Outdoor dining in Australia has basically lost its seasonal appeal. Your average covered alfresco area in coastal and temperate areas is used pretty much all year round and most people will still serve breakfast and dinner on their uncovered patio, no matter the time of year. Now, that shift in usage patterns is making that initial first impression, that is, how something looks in the product photo, a pretty poor guide for whether it’ll actually meet your needs. The thing is, the questions that most people don’t bother to ask before buying are the ones that really matter well after the furniture is in daily use.
The Ergonomic Gap That Catches Buyers Off Guard
The thing people don’t think about is that the comfort of dining really depends on a specific relationship between the height of your chair and your table. Most standard outdoor dining tables are about 75cm off the ground, and most standard dining chairs have a seat about 45cm from the ground. That leaves a 30cm gap that lets you sit with your arms on the table at a comfortable height. That’s a pretty standard setting but wicker outdoor dining sets can vary a lot in seat height depending on the manufacturer and armchairs add another variable, the height of the armrest. Some wicker armchairs have an armrest that’s at the exact same level as the table, which means the chair can’t pull up close to the table, which is pretty annoying. That’s a crucial dimension you can’t get an idea of from a product photo, which is why it’s worth asking about before committing to a particular armchair-style dining setting.
One practical solution is to have a bench seat to go with wicker chairs; a bench is inherently lower-profile, takes up less space and allows you to have more people seated without the need for individual chairs, which is a win-win all round.
Table Materials: The Decision That Makes Maintenance a Breeze or a Nightmare
You might be surprised, but the actual material of the table in a wicker outdoor dining set is almost never actually wicker. And the choice of material has some pretty significant implications that last way longer than just the initial visual appeal.
Tempered safety glass tabletops are the most common option and, let’s face it, they’re really easy to clean and pretty resistant to most stains. But they can be a bit annoying in direct sunlight; they glare and can get really hot on the surface. But some frosted or etched glass reduces both of those problems without losing the lightness and sense of airiness that makes glass so appealing in an outdoor setting.
Sintered stone and concrete-look composite tabletops are a more durable option than glass; they can withstand all sorts of things like sunscreen, food acids, wine staining, basically anything that you might spill or drizzle on the table. They don’t fade in the sun and can withstand the odd knock without getting damaged. The downside is they’re pretty heavy, which means they’re not ideal for settings that get repositioned a lot.
Aluminium tabletops are the lightest option and won’t rust or corrode, which makes them perfect for coastal areas where the air is full of salt. The only downside is they can get really hot in the sun, which is not ideal if you’re eating on them in the full sun without any shade.
Stackable vs. Non-Stackable: Storage Consideration Ignored by Buyers
Where there is no designated storage for furniture outside of the winter period, the ability to stack dining chairs is an important quality that most buyers tend to underestimate until it comes up as a necessity.
Wicker dining chairs that can be stacked will have a slightly more compact design than their counterparts that cannot be stacked, since nesting means that one chair must fit into the other one and therefore not exert any additional stress on the weaving structure. For most adults, there is little difference in terms of comfort provided by the two types of wicker dining chairs.
Choices of Colour and Finish Which Will Stand the Test of Time
Weave colour and cushion cover colour are the main aesthetic choices that buyers tend to make based on their personal preference without thinking of how this choice would affect the appearance of the product in the long run and how it interacts with staining caused by using the wicker furniture outdoors.
Weaves of neutral colours like natural, stone, grey and charcoal are more resistant to changes in the outdoor environment and do not distract from the landscape of the garden or patio. They are more relevant over time and allow planting, architecture and views to dominate the scenery.
Cushions should be in a dark colour or a colour pattern that absorbs stains from sunscreen and food as a result of using the furniture outside. In this case, lighter coloured cushions require constant cleaning, which is not realistic in terms of outdoor furniture used daily.
The wicker outdoor dining set that will earn its place in a house is not the one which photographs the best. It is the one which functions well after 8 years of use as well as after the first year, due to the fact that it was chosen carefully and made to last.
