Chances are, if you just recently moved into your new condo, as I did, you were buzzing over furnishing the inside and likely didn't think as much about that funky outdoor space. Your balcony is a huge selling feature and, for our too-brief Canadian summers, makes up an integral part of your living area. So you want to furnish for comfort, style and useability.
The bummer news: like some condo units, balconies can be pretty teeny. Just as you may have fallen in love with that four-poster king-size bed only to realize it wouldn't half fit into your nine-by-nine-ft. master bedroom, reality dictates that that huge veranda swing on sale just can't be squeezed onto your balcony.
Weight is also a consideration. Check with your property manager if your building has restrictions.
But all is not lost. The good news is, just as many furniture stores have recognized that indoor urban spaces require condo-scale furniture, so too are outdoor furniture designers now coming up with space-conscious designs. Know how much space you're starting with and bring your tape measure to the home and garden centre with you.
But aside from the big (or small) issue of size, condo dwellers have other considerations to ponder. Such as: how likely is your furniture to get airborne?
No, seriously.
Being a suburban house dweller up until my recent move, I hadn't considered that, even on a relatively calm day at ground level, winds can be gusty up in a high-rise. So imagine my shock and horror when, after shelling out for a swanky Mandalay patio furniture set from Canadian Tire, I awoke one morning to find one of the brand new green cushions gone.
After a moment of panic and a vain search of the balcony (but, really, how many places can a cushion hide?), I realized that, despite the calm winds the night before, the cushion had clearly taken flight as I slept.
Thankfully, a quick run through the neighborhood (in my PJ's, no less) turned up the rogue cushion about four blocks away. It was a bit dirty (and if it could talk, probably a bit traumatized) but otherwise fine.
Lesson learned: if your patio cushions do not come with any sort of ties to affix them to your furniture, find an alternate way to secure them.
