The winter is here; the festive season is round the corner. It is time to shop and to buy gifts. It is time to spruce up your home and to give it a new look. While you are at it, do not forget your patio, give it a new look too. You may not be able to buy new furniture for it, but you can easily change the patio cushions and umbrellas at least. Buy a new market umbrella; the older one must be quite old by now.
How long a market umbrella will last depend upon how well you keep it. However, quality also matters. Before we go into that, let us have few words about the market umbrellas as such. Contrary to popular belief, market umbrella is not synonymous with commercial umbrella. They are very different. A commercial umbrella is sturdier with a solid pole and no props while a market umbrella may come with different mechanisms to make the handling easier.
In fact, a wooden umbrella is generally referred as a market umbrella. May be that is because in the olden days such umbrellas were more in use for advertising purpose or at open air bistros and cafes. A market umbrella will generally have the following features:
The frames are generally made from teak or other Asian hardwood.
Such an umbrella always has a center pole. It generally extends from the center of the canopy down to the base where it is secured at a stand.
The poles are generally 2” in diameter and may come in two pieces.
The poles generally feature a manual lift or a pulley mechanism.
They generally did not tilt, but today tilting market umbrellas are as popular as non tilting variety.
Wooden ribs are sturdy, but breakable. They are also easy to replace.
If you live in high wind place, such a wooden umbrella may not be the best thing for you. Try fiberglass patio umbrella instead. Such an umbrella is light, but durable. Frames made from fiberglass absorb the gust of wind rather than fight it and so generally such an umbrella lasts four to five times longer. However, they have limited finish and so if you are looking for some unique features, they are not for you.
Earlier the market umbrellas had just one kind of shape – they had round shades only. Today they come in all kinds of contour – square, round, oval, rectangle. Different kinds of fabrics are also used to manufacture these shades. The climatic condition of your place as well as the extent of usage will determine what type of fabric your umbrella should have. Thinner polyester fabric is good enough for fair weather usage only. On the other hand, if you expect your umbrella to bear all kind of extreme weather make sure the fabric is thicker and more durable.
So much about patio umbrellas! Let us now talk about other aspects as well. An electric fireplace can be an interesting addition to your patio as well. Although these are usually used for zone heating (heating only the zone you use more), they will make your patio look more like an outdoor room. Put an artificial Christmas tree all with traditional decorations beside it. What other place can be more suited for your Christmas lunch?
If you do decide to get yourself an electric fireplace, search through the internet for different models first. The wall mounted fireplaces are most popular while freestanding stoves are also available for more versatile use. Some fireplaces are designed to be put into the corners only. Whatever model you buy, make sure that the fireplace uses LED technology and consume least amount of energy to produce maximum amount of heat.
These electric fireplaces have another big advantage. If you do not want the heat, but only the ambience, you can have it too. Some of these fireplaces produce no heat flames as well. In simpler terms, if you so desire, you can have the live flame and accompanying romance, but not the heat. Of course, even those fireplaces that produce no heat flame also can generate adequate heat if you switch to that mode. What is more, you can have these fireplaces installed without undertaking any major home renovation. Most of them plug into any standard electrical outlet. This is another advantage. Buy one to get into the festive mood directly or present one to somebody you love. They come in all kinds of price range and so cost is not an issue either.
Author Resource:-
Article by Kenny Leichester of http://www.patioshoppers.com, a website with the best patio furniture information on the web.
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