Desert Dreaming

Most pictures were found on Bing

Summer has arrived….and it arrived in all its glory here in Florida, temperatures in the upper 90’s, we all still want to be able to go into our backyards and enjoy the sunny days and breezy evenings. My entire backyard is covered in Saltillo (Mexican tile), except for about an 8’ perimeter around the whole back yard, which houses a variety of palms, plumeria, heliconia, large bamboo, and other tropical plants and flowers. And in one end we have a 10 person in the ground spa; it’s large enough that we use it as a wading pool or just float on a nice comfy raft. Though the tile is made of natural clay from the desert, it doesn’t get that hot, even in Florida temperatures. But nonetheless, it still get’s warm back there during the summer months, so any feature that we can put back there for shade and aesthetic value is welcoming. You can look at any design magazine from the desert southwest, Southern California and of course here in Florida and they will feature some beautiful cabanas and patio umbrellas, which seem to be growing in popularity, probably due to the fact, there are so many different colors and styles to match anyone’s taste. My favorite cabanas are the black and white stripes, they just epitomize the “Old Hollywood Glam Era”, and the black/white combination invokes a cooling effect. I’ve added pictures of some I thought were very pretty. And…the fourth of July is just around the corner, what a better time, if you already don’t have them, to get some for your backyard parties. It’s time to sit back, relax and enjoy the summer and keep as cool as possible!