Though our exquisite range of Italian porcelain tiles can transform your outdoor space in an instant - their beauty can be accentuated in many ways. The British weather appears to be slowly improving and we all look with anticipation towards warmer months where we can really make the most of our gardens - especially those who have Refin tiles already in place!

Our stunning outdoor tiles come in a range of beautiful neutral colours, and their aesthetic beauty adds panache and sophistication to any outdoor space, however, it is how you decorate the rest of your garden which will really have an effect on your home. We like to treat the garden as if it were any other room in the home, choosing the design, colour scheme, layout and accessories with extreme precision to create a stunning finish - and you can do the same! We've scoured our Pinterest account to find 5 of our favourite outdoor accessories that will really accentuate your Refin porcelain tiles and transform your garden into the best feature of your home. 

1. Lanterns 

Lanterns are traditionally seen as a Moroccan-themed garden accessory, but they come in a variety of shapes, sizes, colours and designs. A lantern not only adds some interest to your garden, but you can choose to add pops of colour, a rustic element or even practically fill them with candles to light for a romantic look! We love the teal lanterns pictured above. Paired with our Limestone Champagne tiles you have a colour scheme to dream about! 

2.  Hammocks

A hammock adds a really boho-chic vibe to any outdoor space, as well as being a completely comfortable and relaxing swinging seat for you to curl up in and enjoy the warmer weather. You can tie hammocks to trees or buy some gorgeous standalone ones - but they really add some character to your garden as well as being practically a comfortable seat you'll never know how you lived without. We like the stylish fringed one pictured above, but they come in all manner of shapes, sizes and patterns! 

3. A Fire Pit 

A fire pit will add warmth, style and sophistication to any garden. We love how they can create such a cosy atmosphere, allowing you to make the most of your Refin tiles and indeed your garden ever in the cooler autumn/winter months. The example above is a DIY boulder pit with suppllies purchased from a local hardware store, and the information on how to recreate it can be found here. 

 4. A Vibrant Flower Arrangement

Flowers and plants provide the most simple way for you to introduce a colour scheme to your garden. You can add some stunning and vibrant flowers in an interesting plant pot and it will really bring your outdoor space to life. We like the vintage wooden wheelbarrow pictures above with an assortment of feminine pink and purple flowers. It really adds interest and maintaining your flowers and plants can become a great hobby too! 

5. Comfortable and Attractive Seating

And last but not least, what is the point of implementing beautiful Refin Italian porcelain tiles into your outdoor space if you don't have somewhere to sit and enjoy them? Comfortable and attractive seating is the finishing touch to any outdoor space. It provides an area for you to entertain, relax, eat, drink, read - indeed if your outdoor space will allow it then seating should be an essential element of any garden. The best bit about it is you can carry on a colour scheme or theme and then sit back and enjoy your work when it all ties in together. 

Why do people spend more time in the living room than in the garden? The answer is obvious – because the garden is outdoors, and therefore exposed to all the grim nastiness with which we’ve come to associate our British weather.

We’ve said time and again that the garden ought to be treated as another room of the house – just like the lounge or the dining room – but if you’re serious about enjoying your outdoor space, you’re going to have to think tactically. Here are a few tips for getting the most from your garden:

• Never waste an opportunity! Unexpectedly sunny afternoon? Why not have dinner in the garden? Surprisingly warm weekend in the middle of autumn? Get the barbecue out and invite your friends over! Sunny days are meant to be spent outdoors, and the rainy days won’t be so disappointing if you make the most of dry ones.
  
  
• Do something with it! There’s little point in having a barren, empty patch of lawn behind your house. Add some chairs, add a swingball set, add something – just don’t let it go to waste.
  
  
• Keep it low-maintenance! Imagine a pie chart and split it down the middle. One half represents the days when you simply can’t go outside – maybe it’s raining, or maybe you’re just too busy. The other half represents the days that you could spend in the garden, but beware – if you make the wrong choices, you could end up spending a lot of that slice on maintenance when you could be relaxing. Go for low-maintenance outdoor products (like, say, Refin’s garden paving) and make sure you spend your garden time in the best possible way.

Both decking and paving are extremely popular choices for the back garden, but it's somewhat rare to see a garden design that utilises both. A lot of landscaping enthusiasts think of this as an either/or decision, but deck boards and paving slabs will quite happily go together, and if you're after a stunningly unique look for your outdoor space, this is definitely a tactic worth considering.

But how best to combine these two contrasting materials? Here are a few ideas...

Multiple Levels

This is the strategy that our architect deployed when designing the garden in the photo above. The doors open out onto a stylish paved patio, with a raised deck just beyond. This two-tier look is very appealing indeed, making the whole garden feel larger and, in a way, giving you two equally beautiful outdoor spaces for the price of one.

Keep 'Em Separated

If you've got a reasonably big garden, you may consider splitting it into different sections. Instead of sticking with that large, blank patch of lawn, you could install a small seating area at one end of the garden, and a nice little patio at the other. You could even have a hot tub in the corner - both composite wood and porcelain paving make great slip-resistant tub surrounds!

Blended Together

This approach is a little trickier, but the results are well worth the effort. We found the above image on Pinterest, and it's the perfect example: the duality of that design makes for a smooth, elegant outdoor living space. Mind you, you'll have to cut your boards and pavers quite precisely if you want to create that flawless transition between them.

No matter what you have in mind for your outdoor space, we at PrimaPorcelain can help. In addition to our spectacular porcelain paving products, we are also able to supply low-maintenance deck boards, and if you want to use one or both of these materials in your garden, our experienced in-house architect will be more than happy to help with the design.

Image from Christmas Stock Images

It's less than a week until Christmas, and you've probably had your decorations up for at least a couple of weeks now. Sparkly tinsel wrapped around the banister; festive shapes hanging from the ceiling; the colourful cards from old friends; and, of course, a beautiful Christmas tree, decked out with dazzling decorations.

But while every home in the country is currently glowing with festive cheer, the gardens of Britain look decidedly less merry. Very few people bother with the garden when they're doing their Christmas decorating, and since December is a pretty cruel month for outdoor spaces anyway, your back yard probably doesn't look all that inviting right now.

So why not give it a makeover? A little decorative elbow grease will do wonders for your barren winter garden, turning into a cosy Christmas wonderland in no time.

Don't worry - you don't have to go to such topiarific lengths as this!

The festive period is very much in full swing, and there's still plenty of time left for you to decorate the garden and enjoy the results. Here are a few tips for the perfect Yuletide outdoor space...

Use tinsel, and lots of it!
Tinsel is perhaps the ultimate Christmas decoration, and its versatility makes it ideal for doing up the garden. Strew it anywhere it will stay - on branches, in between poles, wrapped around tree trunks, in amongst flowers...

Any tree can be a Christmas tree!
Very few UK gardens will contain a genuine pine or fir, but who says that they're the only trees that can be Christmas trees? If you've got a little sapling in your back garden, there's no reason why you can't decorate it with baubles and other ornaments.

Light it up!
Nothing will give your garden that warm glow like a set of fairy lights. If you can't find anywhere to plug them in, you can get battery-powered fairy lights that are much more versatile.

No matter how you decorate your home and garden this December, we hope you have a very merry Christmas indeed!

That was how the classic Cliff Richard carol went, right? Since before the dawn of time, citizens of planet Earth have commonly associated the Christmas holidays with porcelain paving tiles. Okay, so perhaps that isn’t strictly true, but it should be! For what better gift to give your loved one this Christmas than a present which won’t age, which will remain stylish and beautiful for many years to come, which won’t stain or scratch, which will be the envy of their peers and which will transform their home into a personal haven?

We would like to assure readers that giving the gift of porcelain tiles for inside the home, outside the home, or both if you’re feeling particularly festive, will fill the recipient’s heart with joy…and that even applies if you give this gift to yourself!

Our stunning Italian porcelain tiles come in a gorgeous variety of natural colours which will provide a foundation for any decorative plans inside or outside the home. No matter which colour scheme or theme you’re going for, we have a porcelain tile or slab which will compliment your ideas perfectly.

Nothing spells Christmas quite like making your neighbours jealous of your beautiful home, so give the gift of eternal bragging rights along with a beautiful porcelain floor this December. Our personal favourites are:

1. For inside the home: Limestone Vanilla – because this creamy colour adds a spacious and light atmosphere to any room.

2. For outside the home: Onyx – because these gorgeous black paving slabs are sleek and modern, transforming your garden into a sophisticated outdoor space.

So what are you waiting for, gift-givers? Spread the festive cheer by offering your loved one the home of their dreams with a little help from Refin this Christmas. The only possible downside to this plan is that the fail-safe option of socks and a mug will never be acceptable again.

Request your Refin sample pack today to begin the transformation of your home ASAP. If you need any help or advice, please don’t hesitate to contact us at 029 2037 1584. Merry Christmas!