URGENT PATIO QUESTION!

[Chew Toy McCoy]

Looking to spruce up the backyard social setting. Always been a big rocking chair fan but don’t currently own one. I can’t decide between rockers or gliders. All opinions and experiences are welcome.

 

[Eric]

Call me old fashioned but I'll take a nice rocker any day.

 

[Clix Pix]

Oh, wow, the mention of a glider takes me back many, many years (we're talking the late 1940's, all through the 1950's to the mid-1970s) to countless happy hours spent on one of the gliders on the (enclosed) porch of my grandparents' summer cottage.... There were two of them, one on each side of the porch (the entrance/exit to it was in the middle). They were large enough for two people to sit together comfortably or for one person, especially a child, to curl up on while reading a book or magazine..... We lived on those gliders. In the evenings, we'd sit on the porch enjoying the sunset and the darkness of a sultry summer night settling in, in the afternoons, we'd sit there watching the activity on the lake and enjoying a cool beverage (for the adults, of course the beverage contained alcohol later in the afternoon). In the mornings, the porch was often the first place we'd go to hang out for a while on a glider after breakfast.........

There were other seating possibilities on the porch, too: regular chairs, and a couple of stools, plus a table or two here-and-there for setting things down on. No rocking chairs, though.

Rocking chairs...... I love them, and they are definitely worth considering, but I think if the idea here is something for guests to sit on while socializing that a glider or two might be better. Some people don't like the movement of a rocker or watching someone else rocking while they're trying to talk with them. The gentle back-and-forth of a glider doesn't seem to bother a lot of people, either if they are sitting on it or if they are sitting across from the person(s) sitting on it and talking to then.

I have no idea what modern gliders are like today, but I am sure that they aren't quite the same as the ones on that porch at my grandparents' cottage. Those things were HEAVY and needed occasional maintenance (maybe a squirt of oil?) from my grandfather to keep them gliding smoothly. My grandmother fussed about the cushions and replacing them periodically as of course they wore out with enthusiastic everyday use.

OK, yanking myself back from nostalgia and memories of summers spent on those porch gliders years and years and years ago into the present time here, my vote will be for gliders......

 

[Chew Toy McCoy]

Call me old fashioned but I'll take a nice rocker any day.

Yeah, at some point I want to get an old school wood rocker but this is more like your typical outdoor group sitting area.

 

[Chew Toy McCoy]

Oh, wow, the mention of a glider takes me back many, many years (we're talking the late 1940's, all through the 1950's to the mid-1970s) to countless happy hours spent on one of the gliders on the (enclosed) porch of my grandparents' summer cottage.... There were two of them, one on each side of the porch (the entrance/exit to it was in the middle). They were large enough for two people to sit together comfortably or for one person, especially a child, to curl up on while reading a book or magazine..... We lived on those gliders. In the evenings, we'd sit on the porch enjoying the sunset and the darkness of a sultry summer night settling in, in the afternoons, we'd sit there watching the activity on the lake and enjoying a cool beverage (for the adults, of course the beverage contained alcohol later in the afternoon). In the mornings, the porch was often the first place we'd go to hang out for a while on a glider after breakfast.........

There were other seating possibilities on the porch, too: regular chairs, and a couple of stools, plus a table or two here-and-there for setting things down on. No rocking chairs, though.

Rocking chairs...... I love them, and they are definitely worth considering, but I think if the idea here is something for guests to sit on while socializing that a glider or two might be better. Some people don't like the movement of a rocker or watching someone else rocking while they're trying to talk with them. The gentle back-and-forth of a glider doesn't seem to bother a lot of people, either if they are sitting on it or if they are sitting across from the person(s) sitting on it and talking to then.

I have no idea what modern gliders are like today, but I am sure that they aren't quite the same as the ones on that porch at my grandparents' cottage. Those things were HEAVY and needed occasional maintenance (maybe a squirt of oil?) from my grandfather to keep them gliding smoothly. My grandmother fussed about the cushions and replacing them periodically as of course they wore out with enthusiastic everyday use.

OK, yanking myself back from nostalgia and memories of summers spent on those porch gliders years and years and years ago into the present time here, my vote will be for gliders......

Yeah, I was thinking a rocker is probably better for solo naval gazing and gliders would be better for a social gathering.

 

[Clix Pix]

Exactly! We used that porch for socialization and sometimes one of the adults would sit out there alone and I definitely spent many happy hours reading my way through countless books while on one of those gliders, but yes, they really came into their own when there were guests. People sat down and could gently glide back-and-forth as they wished but it was all on one level, just forward-and-backward but not aggressively so, not like a rocker where they would be visibly going up-and-down, back-and-forth. The smooth motion of the gliders didn't interfere with conversation. Yes, I've always thought of a rocker as more of a chair for someone to sit by him/herself and rock back-and-forth, back-and-forth, while working out some knotty issues or just enjoying the relaxing feeling of rocking. Also, of course, rocking chairs are classic for using with babies and infants -- nothing more soothing for both adult and baby!

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Oh, wow, the mention of a glider takes me back many, many years (we're talking the late 1940's, all through the 1950's to the mid-1970s) to countless happy hours spent on one of the gliders on the (enclosed) porch of my grandparents' summer cottage.... There were two of them, one on each side of the porch (the entrance/exit to it was in the middle). They were large enough for two people to sit together comfortably or for one person, especially a child, to curl up on while reading a book or magazine..... We lived on those gliders. In the evenings, we'd sit on the porch enjoying the sunset and the darkness of a sultry summer night settling in, in the afternoons, we'd sit there watching the activity on the lake and enjoying a cool beverage (for the adults, of course the beverage contained alcohol later in the afternoon). In the mornings, the porch was often the first place we'd go to hang out for a while on a glider after breakfast.........

There were other seating possibilities on the porch, too: regular chairs, and a couple of stools, plus a table or two here-and-there for setting things down on. No rocking chairs, though.

Rocking chairs...... I love them, and they are definitely worth considering, but I think if the idea here is something for guests to sit on while socializing that a glider or two might be better. Some people don't like the movement of a rocker or watching someone else rocking while they're trying to talk with them. The gentle back-and-forth of a glider doesn't seem to bother a lot of people, either if they are sitting on it or if they are sitting across from the person(s) sitting on it and talking to then.

I have no idea what modern gliders are like today, but I am sure that they aren't quite the same as the ones on that porch at my grandparents' cottage. Those things were HEAVY and needed occasional maintenance (maybe a squirt of oil?) from my grandfather to keep them gliding smoothly. My grandmother fussed about the cushions and replacing them periodically as of course they wore out with enthusiastic everyday use.

OK, yanking myself back from nostalgia and memories of summers spent on those porch gliders years and years and years ago into the present time here, my vote will be for gliders......

Exactly! We used that porch for socialization and sometimes one of the adults would sit out there alone and I definitely spent many happy hours reading my way through countless books while on one of those gliders, but yes, they really came into their own when there were guests. People sat down and could gently glide back-and-forth as they wished but it was all on one level, just forward-and-backward but not aggressively so, not like a rocker where they would be visibly going up-and-down, back-and-forth. The smooth motion of the gliders didn't interfere with conversation. Yes, I've always thought of a rocker as more of a chair for someone to sit by him/herself and rock back-and-forth, back-and-forth, while working out some knotty issues or just enjoying the relaxing feeling of rocking. Also, of course, rocking chairs are classic for using with babies and infants -- nothing more soothing for both adult and baby!

Two wonderful and beautifuly written posts; must say that I loved reading them, thanks for sharing such memories.

 

[DT]

Doesn't answer your question, if you don't have a good local source, outdoor furniture, that's decent and nicely priced, check out WayFair.com, just read through the reviews carefully.

Here's their rocker selection:

Wayfair.com - Online Home Store for Furniture, Decor, Outdoors & More | Wayfair

Shop Wayfair for A Zillion Things Home across all styles and budgets. 5,000 brands of furniture, lighting, cookware, and more. Free Shipping on most items.

www.wayfair.com

 

[Chew Toy McCoy]

Doesn't answer your question, if you don't have a good local source, outdoor furniture, that's decent and nicely priced, check out WayFair.com, just read through the reviews carefully.

Here's their rocker selection:

Wayfair.com - Online Home Store for Furniture, Decor, Outdoors & More | Wayfair

Shop Wayfair for A Zillion Things Home across all styles and budgets. 5,000 brands of furniture, lighting, cookware, and more. Free Shipping on most items.

www.wayfair.com

Looks like some good options there.

 

[Huntn]

…or a swinging chair. This is my chair of choice for by the pool, but you can hang it from a porch rafter if one is available.

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