Don’t let summer slip away just yet
By: LMP Editorial Team - September 9th, 2007
Summer is officially over, but that depressing fact can still be ignored for a little while longer, especially if you concentrate on squeezing every last moment of summery pleasure out of your deck or patio.
With a little help, you can enjoy al fresco evenings for several more weeks. Here are the five things you need to stay cozy on the deck until the snow flies.
Stay warm
There’s definitely a nip in the evening air. But it won’t matter if you add a 
BernzOmatic patio heater to your deck decor. This unit, which comes in copper, stainless steel, brushed nickel and powder-coated black finishes, will warm an area of up to 100 square feet for up to 10 hours on a 20-pound propane cylinder. Best of all, it comes fully assembled and ready to use. Available at Home Depot for about $400.
Twinkle, twinkle
T
he sweet scent of honeysuckle may be just a faded olfactory memory, but you can still fill the evening air with flowery fragrance. Ambiente (416 Queen St. W. 416-504-8086/www.ambientestores.com) makes all-natural candles in twelve subtle scents, including vanilla, orange and cinnamon and lemon-grass. For dramatic effect, use a 20-inch floor model ($170) or cluster together several tapers, rounds or squares (from $2 each).
Cool cuddling
What could be more Canadian than cuddling on a cool night under a Hudson’s Bay throw? The venerable retailer now makes its iconic striped blankets and throws in warm and fuzzy mohair. Add a couple of matching pillows and you can hang out under the harvest moon for hours. Available at Bay stores. Prices start at about $150.
Patio lanterns
The Dietz lantern adds a retro feel to your patio lighting. Also known as the “Blizzard”, it gives off 12-candlepower light for up to 26 hours, and its makers say that the flame is so well protected that even a hurricane won’t blow it out. It comes in shiny hunter green, and stands 15 inches tall. Available for $22.50 at Lee Valley Tools, which also carries a pretty little reproduction of a Welsh miner’s lamp ($89), invented in 1815 by Sir Humphry Davy. Made from solid brass, this nine-inch lamp will throw a warm glow over a late fall tête-à-tête.
Keep it green
At some point, even the hardiest mum is going to start showing its age. That’s the time to bring in the faux florals and greenery. Place an all-weather cone-shaped cedar shrub or a lush topiary in a fibreglass bronze-finish planter and you can pretend it’s still August (without the watering).