I adore spring. Its my favorite time of the year to be outside. The freshly sprouted greenery, the sound of the pond and waterfall, the fountains, sitting on the back patio with my dog and an iced tea. An old garden is the best sort, and mine is almost 90 years old.

Rather than choosing all matching furniture en suite (tres boring), coordinate your furniture choices made from a variety of materials. For instance, iron looks great with wicker or wood but not so great with aluminum. Iron and aluminum are too similar to create visual interest. Choose just two or three matching pieces like I did with my dark brown settee and chair. They provided my anchor seating. I then added an iron settee and a black woven egg chair which provided variety and gave my outdoor room a unique, custom vibe. Not like it’s been furnished from a catalog. Adding even one piece of interest like a fashionable teak daybed with lots of pillows makes a big statement.

I’m also liking the look of black and warm white cushions on the patio. Black and white add a crisp counterfoil to whatever patio material you have be it concrete, flagstone or brick or even semi-soft ground material like crushed granite or pea gravel. I don’t like my fabrics to upstage the greenery and garden color.