See our patio outdoor furniture set up and our Chatham outdoor furniture review to see if we think it was worth the splurge!
When the pandemic hit and retailers started getting worried, I had a large patio to furnish. And if there was any sunlight in 2020, it might have been the sales all the stores rolled out in the spring when they were worried about consumer spending. That’s the year we bought our Chatham outdoor patio set and began building the patio of our dreams.
Outdoor patio set up
When we redesigned, renovated and rebuilt our barn we added on a large patio space for our backyard where we could entertain family and friends. It’s stamped concrete and really a space that I love. It’s perfect for the spring, summer and fall and so nice to have with all our birthdays in the summer.
But furnishing it became somewhat of an issue because it’s so large. I decided to split it into two. On one side we have two dining tables for outdoor eating, which you can read more about {HERE}, and on the other side we have the outdoor patio set up with the Chatham outdoor furniture.
I’m going to show you our outdoor patio set up, but also give you a Chatham outdoor furniture review. Since the set is from Pottery Barn, it is more of a splurge purchase. However, if you can find a good sale like during the middle of the season (or the 70 percent off I got during pandemic panicking), that’s when I would suggest snapping it up.
Chatham outdoor furniture review
Flexibility of the Chatham outdoor furniture set
When I decided to buy the Chatham outdoor furniture, I purchased the standard 6 piece set up that included 6-Piece Sectional includes: 1 Right-Arm Chair, 1 Left-Arm Chair, 1 Corner Chair and 3 Armless Chairs. You can view the whole 6-piece set {HERE}. You can view a slightly smaller 4-piece set {HERE}.
I then added additional armless chairs to make the sectional larger. I love that the Chatham outdoor furniture set has this option. While I recognize most people do not need a set as large as our’s, I do love the flexibility this allows. You can even buy the smaller sets, like the 4-piece set and buy an additional chair if you just want to make it a bit larger.
Finish on the Chatham outdoor furniture set
The Chatham outdoor furniture set offers two finishes; grey and honey. I chose the honey finish because I like the classic look. I think it is a finish that will always be in style. It also works well with the white siding on the barn and out black roof. I felt that the grey finish would get lost in the space and love the nice contrast this provides.
Sunbrella Cushions
So, when I picked the cushions for the Chatham outdoor furniture set, I took a big gamble. I went with white, which I believe is their “natural” color. It’s essentially bright white and we live on a farm. With dogs. And children.
This color gets dirty. I’ve tried to keep the dogs off of it, but Bailey loves to lay on it and sunbathe in the summer. Plus, we just get dirt on it from general weather and wind.
However, the Sunbrella Cushions on the Chatham outdoor furniture set have proven easy to clean. None of the dirt or mud has stained them yet and I usually just use the hose to wash them down. We’ve had the set for two summers now so I feel like I can safety say good things about having this light color even with some dirty, little babies running around.
One other thing I love about the cushions is that they came already put together. The foam was inside the cushion pillowcase. That might not seem like a big deal but that was not the case with our dining sets and it took some
Can you relax here?
I have to say, the Chatham outdoor furniture set is comfortable! I was a bit surprise because I expected it to be stiff right out of the box. However, the set it pretty comfy to lounge in right away.
The cushions in the set have also held up well. We’ve had it for two summers now and so far, we don’t have any sagging cushions from people sitting there.
Overall quality
If I had to make the decision to buy the Chatham outdoor furniture set again, would I? The short answer is yes, I would.
Overall, I don’t think the quality of furniture I’ve seen in other stores is the same. This is very high-quality outdoor furniture – as it should be for the price. It’s solid wood and the color of the wood hasn’t really faded over the last two seasons. It’s study and between that and it’s flexibility I believe it to be a good buy.
We do store the cushions inside in the winter and cover the wood outdoors, but other than that, we haven’t needed to do any additional maintenance. We haven’t even put additional varnish on the set.
Now, I will tell you if I hadn’t gotten this set on sale, I would have started smaller and maybe gotten the 4-piece set. Then I would have added to it over time. If this is a set you want but the larger sets are too much right now, consider that strategy.
Additional pieces
Since the patio set was on sale when I bought it, I also bought two chairs from the Chatham outdoor furniture set that face it. They have the same finish and same cushions as the rest of the set. You can find them {HERE}.
The coffee table in our set up is a DIY. You can find all the instructions for it {HERE}.
The pillows are a from Target and Pottery Barn. I’m a big fan of blue so I used a classic blue stripe to give the space some color. Then I used natural fiber pillows to tie in the woods and the whites.
Round pillow with fridge {HERE}
Stripe blue and white pillow {HERE}
Natural Fiber square {HERE}
You can find the information on the planters in this post {HERE}.
Thank you so much for following along today, friends. I hope you enjoyed this Chatham outdoor furniture review and that even if you decide to go another direction, this review and the photos inspires you.
The task of finding the right furniture to go in this house has been so overwhelming. Thank you for reviews like this. They make things so much easier.