This post is written in collaboration with At Home. I love their stores and think you will too! All opinions and words about their cute decor are my own.
OUTDOOR DECORATING TIP 1: BEFORE PURCHASING OUTDOOR FURNITURE, TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION YOUR SETTING, YOUR PHYSICAL SPACE, YOUR GOALS FOR THE AREA, AND YOUR BUDGET.
Measuring your designated outdoor area before heading to the store is always a good idea! By doing so, you’ll have a general idea of what furniture will best work in your space. Bring your tape measure with you to the store and measure the display furniture to see what might work best!
Here are a few other questions to ask yourself before heading to the store:
- Does my outdoor setting lend itself to a more traditional, modern, boho, or farmhouse look? Which look best fits what I want to convey in the space?
- Do I need the new furnishings to match or blend with existing furnishings?
- How do I see myself using this space?
- Do I need a separate dining area and sitting area?
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How much am I willing to spend on this space?
In our home, we are blessed to have several outdoor areas to enjoy. Last summer, we tackled decorating our main patio and love spending time out there as a family; however, during the hot summer months the heat at certain times of the day is unpleasant. We considered building a pergola over part of our patio to add some shade, but instead opted to utilize the shady deck attached to our shed/barn. This is a very rustic space that has gone previously unused, but I knew it had potential to be cute and functional!
My goal for this space was to create a beautiful seating area that complemented our bucolic views and matched our existing patio furniture. At Home offers several beautifully curated collections of patio furniture to choose from, and I was thrilled to find the Weston II Outdoor Sectional. The sectional can be customized in size and shape depending on the pieces you choose.
OUTDOOR DECORATING TIP 2: CHOOSE A COHESIVE COLOR PALETTE FOR YOUR OUTDOOR ACCESSORIES. -
One of my best decorating tips for beginners is to use a simple color palette! By choosing just a few colors to work with you will be able to pull off an effortlessly polished and pulled together space. The nice thing about shopping at At Home is that they have done a lot of the hard work for you by creating aisles of beautifully curated products to choose from! All you have to do is walk down the aisles of the styles that appeal to you and see at a glance what works together.
I used our rust-red barn to set the tone for my color palette and then chose the 5′ x 8′ Lowottawa Indoor/Outdoor Rug as my inspiration object. From there, I literally walked around the store with rug in hand to see what I thought looked best! The Poly Farm Green Stripe Pillows with faux leather handles were too cute to pass up and looked great with the Wessex Azure Button Pillows. For a little added texture, I picked up the macrame lumbar pillow to complete the look on the sectional. 
OUTDOOR DECORATING TIP 3: DON’T BE SCARED TO THINK OUTSIDE OF THE BOX WHEN CHOOSING OUTDOOR ACCESSORIES!I absolutely loved the Resin Faux Bois Vase, but I needed an end table for this space and not a vase. I thought about flipping the vase upside down to create an end table, but it wasn’t ideal. I then found this round wood tray that fits perfectly on top of several planters. I popped the tray on top of the vase to create the perfect end table!
Speaking of cute trays, if your outdoor coffee table is a cushioned ottoman like mine, consider purchasing a large tray to sit drinks and snacks. My Large Distressed Tray from At Home is the perfect perch for drinks on a warm day! (p.s. The cute melamine pitcher and glasses are also finds from At Home!)
We store our patio cushions and outdoor toss pillows during inclement weather and I use this Grass Tote to quickly carry the toss pillows to the shed. It looks cute left out as an accessory next to the Number 2 planter!
OUTDOOR DECORATING TIP 4: ADD OUTDOOR LIGHTING FOR EVENING AMBIANCE!Outdoor lighting has come a long way in recent years and there are so many great options to choose from. I was thrilled to find these Solar Edison Bulb String Lights which do not require an outlet and come on automatically when dark!
The light they emit is not as bright as some other outdoor lighting options, but they do create a beautiful glow! 
I hope these outdoor decorating tips inspire you to spruce up your own outdoor space this season! I encourage you to visit your local At Home for more inspiration!
