So you’re finally ready to get a patio installed, and outfit it with the latest in patio fashions.  With all the choices of colors, materials and styles on the market, it’s easy to forget about safety measures, especially when it comes to your flooring. 

Depending on the type of floor material you choose, it’s a good idea to test it for traction control.  Some materials, like porous or glazed tile and stone, can become very slippery when wet.  You might love the rich, elegant look of stone, but if it’s sometimes dangerous to walk on, it might not be the best choice for an outdoor application. 

When it comes to brick, it’s a good idea to choose one with a bit of texture, to provide stability if it gets wet.  The same goes for concrete.  Certain finishes can look wonderfully smooth and shiny when dry, but when wet can turn into the traction equivalent of an ice skating rink.  

Outdoor rugs are another choice to add interest to your patio.  They’re stylish, and they help define different seating areas.  If you choose one of these, make sure it’s secured to the flooring beneath it, or it’s anchored firmly under heavy patio furniture, so there’s no chance of it sliding.  

So for your outdoor living space, where rain and inclement weather are factors, it’s best to consider a safe, low-maintenance flooring choice.

Imagine you’ve got the steak grilled to perfection, your corn on the cob has been buttered, and your cold drink freshly poured.  You’re about to sit down to this feast, when you pull your patio chair in and owwww…you smash your fingers on the side of the table.  Either the table’s too low or the chair is too high.  Whatever it is, it hurts! 

Ever do that?  It’s probably time to ditch the patio chairs from your first apartment.  The ones you bought on sale, because they were a god-awful color.  They never quite fit with the landscape, anyway.  But they tell a story, you say?  Let them tell it to someone else.   

Get chairs that actually fit under the table.  What a novel idea.  That way a) you can actually enjoy eating the meal in front of you if you have unlimited use of your fingers and b) you don’t have to come up with a ridiculous story about how your fingers got smashed.  Of course, no one wants to hear that you caught them in the viselike grip of your patio table.  You’ll have to do better than that.  Perhaps you could include a reference to an F-15 fighter jet. 
 

When’s the last time you’ve been in a hammock?  I don’t mean the last time you sat in one with your feet on the ground.  I mean, really relaxed in one. It seems that they have stress-erasing abilities not found in many other pieces of furniture.  Just try one.  When you settle into it, you’ll see.  You’ll find yourself gently swaying, as the twisted rope or nylon of the hammock molds to your body as if it were made just for you.  The slow movement lulls you into submission, as you notice your surroundings like never before.   

Birds chirping?  Tranquil breezes blowing?  Blue, cloudless sky?  Were those things there a minute ago, you wonder?  Yes, but it sometimes takes a hammock to realize it.  They’re like magic.  They make you feel like you’re on a trip when you’re in your own backyard.  It’s hard to be irritable when you’re whiling away your afternoon in the serenity of a hammock (once you can master the art of getting into one). 

Think of the money you’ll save, too.  Instead of stressing out at the airport or driving to a vacation destination, you can kick back with a juicy novel and a refreshing drink, and transport yourself to the location of your choice, no matter where it is.  And just think, indoor plumbing is just steps away. 

Living in an apartment comes with its own set of challenges, lack of privacy among them.  You’ll know your neighbors in a way few others ever will, thanks to that off-key rendition of the entire West Side Story soundtrack traveling through your paper-thin walls.   

Sometimes there’s little you can do, and few places you can go to hear yourself think.

Depending on which room you’re in, you’re exposed to a different auditory experience.  In your kitchen, you hear your Broadway hopeful to the east, and in your bedroom, you hear your Riverdancer to the north.  

If you have a balcony, you’re in luck.  You can step out onto your piece of serenity (and sanity), slide the door closed behind you, hang a tuned wind chime and let the tinkling sounds be the only sound you hear in your corner of the world. 

Just because you don’t have a lot of real estate, it doesn’t mean you can’t set up your balcony as your own private oasis.  A small bistro set can fit on the tiniest balcony, and provide an inviting place to relax.  Consider folding patio furniture for a versatile solution. I guess there is truth to the adage “good things come in small packages”.