There's no place like home

Freedom, fresh air and sun on your skin, the feeling of life as light as a summer breeze. Enjoy carefree days in your own garden with decelerating siestas in the shade and cheerful evenings with friends on the terrace. Spend the summer where it is most beautiful: in your own home. Density stress like on Italy's beaches in August? Not a chance. No wonder it's so easy for us to relax under our own roofs.

Lounges, outdoor sofas with soft cushions and inviting daybeds, which increasingly blur the boundaries between indoors and outdoors, provide that extra portion of cosiness. Meanwhile, technical innovations such as special drying and ventilation systems in seat and sofa cushions, which prevent contamination by moisture, offer a great deal of function. Furniture and accessories that, in addition to their design, have qualities such as weather resistance and durability are a must in our eyes.

But no matter whether you move the home office out into the fresh air for a while, read whole stacks of books in a deck chair or conjure up tempting menus for your guests in your outdoor kitchen and on the barbecue – in order to be able to really celebrate the sweet idleness, your outdoor area should not only show itself from its most beautiful side, but also be stylistically and functionally tailored to your needs. So what does your perfect retreat need to provide deceleration on the one hand and be ready for visits from friends and family on the other?

There is no right answer, because the design is a question of personal taste and the circumstances of your home. Do you like the Mediterranean lifestyle with teak and light natural tones? Or is a minimalist Zen garden with Asian influences to your taste? Or does your heart beat for playful romance and lush flower bushes? Dream yourself away to your favourite place – and bring this feeling into your home with the right furniture and accessories.

No matter which style you choose, your outdoor furniture should withstand wind and weather for many years, which is why durable materials such as natural stone, teak or rustproof metal are recommended. Meanwhile, there is also recycled plastic, which is characterised by its durability. The most durable are high-quality natural stones that do not lose their colour or texture even after many years. Those who opt for wood should know that even the robust teakwood changes colour over time, but that this can be refreshed after a few years.

The fresh lemons in the beautiful glass bowl, the solar lamp that bathes everything in magical light after sunset, the cosy outdoor rug or the extra comfortable sofa cushion – remember that it is precisely these accessories that make up that certain something of your outdoor paradise. But small side tables or outdoor candles can also be true guarantors of cosiness.

If you're going to be outdoors, then please be outdoors. From perennial shrubs to seasonal vegetables, gardening has been proven to have a calming effect on our psyche and offers time to sort out our thoughts, especially in hectic everyday life. If your green thumb leaves something to be desired, we recommend artificial plants, such as the olive trees, strelitzia or palm trees available from us, which look deceptively real due to their high-quality workmanship – even after three weeks of holiday...

Our professionals will be happy to help you with the successful implementation of your outdoor area. You can also find seasonal inspiration for outdoor living in our outdoor showroom, which is open all year round.

Text Christina Noli