Welcome to the 909th Metamorphosis Monday! Have you ever ordered an item and when it arrived, it looked a bit different than it had online? Maybe the color was slightly different, or the texture wasn’t quite what you expected, but it was close enough that you didn’t mind and kept the item. Then there are the times when you open the box, and the item looks so different, you are sure that you’ve been shipped the wrong item entirely. Unfortunately, that was the situation on Friday. I ordered this: a table and four chairs designed with alternating rows of cream and gray weaving.
Actually, I ordered two sets, so I could push them together to create this setup when needed. Notice how light and bright the set looks, how the chairs are woven in alternating lines of cream/white and gray.
Here’s a closeup of the weave/design of the chairs and tables. Notice how the gray and white (or off-white) areas alternate for every row, creating a light, bright weave for this beautiful patio set.
When I opened the top of one of the very large boxes, this is what I saw. This photo was taken in the light pouring in through the open door of my garage. The next chair back that I removed looked the same. At that point, I stopped, placed both back in the box, and taped it back up. How do these things happen? Do companies design a beautiful set of outdoor furniture, hire a photographer to take photos for their ads, sell a bunch since it’s so pretty, order more from the manufacturer with the new sets arriving that look completely different, but they continue selling the product using the original photos? Is that how this happens? I’m now awaiting contact from the “hub” that will be picking the 4 large boxes back up for a return.
Back to the Drawing Board: Last summer I drove over to a large business here in the Dayton area that sells Polywood. They had a lot of beautiful HDPE furniture, including some that I liked even more than the Polywood. (See photos and read that previous post here: Shopping for Outdoor Furniture: Polywood vs C. R. Plastic.) I wasn’t that keen on the texture of the Polywood. I also noticed that dirt had accumulated in the grooves of the sets they had displayed in front of their store.
Everybody and his brother has jumped on the trend of producing outdoor furniture from HDPE, which stands for: High Density PolyEthylene. I really like the furniture Polywood is producing with chairs designed with Chippendale backs, but since I’m not crazy about the texture of Polywood, and I don’t want to spend thousands for a set, I’ve been looking at some of their competitors. This set caught my eye because it has the Chippendale backs that I like so much, and it doesn’t have the sagging/bending seat issue that some of the competitors’ sets have.
Note: I saw some pretty sets online by other companies, but many of the reviews indicated that the seats sagged when a person of normal weight sat in them. Per the reviews, the manufacturer told them that’s normal. What?! Thankfully, that doesn’t seem to be an issue with the company that makes the set below. In fact, they go to great lengths to point that out in their ad, saying that their chair seats do not sag like other brands. I noticed that the seats are designed in a completely different manner, and there are no complaints of sagging seats in the reviews. (This set is available in three colors here: Deck/Patio Furniture with Chippendale Chairs.)
I started to order the white set since I think it’s beautiful, but I remembered how dirty the grooves looked on the white set I saw while shopping in a local store last summer. Also, this is the patio where the set will go. Some of the pavers in this patio have a grayish tint. (Note: I expect to have this patio cleaned, sanded, and sealed this summer, hopefully by the end of the month. That should brighten the color of the pavers a bit, possibly making the gray even more visible.)
In the end, I went for the more practical option and purchased the set in gray. I’ve never cared for black or gray furniture, even though I know it’s a popular trend, so ordering it in gray was a hard decision for me. I know the stark white set would stick out like a sore thumb against the pavers, and I don’t think white would be the right choice for this area. The white set is probably more suited alongside a pool (as seen in the photo earlier in this post) or maybe on a deck or screened porch with a lot of pretty white paint. The white set would look great on my screened porch in Georgia, but I think the gray set will be a better look for the patio and def more practical for keeping clean. (This set is available in three colors here: Deck/Patio Furniture with Chippendale Chairs.)
Another feature I like about this set is that the surface is made with a faux wood-grained design. This was the best close-up photo I could find to show that. I just received notification that the set has shipped via FedEx in four boxes, so it should arrive this week. I sure hope when I open the boxes, it looks like it does in the photos online!
An Update with a Dramatic Effect: After a lot of research, I finally found a company that sells quality, longleaf pine straw at a more affordable price. Trying to buy pine straw in Ohio is not easy. Almost no one uses pine straw in their yards/gardens due to its unavailability and the insane cost per bale. If you do locate it. prices often range from $14 to $15 a bale! The reviews online at Home Depot and other big box stores are terrible! Tip: Don’t buy pine straw from any company that ships it to you in a box! I finally found a place where it’s on sale for $9.99 a bale. Unfortunately, I had to pay a delivery fee of $85. Argh. Here’s how the house looked with black mulch, which looks a lot like regular black dirt.
And here’s how it looks with fresh, longleaf pine straw. The pine straw really makes the hydrangeas and other shrubs pop.
I’m often asked what mulch I’m using when I share photos of the Georgia house/garden. Pine straw must mostly be a southern thing. I will never again complain about how much I pay for pine straw in Georgia.
The last time I purchased pine straw for the Georgia house (March 2026), this is what I paid: $353.32, and that cost included spreading/putting it out. Here in Ohio, 40 bales, at the best price I could find, was $515, and I had to put it out myself!
The company I purchased it from (TryPineStrawdotcom) had great reviews and has been sourcing and selling pine straw for over 20 years, so they know where to get the good stuff that’s not full of sticks. I spoke with Scott, one of the owners, and placed my order online. The pine straw was delivered in a beautiful, professional, enclosed truck, and the delivery guy was super nice, offering to place the bales wherever I wanted. I had him place half in the front yard up against the house, and the other half in the back yard. I am very impressed with this company and will order from them again. I’ll be putting out the other 20+ bales (I had some left over from doing the front yard) this evening and tomorrow morning when it’s not as hot as it is right now. I tried to do some research to see how it holds up under snow, and the info I found online said that it does well. I hope that’s true! We’ll know next spring. I doubt I’ll need as much next time since I plan on grassing an area in the backyard.
Thanks for coming along on this journey. Painters were supposed to arrive today to take care of some exterior repairs, but that’s been moved out to next week. Hopefully that will get underway soon. Next, I need to work on getting new wood exterior shutters since the current ones are starting to fall apart. So much to do when you own an older home; it’s never-ending!
Metamorphosis Monday: Metamorphosis Monday is a party that’s all about Before and Afters. Please link up your Before and After projects, like DIY projects, room makeovers, craft projects, and even recipes. Please do not link up Table Settings; save those for our Tablescape Thursday party on Thursday. If you are participating in Met Monday, link your post to the party using the “permalink” to your MM post and not your general blog address. To get your permalink, click on the name of your post, then copy and paste the address (that shows in the address bar at the top of your blog) into the “URL” box for InLinkz when prompted.
The yard is looking beautiful. I envy your energy to spread this around, that’s some work! Yes , I really feel irritated when an item is switched. In May I ordered a dress. In the photo it was dark denim and very cute. The I opened it and it was very cheap turquoise nylon with terrible stitching. The company did not respond to my email. It had to go to dispute with my bank. I even researched customs reviews before purchasing. It seems some are setting up sites and putting up their own positive reviews now. I will be sticking to companies I know in the future.
You are the neighbor everyone wishes they had! Someone who keeps up their home to make it lovely! Seems there are always one or two who just don’t care! Frustrating for those of us who do! Your neighbors will love you for all your improvements to your place.
have you decided what color you are going to use for your outdoor shutters?
I’m tempted to stay with the blue since it looks pretty with the brick. I wish I knew the name of this paint. Donna, I would love to hear suggestions. I have black shutters in Georgia, but that house is more formal. The blue seems to fit this Cape Cod cottage, but I’m open to other ideas/suggestions.
I wanted to order the same table chairs that you just ordered. I was worried about knees hitting the support beam that goes length wise and then I wondered if the folks sitting at the ends of the table would have to rest their feet on those support boards. Please let know how this works out for you and your family. Hopefully my concerns make sense.
I’m afraid to order online anymore – it seems that companies must steal images from legitimate vendors to use them in their ads for their knock-offs – Often, the model has exactly the same pose with different outfits – online ordering is becoming more miss than hit! – Love the look of the pine straw! Can you share the vendor you use in Georgia?
In Georgia, I order from West Cobb Pine Straw. Here’s their website: https://www.westcobbpinestraw.com/
They almost always have a $5 coupon code, so call them and ask for the code if you order from them. I can’t remember now what code I used last time. Their pinestraw is always beautiful. Make sure to order the longleaf and not the slash. The longleaf costs a little more but it’s much prettier and lasts much longer.