Trends - Outdoor Looks to Get for 2011

We thought there were some really exciting trends at this year's Casual Living Show.  The two that excited us most were slip-cover outdoor furniture and petite scaled furnishings.  The other unmistakable design trends were high back chairs and sectionals, lounge seating groups and rounded and curved shapes.

Slip-cover Furniture
The first thing we saw at the show was this impressive line of slip covered outdoor furnishings from Lee Industries (the first three thumbnails below).  Lee has been making interior furnishings for years and they thankfully decided to enter the outdoor furnishings market.  You can't tell by looking, feeling or sitting on this line that it is all intended for the outdoors.  This line truly does blur the line between the indoors and outdoors.

The second line of slip covered furniture we saw was from Outback (last thumbnail on the right).  This contemporary line of furniture has Textilene® covers that zipper on and off.  The particularly nice thing about this line is the use of the Textilene.  Textilene is a tightly woven poly product that is really light in weight and to the touch and is very breathable.  The nature of the fabric makes these slip-covers really tight on the frame so these chairs look upholstered.

Petite Scaled Furniture
We were delighted to see several lines with a delicate, petite scale.  Outdoor furniture has a tendency to be large and over scaled - likely because the furnishings need to fill very large spaces.  It was so refreshing to see such thin silhouettes and dainty groupings.  We all agreed that we believe this is a response to the ever growing number of residents whose outdoor living takes place on the small footprint of a balcony.

High Backed Furniture
We saw lots of furniture, especially sectionals, with very high backs.  The look is very interesting because it adds a lot of height to your outdoor space.  We also agreed that we believe this is a response to privacy needs in outdoor spaces. This example from Source Outdoor is an interesting all-in-one solution.

Lounge Seating
We saw lots of really amazing lounge seating furniture groups.  We believe this is the influence of the commercial markets on residential outdoor living.  Restaurants and hotels have been using this style of seating in their outdoor areas for many years and it is now available for homeowners.  These groupings came in full table height styles and a lower lounge height that is very reminiscent of nightclub seating.  I really liked the intimate and cozy feeling of these groupings and the fact that you can stuff a bunch of people around the table.  Perfect for entertaining! Many of these groupings push together into interesting shapes when not in use and this makes for great visual interest.

Rounded and Curved Shapes
The other thing we saw a lot of at the show were rounded and curved shapes.  From ottomans to chairs to sofas and from contemporary design styles to retro throw-backs.  Lots of sensual art deco and Hollywood regency shapes for a very dramatic statement in your outdoor space. Here's an example from Outback.