Have you ever been getting your teeth cleaned by a dental hygienist who loved to talk?  I guess that seems like a strange question, but that is what brought this topic to mind for me.  I was in for my regular visit and the lady cleaning my teeth was almost bouncing off of the walls with excitement over the amazing discounted prices she paid for some outdoor dining furniture.  She talked and talked as I grunted in agreement and tried not to drool on myself.

OK.  I guess that makes her sound a little bit crazy.  To be fair, she had been searching for some patio dining furniture for weeks and said that she was getting really frustrated by the high prices she found everywhere she went.  It was either decent quality tables, chairs and complete sets with very high price tags or affordable junk that was not worth bothering with because it would fall apart within a couple of seasons of even light outdoor use.  What happened was that she was present when the manager told the people in charge of the home and garden section of a major retailer to mark all of the outdoor furniture down immediately.  I think she said a delivery was coming in earlier than expected and they needed the room.  She lucked in to a mark down of 75% and nobody else knew about it!  Part of the reason she was so excited that day was that she had bought a ton of discounted outdoor furniture and her husband was making multiple trips to pick it up that very day.  She bought way more than she needed, but she could probably re-sell any extra at half off its original price and end up with what would essentially be free outdoor dining patio furniture.  That is a pretty sweet (and rare) deal.

For the longest time, we had second hand furniture pretty much everywhere.  Indoors, outdoors, you name it and someone owned it before we did.  I think for individuals or couples just starting out, this is usually a pretty good idea because especially for newlywed couples, there are so many other things to spend your money on.  Once you have moved on a bit though, buying some decent outdoor furnishings can really spruce up the way things look outside your house.   Having complete sets that actually match gives a much different perception than a jumble of mixed and matched hand me down pieces.  That formula tends to end up looking like a cluttered mess.

Most people do not ever just fall in to a deal like that.  Her timing was fortunate and perfect.  Obviously, the selection was already picked over just by the time she left.  You can use the same basic idea though if you decide to purchase furniture for your patio or deck.  Cheap outdoor furniture does not stay around very long.
photo credit: whistler1984

There are all kinds of little things you can spend your money on around your house and the wide open spaces of your yard, patio or deck can make even a complete set look small. It has been my experience that buying a better quality product that is built to last is usually a much better strategy than going for low quality merchandise just to save fifty bucks at the time of purchase.

Outdoor dining furniture has to be able to withstand the elements.  Furnishings made from higher quality materials will do a much better job of holding up and continuing to look good.  If you do not have an area to store these items over the winter, you should at least consider investing in some outdoor furniture covers.  Storing everything inside the house or a shed is a better option, but not everyone can afford to purchase  a shed, and bringing in furniture can be a major hassle if your home is on the small or cramped side.  If you have cushions, outdoor settings in the winter should really be avoided if there is any possible way that you can bring them out of the cold.  I usually wrap mine up in large garbage bags after I have cleaned them and let them dry.  At that point, I store them in the shed.  I personally have never had any problems with this method, but read all of the instructions that come with your purchase.

If you can somehow manage to get yourself to an end of the summer season sale like the one I described above, by all means, do it.  These really do get picked over extremely quickly though.  Checking online for special sales is also a great idea.  They tend to have a larger selection in my experience that isn't depleted quite as quickly.  If you do find a sale, make the most of it.