We live in Florida and are lucky enough to have a screened in lanai. I'm sure it goes without saying that we spend a LOT of time out there. We recently painted our house white and our lanai ceiling blue. I am now obsessed with the space but am still trying to figure out how exactly to fill it, so I started with an inspiration board.
In building this out, I realized that my outdoor style is kind of akin to a vintage garden party...the kind of party where you'd drink champagne and play croquet and maybe even wear a fascinator. Lots of pinks, whites, and blues with rattan, bamboo and fringe. ALWAYS fringe.
So now I'm inspired by the space and inspired by my inspiration board but uninspired by the existing furniture we have on the lanai. It's all perfectly nice and perfectly functional; it's just not blue or pink or rattan or fringey. Commence operation: outdoor furniture makeover.
First order of business? Remove that eyesore of a TV mount. The previous owners left it there, and while I like the idea of watching TV outside, it's just not something I see us doing for the foreseeable future. I'd love to do some sort of hanging plant trellis on that wall, but first I need to figure out how in the world you attach things to stucco...
Anywho. The sectional is in near perfect shape, so I have no excuse to buy a beautiful rattan sofa with the fluffiest white pillows. It's just so..........gray. I'm thinking I may attempt to recover the cushions in a cabana stripe fabric to brighten her up a bit. I also wouldn't mind swapping out the ottoman for an interesting coffee table.
I recently read somewhere that you can spray paint the plasticky faux wicker material on these chairs. (I would link it, but I have rocks for brains and cannot remember where I saw it...) So I'm thinking I may spray paint them either a rattan color or maybe light blue and then add some cushions or pillows.
And the table... The table is the only thing I'm seriously thinking about replacing at this time. It's stained, as you can see, but maybe a coat of paint will make her good as new. IDK. I would love to do a big, round table out here, but it's a long, narrow space that I don't think lends itself to a round table. I think it might be cool to get a round table and use the sectional as a banquette, but then I would need to add another seating area and somehow fill the space currently filled by the table...
I LOVE this bar cart, but I think I want to add just a little color and whimsy to it, in the form of a pagoda umbrella. Something like this, with maybe a little fringe added to it:
Of course then I'll have to use it as a bar cart, instead of a plant stand - bring on the rosé, y'all!
Other random ideas:
Cover the pavers with an adhesive vinyl tile. I don't care for pavers, especially reddish ones. Sue me.
More plants! Always more plants!
Some sort of water feature that won't attract bugs or other creepy crawlies.
A Greek-ish statue on the edge of the preserve behind us, with some rose bushes.
Additional lighting - maybe some string lights or a few woven pendants (speaking of...I have THE best hack that I'll be sharing with y'all soon!) of varying sizes in the corner. We have a few recessed lights out there, but cans aren't exactly great for ambiance.
I apparently have a LOT of ideas, so I should probably get to work. Any big plans for your outdoor spaces this year? I'd love to hear them in the comments!
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