The garden furniture style guide
The garden furniture style guide
Our garden furniture collection, like everything we make, is all about edited choice. Enough styles so you don’t feel restricted, but not so many that choosing becomes a chore. That said, if you’re in need of a helping hand to narrow things down, we’re here to help. Read on for our guide to all the styles you’ll find in our outdoor collection: their personalities, what kind of garden and home they might suit, the type of designs you’ll find in each collection, and which other pieces they pair best with.
First things first, we’ve designed all the styles in our garden collection to feel timeless, considered and versatile. So, although we might describe one as more modern and another as traditional, it’s not to say that the modern piece can’t work in a country cottage setting or that the traditional one is confined to this type of garden. We think that they would all be very happy in any situation. Whether you choose modern or traditional, vintage-inspired or minimal is entirely down to what you’d prefer: harmony or contrast. Likewise, they can all sit companionably together – we’ve simply just picked out the pairings we favour the most.
Our garden furniture collections at a glance
We wanted to make this a definitive guide, which means it’s quite long. So, to help you narrow things down, here’s an at-a-glance idea of which collections might suit you best.
If you’re looking for…
Traditional: Bryher, Boscombe, Canterbury, Chatto, Cheltenham, Harmondsworth, Harrington, and Purbeck
Contemporary: Hayburn, Hove, Pembrey, the Stanway tables and bench, Toulston, and Tresco & Coleton
Neutral: Cayton, Compton, Denham, and the Stanway chair
Simplicity: Denham, the Harmondsworth and Compton sunloungers, Hayburn, Pembrey, Stanway, Toulston and Tresco
Detail: Boscombe, Cheltenham, Harmondsworth and Harrington
Boscombe
In a few words: vintage, delicate and light, a little bit French
Includes: dining tables and chairs (such as the balcony-friendly bistro sets)
Goes well with: Cheltenham and Chatto, which are both very similar in character but offer a contrast in materials.
What makes it special: Boscombe’s tabletop and metal frame finishes are interchangeable, and you can choose any combination of black or pale grey Cobble metal (for the table legs and chairs) and dark grey granite or off-white marble tabletops. Boscombe’s also one of our dining collections with smaller footprints, making it particularly well suited to petite gardens and tucked-away corners.
Bryher
In a few words: refined, smart, quietly traditional, indoors-meets-out
Goes well with: the Tresco coffee table (which is in the same weave colour) and the Cheltenham dining pieces
What makes it special: the way it melds indoor upholstery styles with the practicalities of garden furniture – think teak legs on all-weather wicker, and button-back detailing on weather-resistant, washable cushions.
Canterbury
In a few words: a true classic; simple yet elevated
Includes: a teak bench
Goes well with: being a classic garden bench, Canterbury’s a bit of a lone wolf. But, it will harmonise well with any of our other styles within the same garden.
What makes it special: the wave shape to the backrest slats, which are far more comfortable than straight ones would be, and the detail in the arm rest. This is much more than your basic garden bench.
Cayton
In a few words: understated and graceful
Includes: dining chairs: one armless, one carver
Goes well with: the Pembrey, Stanway and Harmondsworth tables (Cayton’s tan brown weave colour complements the teak finish on these pieces); Compton as an accompanying relaxed seating set
What makes it special: Cayton might be simple and happy to play second fiddle to a more distinctive table style, but we’ve still designed it to be full of arcs that add both elegance and comfort. The curved backrests looks particularly striking grouped around a circular table.
Chatto
In a few words: a bit vintage (Chatto’s made from Lloyd Loom, an early 20th-century classic), elegant and light. A true indoor-outdoor collection.
Includes: a sofa and armchair, and a dining table and chairs
Goes well with: Boscombe; Pembrey (for contrast); indoor pieces such as Northwich, Aldwych and Suffolk in a garden room
What makes it special: the fact that you can have it painted (in our waterproof formula) in any of our colours; also little touches like the plaited detail around the edges of each piece.
Cheltenham
In a few words: smart and crisp and a touch traditional (think Georgian townhouse)
Includes: a sofa, armchair, sunlounger, bench and coffee table, as well dining tables and carver dining chairs
Goes well with: Boscombe and Bryher
What makes it special: the matt, dark grey finish on the metal frames (a slightly subtler take on the usual black); the stepped edge on the tabletop (more elegant, less weighty); and the back detail on the seating (lovely with or without cushions, so it’s nice to look at all year long).
Compton
In a few words: a restrained collection that’ll work anywhere
Includes: relaxed seating – including modular sofa configurations – a sunlounger and a coffee table
Goes well with: Cayton, Hove, Stanway and Pembrey
What makes it special: the rounded edges throughout stop this piece being at all blocky, as do the arc-shaped cut outs at the base. Compton’s star detail though, has to be the storage space under the seats: simply move the cushions and lift up to hide garden essentials out of sight.
Denham
In a few words: a contemporary take on a traditional piece; clean and minimal, relaxed and a little bit coastal (hints of deckchairs and picnics on the beach)
Includes: a campaign-style dining chair which could also work as more relaxed seating
Goes well with: Pembrey is its perfect partner
What makes it special: the fact that it folds up flat, so you can store and transport it easily. The backrest also pivots slightly, so you can recline comfortably.
Harmondsworth
In a few words: fairly traditional with homely farmhouse table character but also real presence. The sunlounger is on the simpler side.
Includes: dining tables and a sunlounger
Goes well with: the Stanway and Cayton seating (with the dining tables); the Pembrey side table (with the sunlounger); and the Compton and Purbeck relaxed seating
What makes it special: the stepped detail in the foot and the diagonal struts in the leg, which make the tables more comfortable to sit around, leaving room for feet and knees, as well as being part of Harmondsworth’s more decorative character.
Harrington
In a few words: undeniably, unashamedly traditional; intricate and full of texture
Includes: a sofa, armchair and footstool; dining chairs (armless and carver styles) and dining tables (including a bistro size)
Goes well with: Chatto (in the same garden, though perhaps not in the same set); the Stanway chairs; and, surprisingly, Hove, for contrast
What makes it special: Harrington’s all about that lattice detail in the weave.
Hayburn
In a few words: contemporary, minimal and sleek
Includes: an armchair, loveseat and sofa
Goes well with: Pembrey, Stanway, Hove, Cayton, Compton and the Harmondsworth sunlounger
What makes it special: Hayburn is our only armless relaxed seating collection, and all pieces are generously wide, making them perfect for piling everyone on in a very laidback way.
Hove
In a few words: modern rustic, minimal, a touch industrial even
Includes: dining and occasional tables
Goes well with: Toulston, Hayburn, Compton and Tresco. Or, for an exciting contrast, Harrington.
What makes it special: the composite stone tabletops, with their crisp edges and surprisingly warm patina; and the contrast with the richly coloured natural timber legs. Then there’s the stepped foot detail that stops Hove from feeling too brutalist and lets it sit easier with more traditional pieces.
Pembrey
In a few words: minimal, clean-lined and definitely contemporary but with a versatile simplicity
Includes: a dining table and bench, modular relaxed seating and occasional tables
Goes well with: quite a lot – Denham, Hayburn, Compton, Chatto, Cayton, Toulston, Tresco, and even Harrington if you’re after an interesting contrast.
What makes it special: Pembrey is utterly unfussy, but still considered. For instance, the legs of the table are set well back from the edge so the bench can easily tuck underneath.
Purbeck
In a few words: generous and comfortable, classic, relaxed
Includes: a sofa and an armchair
Goes well with: Compton, Stanway, Cheltenham, Cayton and Harmondsworth
What makes it special: the high, wrap-around back on both the sofa and armchairs, which makes sitting in Purbeck very cosy. There’s also the loose style of the back cushions, which give it a more relaxed look. Don’t worry though, these are still large and plump so you won’t end up leaning against the weave.
Stanway
In a few words: modern country, unfussy and versatile. The outdoor equivalent of our much-loved Arundel indoor dining collection.
Includes: dining tables, chairs and benches, and a coffee table
Goes well with: just about everything, although we’ll usually pair the table with Toulston (if not the Stanway chairs and benches).
What makes it special: the distinctive A-frame legs that lend it that farmhouse look. There’s also an option of the dining table with a natural bluestone top if you’d like even more texture and detail.
Toulston
In a few words: contemporary, simple, restrained. The more modern equivalent of Cayton.
Includes: a dining chair
Goes well with: Pembrey, Stanway, Hove and Tresco
What makes it special: another one that won’t shout for attention, choose Toulston when you want your dining table to do the talking or you’re a fan of the minimal aesthetic. And again, while Toulston may be simple, it’s still considered in its details, from the comfortable recline and curve of the backrest to the cushion, which has small wooden toggles that attach to loops in the chair’s weave to secure it in place.
Tresco and Coleton
In a few words: modern, substantial, low and laidback
Includes: relaxed seating (and a modular sofa), a coffee table and the Coleton side table
Goes well with: Toulston, Stanway, Hove, Pembrey and Harmondsworth. The side and coffee tables also work well accompanying Bryher.
What makes it special: Tresco has quite a square and solid look about it, but we’ve added in a curve here or there to soften its straight lines and stop it from feeling too heavy.
You can explore and order from our entire garden collection online, or see selected pieces in your nearest store. And if you’d like to find out more about the materials in our garden collection – and which one of these might be right for you – you’ll find our guide to those here.
