I Used to Wait Until Spring to Shop for the Garden, Until I Realised My Favourite UK Retailers Discount Far Earlier
I stopped waiting for spring to buy garden furniture, and it saved me hundreds before the season even started
In my opinion, waiting until spring to think about your garden is a huge mistake. When the tulips start to poke their heads through the soil, the best pieces are often gone, and prices are at their highest.
If you want to prepare your garden for spring properly, the smartest time to shop is now. From furniture and lighting to decorative details, many beautiful garden accessories are in the January sales now, and it also means you can secure pieces you actually adore rather than settling for what is left when the temperatures rise.
Garden Essentials Before Prices Rise
Rowen & Wren garden furniture is undeniably covetable, which makes their sale all the more exciting. Simple, classic, and exquisitely crafted, these pieces are well worth investing in, especially at such a tempting discounted price.
Add instant comfort to garden benches and larger outdoor seating with extra-long seat pads, generously padded and upholstered in soft, textural natural linen. They work just as beautifully on a window seat, too.
Shatterproof glasses are always a wise choice for the alfresco season, but a word of warning: don’t wait until summer to buy them. Many are quietly discounted in the sales right now. Habitat, in particular, has some truly lovely options – these apricot-coloured wine glasses included.
Talking of picnics and eating on the lawn, I have always adored these outdoor mattresses. Great for lying out on the grass on balmy days, to read a good book in the sun, and great for little ones to sit on and play. Normally £128, these are a little on the expensive side, but at £88 each in the sale, they're much more justifiable.
A classic cream parasol is a must for every garden, but often the real ones (made with wood, rather than plastic) come with a rather weighty price tag. This one is just £69.99 in the sale, which is one of the best deals I have seen around.
If you’re planning to invest in good-quality, warmly lit fairy lights this year, QVC currently has an excellent selection of outdoor lighting on sale. These battery-operated rope lights look particularly beautiful in rustic garden settings, and the built-in timer is a supremely handy finishing touch.
Sun-baked afternoons spent dining alfresco may feel a million miles away right now, but that’s precisely why it’s worth investing in beautiful garden accessories while everyone else is focused on staying warm. This elegant white tablecloth is made for spring and summer outdoor feasting – and right now, it’s available for a fraction of its original price.
A beautiful, generously sized terracotta pot – perfect for anchoring a bay or olive tree. You can never have too many terracotta pots, but the larger ones are often an investment, which makes their appearance in the January sales all the more appealing. Just be quick: these are the pieces that rarely stay discounted for long.
I love how this rustic-style fire pit isn't just an ugly black hunk of metal, as so many modern firepits are. This stylish fire pit would look at home in really any garden scheme, and for under seventy pounds, you really can't go wrong.
Even with the UK gripped by a biting cold spell and frosty mornings keeping everyone indoors, it is possible to start imagining garden decorating ideas that feel warm, inviting, and perfectly styled. Thinking ahead like this allows you to experiment with colour, texture, and layout without the pressure of the spring rush.
Patio furniture ideas are also well worth planning for now, from sleek dining sets to cosy seating corners. Curating your garden early gives you the freedom to mix and match pieces you love, creating a cohesive outdoor space ready to enjoy as soon as the weather improves. Even though it is cold outside, it can be incredibly satisfying to imagine how your garden will look and feel when spring arrives, knowing that you already have the key pieces in place.
Even as I write this, wrapped in woollen blankets with the heater turned up to its highest setting, I know this is my cue to start shopping for the garden – before prices begin their steady climb.
The UK’s January sales are in full swing, making now the ideal moment to invest in patio furniture, outdoor rugs, cushions, planters and lighting, while the selection is broad and the discounts are at their most generous.
Leave it even a few weeks, and you risk missing the very pieces that could transform your garden when spring finally arrives.
