Tips For Storing Patio Furniture In Winter
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Tips For Storing Patio Furniture In Winter

While you are busy enjoying plenty of summer nights hanging out with your friends and family, lounging on your patio furniture, it might be difficult to start thinking about storing your patio furniture in winter, when the temperature begins to cool. However, ensuring that you properly care for your furniture during winter can help them to last for a longer time. Below are some useful tips to remember:

Give Your Patio Furniture A Little TLC

Remember to clean up your furniture before putting them away. Depending on the material, any dirt, food, or mud left on them could turn into mildew or mold. It is also important to check your furniture surfaces for any signs of rust or oxidation. Treat rusted areas with a rust-neutralizing primer, followed by steel wool (if required) and spray paint it with a matching color. Using a silicone sealant would be able to provide your furniture with added protection.

  • Plastic Furniture – colder temperatures may cause plastic pieces to crack. Clean them up with dish soap and water then air-dry them before keeping them in before it begins to snow.
  • Aluminum or Metal Furniture – Snow and freezing rain can cause such patio furniture to rust and weaken. Clean the surface with detergent and water, touch-up any areas with spray paint if required, and finish it off with a thin coat of car wax to give it added protection.
  • Wicker Furniture – use a brush and dip it with a mixture of bleach and water to rid your wicker of mildew. Gently rinse and allow it to dry off before repainting areas that need some extra attention. Use moisture repellant on the legs of chairs and tables.
  • Umbrellas – Again, use a brush and detergent to clean your umbrella before allowing it to dry off in the open position. Lubricate pivots, switches, and locks before closing it and wrapping it in a plastic drop cloth and taping it up. Put it away in a waterproof area. This will help to protect your umbrella from mold or mildew.

Wrap It Up or Store It Away

Once you have completed maintenance on your patio furniture, the most important thing is to ensure that your furniture is either put away in a storage shed or protected by a tarp. Some manufacturers may even be able to provide custom-made patio furniture covers. Lastly, place a wooden plank on the ground and ensure your furniture’s legs are on it to allow air to circulate.

Patio Furniture Covers Available at Creative Covers

Creative Covers specializes in providing our customers with custom products since 1998. Rest assured that we are committed to providing you with excellent customized products such as covers for your patio furniture, grills, and other furniture. All customized items are handcrafted in the USA, designed according to your choice of color and style, in durable and high-quality material.

If you are considering a customized cover for your patio furniture, check out our guide to ordering your creative cover and contact us for a free quotation today.

Protecting Patio Furniture And Covers Against The Wind
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Protecting Patio Furniture And Covers Against The Wind

It can be frustrating when a sudden gust of wind blows your patio furniture and covers away; especially when you end up spending mornings chasing after them repeatedly. Your time can be better spent doing other things instead of repeatedly performing unnecessary tasks like these. Although there are many solutions available for consideration, here are some simple hacks for you to employ as a quick fix instead!

Add Barriers to Block the Wind

Install windbreaks which can help to redirect the wind flow to prevent your furniture from blowing away. Living screens such as trees and shrubs, bamboo screens, and trellises are easy and effective windbreakers which can either help to buffer or block off wind from reaching your patio furniture.

Although living screens are a natural and beautiful method, this would only work if you are prepared to maintain them in the long run. Trellises may not be as cost-effective, but they are extremely low maintenance.

Using Patio Furniture Covers

Although patio furniture covers are meant to protect your furniture in winter, using a cover can help to ensure that the wind is unable to catch onto your furniture’s broad side by completely covering your furniture. However, this method is not a hundred percent effective. If the wind is simply too strong, or your patio furniture has an awkward shape, even a cover may not be as effective as you hope it to be.

Using Anchors

For a simple and quick fix, consider securing your patio furniture with deck down anchors. These anchors can fasten your furniture legs onto the surface of your deck. They are easy to install and affordable. Do bear in mind, however, that these anchors will only work on decks that have wooden slats. If your patio is made of concrete or has a solid flooring, you would not be able to employ this method. In addition, anchors work best if you do not usually shift your furniture around or you may find it quite a hassle to unfasten and refasten them each time.

Using Sandbags or Weights

If you are looking for an option which does not require much upkeep and your patio is not a wooden deck, a quick and cheap method would be to simply fill a sandbag and place them on your furniture legs.

If you are looking for a more aesthetically pleasing option, consider buying patio furniture weights. They are basically the same as sandbags, just a little better packaged. Some may even fit around the leg of your furniture.

Get Your Patio Furniture Cover Custom-Made at Creative Covers

Established in 1998, Creative Covers has been committed to providing our customers with high-quality and durable products. All our covers are proudly handcrafted in the USA, designed according to your choice in style and color. If you would like a tailored cover that fits your patio furniture perfectly, check out our guide on how to order and contact us if you have any questions. We welcome the opportunity to serve you.

Is Reupholstery Or A Slipcover The Best Choice For Your Sofa?
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Is Reupholstery Or A Slipcover The Best Choice For Your Sofa?

When it comes to repurposing a piece of furniture or revamping it, you will find that there are usually two options available for you to choose from: reupholstery or slipcovers. Both methods can allow you to change the style of your furniture, giving you a fresh and beautiful new piece. Both custom slipcovers and reupholstery are also environmentally friendly because repurposing your pieces is akin to recycling!

Considering its similarities, you might be wondering what are the differences and how can you decide which option is most suitable for you? Below are some key points to take note of before making your decision.

What is Reupholstery?

A professional reupholstery for your furniture can give your aging pieces a new life, however its process requires you to bring the furniture to a shop to be reworked. All padding and old fabric to be removed, then re-padded with cotton, followed by an application of new fabrics to the frame. Loose cushions will be given zippered covers.

This will result in a sharp, tailored, and seemingly brand-new piece of furniture. However, due to the amount of detail and work required, this option will be more costly compared to a slipcover.

What is a Slipcover?

Slipcovers are designed to cover the current fabric of your furniture. It may be designed to fit tightly, resembling a piece of furniture that has undergone reupholstery. It may also be designed to fit loosely, giving your furniture a more rustic look.

Slipcovers are usually cut out during the first visit, then installed during the next visit after the cover has been refined.

How Do I Decide Which is Best for Me?

Considering the time, effort, and cost of reupholstering a piece, it is generally recommended to choose this option when you have a piece of furniture that is high-quality and holds sentimental value to you (e.g. inherited pieces). Even if a part of the furniture may be broken, you can choose to reupholster it instead of replacing it.

While slipcovers may not give you the same crisp, tailored look of an upholstered furniture but they can be removed for maintenance (e.g. dry cleaning or washing them). Having a slipcover also means that your sofa can now alternate between two looks. For instance, a light-colored look during spring and summer, and a dark-colored look during fall and winter.

Do note, however, that slipcovers may not necessarily be suitable for all types of furniture. Leather furniture, for example, may not work well with slipcovers because of its slick surface.

Get Customized Slipcovers at Creative Covers

Established since 1998, Creative Covers specializes in providing our customers with custom products. Rest assured that we are committed to providing you with excellent quality products and professional customer service. All covers produced are durable, high-quality, and proudly handcrafted to your choice of color and style in the USA.

If you are considering a customized order for your furniture, check out our guide to ordering your creative cover and contact us today if you have any questions.

Doing Branding For Your Medical Carts
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Doing Branding For Your Medical Carts

When you think of the world’s most well-known brands, it is highly like that companies such as Apple, Google, and Starbucks may have come to mind. Aside from amazing customer service and products, these companies managed to come this far because they have given equal importance to brand recognition.

This applies to medical carts as well. If your medical carts are customized in consistency with your branding, it can help to cultivate brand recall, trust, and loyalty when they require more medical carts from you in future. To get started, here are some ways you can consider customizing your medical cart:

Adding a Logo

Logos are extremely important because it is akin to giving your medical cart a name. This allows customers to have a visual tieback between the product and the company that provided them with the medical cart. Some ways to add logos to your product include vinyl, silk screen printing, pad printing, embossing, debossing, and raised decals. These can be applied to any plastic or metal surfaces.

Standardizing Brand Colors

Colors provide an extraordinarily strong visual tieback to your brand. For instance, green may automatically be associated with Starbucks before you even remember how the Starbucks logo looks like.

Consider customizing your medical cart in your brand colors to cultivate an instant visual association to your company. Most companies will pick their brand color as an accent color for their product’s design.

Packaging

How your medical cart will be packaged determines your customer’s first impression or initial experience with your company’s product. Ensure that your packaging is designed with your company’s logo or brand colors in mind.

Again, consider customizing your medical cart covers to reflect the same standardized design for the best brand recall even when your medical carts are covered up or placed elsewhere.

Consider Your Medical Cart’s Unique Selling Point

Based on a blind water taste test, studies have shown that a customer’s preference lies solely in the marketing and the design of the bottle. It was not the taste that mattered to them. Similarly, ensure that your medical carts are designed and market in a unique way that sets you apart. This will give you a competitive edge over your rivals.

Ensure Your Medical Cart Has a Family Design

If you have multiple types of medical carts available, or if you are planning on adding more carts to the catalogue, establish your brand by ensuring that there is a consistency across all available products (e.g. similar colors, shapes, and materials).

Customize Your Medical Cart Covers at Creative Covers

Specializing in custom covers since 1998, Creative Covers is committed to providing our customers with high quality products, and excellent customer service. All customized covers are handcrafted in the USA with durable materials in your specified style and color.

If you would like to have custom-made medical cart covers, rest assured that Creative Covers can be relied upon to do the job right. Check out our guide on how to order and reach out to us for a free quotation.