AN EXPERT’S GUIDE TO MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR OUTDOOR SPACE THIS AUTUMN

To help with the shift, there are some key things you should do to prepare your garden for the winter season, allowing you to use the space to its best throughout the colder months.

We’ve teamed up with Sue @noplacelikehomeinteriors whose home renovation and dreamy riverside setting never fails to inspire, to bring you some top tips on embracing your outside space as the nights draw in.

As Autumn approaches, it’s a great time to make seasonal changes. We often look to the colder season as a time to retreat indoors and hibernate but after the last couple of years many of us learnt to appreciate our outdoor spaces with a renewed focus. We’ve had more time to nurture our gardens and create spaces that take all that we enjoy indoors, outdoors too. Gardens are now a true extension of the home, a place for eating, working, drinking and relaxing.

With covered zones using contemporary aluminium pergolas, we can enjoy our outside spaces for longer and create cosy living spaces, shielded from the elements. With the added bonus of opening roof louvers for when the sun makes an appearance. Weatherproof louvered roofs and optional deluxe side screens establish an outdoor room, ready to use whatever the weather. There’s nothing better than being outside, surrounded by nature in all seasons.

By adding garden lighting such as lanterns, festoons or candles not only for the darker evenings but for ambience and illuminating areas of interest. Scented candles shouldn’t be confined to indoors either, use warming scents such as spiced pumpkin. Layer cosy blankets, knits and sink in cushions for comfort and warmth of an evening. There’s nothing quite Iike sitting alfresco and keeping the chill off with warm blankets and appreciating the night sky.

To really make the most of your outdoor space, look to garden furniture and structures that feels like a natural fit with your home and style. The less it feels like a compromise, the more you’ll enjoy using them. We prefer minimal, contemporary easy-to-live with shapes that let the soft furnishings do the talking inside and out. Always look for weatherproof fabrics so you don’t have to worry about covering up or taking your outdoor cushions inside everyday. Low maintenance is key and gives you all the more time to spend time outdoors with friends and family.