Are you planning an impromptu garden party?
Perhaps you don't have a patio?
Maybe you want the option to relax in the sunniest spot in your garden?
You’d love to place a few outdoor chairs on your well-tended lawn...
...but should you?
Should I put my patio furniture on the lawn?
Yes! You can use garden furniture on grass - but make sure to take note of the following three important points...
1. Protect your garden furniture
Grass, especially in the UK, is damp and holds the rain and dew. You may have invested a tidy sum in your stylish patio furniture so will want to be aware of how this moisture increases the risk of rot, rust, and damage such as splitting. Garden furniture made of wood, natural rattan, or metal (other than aluminium which does not rust) is particularly susceptible. Plus, narrow-legged outdoor furniture will sink into any lawn (however firm it may appear) leaving your table leg languishing in its own muddy waterhole and exacerbating the issue further.
Rubber stops or plastic caps for the feet of tables and chairs are available cheaply online and provide good protection. If you are a dab hand at DIY, painting the feet of wooden furniture with epoxy resin will also create a protective layer. I like using individual paving slabs under the legs of the table or bench to lift them off and out of the wet grass. This isn’t practical for chairs though, which, of course, must be movable.
It has been suggested that using the bottoms of plastic bottles as little shoes for your chair legs will stop them from sinking into the grass whilst still allowing them to slide across it when required. I’m not entirely convinced of the overall aesthetic created, but it is certainly an innovative way to reuse those plastic bottles! Please do send me a picture if you’ve tried this out and it’s worked.
2. Preserve your lovely lawn
Naturally, when you cover your grass and restrict the light it receives, it will slowly die off. Moving the outdoor furniture regularly (at least once a week) will help prevent the tell-tale yellowing patches. There’s not much you can do about the trail of sinkholes from chair legs however – other than choose furniture with a wider base in the first place!
Whether this is a big issue will depend on how much of your time, care, and attention has gone into your grass. If you treat it with a little TLC, ultimately the lawn should be fine, or at least recover quickly.
3. Look after your guests
You might think your lawn is firm and level but when a guest is sitting in a chair on it, they’ll likely feel somewhat at sea. It’s difficult to relax when your chair is tilting and you’re on the wonk!
If you’d like to avoid tipping up your guests – or having to wobble them out of a chair that has got itself stuck in the lawn – I’d recommend adding some wide feet to your chairs. There are various options online but I’d recommend going for as robust as possible - otherwise the chair leg pushes through the bottom and you are back where you started. You could even slice a few old tennis balls in half to wedge over the end of each leg.
Image: when serving drinks and snacks on the lawn you need a flat, even, untippable table. A cube-shaped waterproof garden pouffe is the expert's solution. It looks great too!
If you are hosting an event, the best solution for your guests will be to put down temporary flooring or decking tiles - it saves their shoes from the possible mud too. Nowadays it’s possible to find options that protect your grass too.
You could worry about all of the above… or you could choose outdoor bean bag furniture instead!
What is the best garden furniture to use on grass?
If you want the option of using your outdoor furniture regularly on grass then you need to choose it carefully. It must be:
1. Lightweight - to keep your grass growing green and even, you need to move your furniture around often. If it's light this is easy and simple to do.
2. Broad-based - garden furniture with a flat wide bottom spreads its weight over a larger area, helping to prevent damage to your lawn, and holes or sunken spots developing.
3. Water-resistant and rot-proof - grass is invariably damp; even on dry summer days, morning dew will rot patio furniture unless it can withstand wet conditions.
4. Easy to clean - on grass, your outdoor furniture is more likely to get muddy, and, if placed near trees, covered in leaves and bird droppings. Being simple to clean is essential.
5. Wobble-free - no-one likes a wonky table, and it's sitting on a wobbly chair is worse. Even the best-kept lawns are unlikely to be completely flat so your outdoor furniture must be forgiving of uneven surfaces.
At Armadillo Sun we work hard to create the most comfortable, most versatile, best-looking garden furniture for our customers. All our furniture is made from stain-resistant, rot-free fabric and filled with lightweight waterproof beans.
Outdoor bean bags, cushioned sun loungers, and fabric garden sofas are perfect for use on grass - and gravel too.
Image: a luxury outdoor bean bag chair works beautifully on gravel as well as grass. There are no chair legs to worry about getting stuck in the gravel. Plus, Armadillo Sun furniture is made from industry-recognised fabric that will withstand the wear from gravel or shingle.
Whether you’re looking for a sun lounger or a garden sofa, bean-filled outdoor furniture will not sink into the lawn. Plus, it is so light you can pick it up and chase the sunshine around the garden. The fabric doesn’t rot if it gets wet and it can be wiped clean (or jet-washed!).
If you stick a few hooks on a wall, you can hang bean bag chairs up by their handles when you're not using them and give your lawn a breather.
Bean bag furniture looks and feels amazing, and creates a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere for your outdoor space.
Image: a navy palm-patterned bean bag chair is a wonderfully relaxing place to sit, recline, and read. Move the chair to the perfect spot in the sunshine or shade - it can be placed comfortably on the lawn without any risk of tipping over or leaving holes and divots in the grass. Add a device stand for your iPad or phone and you have the perfect set-up to listen to a podcast or audiobook. (Image credit: JP's Life and Loves Blog)
Armadillo Sun makes premium luxury garden furniture from a converted barn in the Kent countryside. Founder Caroline Lomax discovered the high-quality, durable fabric she uses to make all her furniture when on holiday in the USA. She wanted to recreate the fuss-free, laidback, outdoor living she saw on her travels, and Armadillo Sun was born.