10 Outdoor Decor Ideas for Summer

It’s August and unless you’re living in Australia, South Africa, or anywhere else in the southern hemisphere, summer is in its full swing. That means now is the best possible time to start decorating your backyard, porch or balcony and enjoy the next 30 to 60 days of incredibly nice weather.

With these ten simple but effective ideas, you don’t have to go abroad or visit the seaside to take full advantage of the hot and steamy weather. Add a couple of these to your balcony or porch and you can be sure you will enjoy the warm summer nights.

1. Outdoor Pillows: Add a couple of brightly colored pillows to the sofa or a swing on your porch or in your back yard. If anything screams “summer”, then it’s a couple of brightly colored, striped pillows on a swing.


2. Tiki-Torches: Tiki-torches are one of those elements that really remind me of summer. They are fairly cheap (you can get four for $20 on Ebay) and very effective. They might not be a part of an Italian home design, but they will amplify the summer effect in your back yard.


3. Floating Candles: Take a small glass pot and half-fill it with water. Add a couple of small floating candles to the pot, and place all of that on the table on your balcony. If you can find candles that also spread a certain aroma it would be even better.

4. Rope Lamp: Anything “rope” works during the summer, but if you have access to electricity in your back yard, adding a rope lamp works great. They come in various shapes and sizes, an you can check out some of them on Pinterest.


5. Glass Bottle Border: If you have empty bottles dragging around the house, you can use them to create a super cool and creative border for your back yard. Just pin them upside down next to each other, creating a border for your yard. They’re colourful, they’re various, they are a great summer’s decoration.


6. Hanging  Planters: Hanging Planters are a great solution for smaller spaces, such as balconies or porches. Filling them with plants rich in scent will make that glass of wine in the late evening a special event.

7. Colorful Floor rug: The devil is in the details, and having a colourful floor mat might not sound as much, but combined with everything else, it works wonders. Together with colourful pillows, bottles, flowers and candles, it will completely transform your outdoors.


8. Wind Chime: Here’s one you and your kids could even make. It will keep them busy for an afternoon and the final effect is amazing. If you have some 10, 20 bottle caps lying around, tie them together to a piece of string and let them hang from the top of your balcony or porch. The summer’s breeze will have the chime sing and will create an amazing atmosphere.

9. Simple seating area: You don't need to spend a fortune on tables and chairs but do make sure you have some seating area for your guests. We picked up an old second hand outside table last year and sanded it back and repainted it and paired it up with some simple wooden folded chairs from Ikea.

10. Patio plants: they are a great way to bring colour into your garden as well as being easy to maintain. Buy hardy plants that flower well, keep them watered and weed free and even the smallest of garden spaces can have that real outdoor feel to it.


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