Rattan Garden Furniture

Natural rattan and synthetic weaves

Rattan is a climbing palm whose long stems are split, softened and woven into furniture, and it gives a chair or a table a warm, handmade texture. Most garden furniture sold as rattan today uses a synthetic weave instead: a polyethylene strand wrapped and woven over a metal frame to the same basket pattern. Most of the pieces in our range are made this way, and the strands come in flat and round profiles, some mixed in tone so they read like natural cane from a few steps away.

Check the materials on each product page before you buy, so you know which weave and which frame you are getting. The Material filter on this page shows polyrattan for the synthetic weaves, alongside the frame materials, so you can see one kind at a time.

Dining sets for four or six

A rattan dining set pairs a table with matching woven chairs, and most of ours seat four or six. That covers a family meal on the patio, a long lunch with friends or a summer supper as the light goes. Woven chairs with a curved back hold you comfortably through a slow meal, and they look as settled on a lawn as they do on paving.

Before you choose, measure the space and allow room to pull each chair out. Check the table's dimensions on its product page, and use the Seating Capacity filter to see only the sets with the number of places you need.

Lounge and corner sets

For sitting back rather than sitting down to eat, a lounge set groups its seats around a low table so a few people can talk face to face. Corner sets wrap around the edge of a patio or a deck and seat more people in the same footprint, which suits a garden that is wider than it is deep. A corner set also turns a bare corner of the garden into a place people want to sit.

Lay a lounge set out before you buy it: mark its footprint on the patio with a tape measure, leave a clear path around it, and check the depth of the seats on the product page if you like to sit with your feet up.

Chairs and sets for two

Single pieces fill the gaps around a set. Woven chairs add places to a table you already have, and a pair of chairs by the back door makes a spot for the first coffee of the day. A chair on its own under a tree, with a small table beside it, is often the most used seat in the garden.

For a balcony, a courtyard or a narrow terrace, a set for two keeps a table and a pair of seats within a small footprint, so there is still room to walk past.

Frames and what they are made of

The weave is only part of the story: the frame underneath carries the weight. Aluminium frames are light, so a chair lifts easily when you move it to follow the sun or clear the lawn for mowing. Steel frames are heavier and feel solid when you sit down. A few of our sets add acacia wood on the legs, the table top or the arm rests, for a warmer finish against the weave.

Check the frame on each product page, and use the Material filter to narrow the range to aluminium, steel or acacia. If you plan to move a set around the garden often, a lighter frame is the easier one to live with.

Colours and finishes

Our rattan comes mostly in grey, natural and beige. Grey suits modern paving, slate and rendered walls, while natural and beige sit well against a lawn, stone and timber decking. A mid tone hides dust and leaves between cleans better than a very pale one, which is worth knowing for a set under trees.

Choose the form and the frame first, then the colour that works with your garden, and use the Colour filter to see only that shade.

Looking after rattan furniture

Rattan needs little care. Brush off leaves and dust, wipe the weave with a soft cloth and mild soapy water, then let it dry in the air. Bring cushions indoors when they are not in use, and over the winter store the set in a shed or a garage, or keep it under a fitted cover. Our garden furniture covers and outdoor cushions are linked below.