long as you follow the instructions and keep them away from flammable materials, then it is not a problem at all. Because the product is usually designed enclosed to ensure the flame inside does not come in direct contact with other materials. Do not forget that the candle lantern itself is made to keep a burning candle safer for people than a standing-alone burning candle.

Partitions

In modern gardens, patios, and porches, partitions are seen in a greater variety: wooden, plastics, composites, glass, fibreglass, etc.

The original function of partitions is to be used as screens to protect people from light or wind while asleep, or to be used as dividers to set up private spaces in a larger space.

Besides, it is also helpful in protecting outdoor furniture against unpleasant weather conditions, like constant sunlight and strong winds.

Moreover, for some Chinese people who take Feng Shui seriously in interior and exterior décor design, a partition can brings positive changes to the whole environment, which subsequently influences the people living or working in it in a better way. So if your target customers have a particular interest in Feng Shui, take this accessory into your design considerations.

Conclusion

No matter you are looking for timeless and classic outdoor sofa set, or a collection of unique and innovative sun loungers for an high-end outdoor club or resort, or just browsing for outdoor ambience ideas to boost up the dining vibes of your business premises, Coets specialists are happy to get your inquiry and will try their best to give you a constructive answer!