The style of the average home has changed over the years. Large old farmhouses had huge front porches, which were an extension of the family living room. The porches were extremely large. Therefore, a lot of outdoor furniture was required. However, most of the furniture used was merely brought from inside. One piece of furniture was a fixture of most families outdoor furniture, that piece of furniture was a rocking chair. In the 18th century, the rocking chair was known as the American chair. The wooden rocker was also a lot more comfortable than the wrought iron furniture of the day.
You do not see nearly as many rocking chairs now as you did back then.
Another very popular piece of outdoor furniture was the porch swing. The porch swing was a relaxing piece of outdoor furniture on a hot summer evening. Remember, there were no air conditioners back in the 1800's.
Wicker outdoor furniture was the next style of furniture that became popular in Victorian times. It was popular because it was fancier than the existing outdoor furniture. Plant stands and many different types of tables were added to the porches of American families. The Victorian style was the more the better. Many families had porches full of outdoor furniture.
In the South, many large homes had Verandas. The porch was larger to support the Veranda. These porches had a lot of large over sized furniture such as wicker or cotton upholstered outdoor furniture. Unfortunately, the weather in the South was not indicative to keeping cotton, upholstered furniture outside. Wrought iron furniture was a popular choice in this era as well. To alleviate the uncomfortable iron, cushions were used on chairs.
In the 1930's, casual outdoor furniture began to appear. Handcrafted wrought iron, cast and tubular aluminum became popular years later. However, comfortable outdoor furniture was desirable to consumers. Lawn chairs became the rage along with straight back chairs as the urban centers became more populated and places to sit outdoors were much smaller in the city.
As the suburbs became a popular place for families, more outdoor furniture was required. This was where the real need for outdoor patio furniture began. People wanted to extend their entertaining outdoors and the need for outdoor furniture grew tremendously. This trend continues to grow today.
More high-tech materials are developed for the construction of outdoor patio furniture, as people want durability, ease of care and strength from their patio furniture. People are spending more and more time outdoors and extending their homes through the concept of outdoor kitchens and rooms. Entertaining at home has made it necessary to have a variety of types of outdoor furniture available. People own hot tubs, swimming pools and many more outdoor toys, which require specific outdoor furniture. As the people demand it, outdoor patio furniture will continue to evolve into stylish pieces they can use everyday.
